Italy – Andiamo! Study Abroad

Italy is the second leading destination for U.S. students studying abroad (Open Doors 2009 Report, IIE). In 2007-08 alone, 30,670 U.S. students studied abroad in Italy. To put this number in perspective, more students studied abroad in Italy than there are people who live in my city of Charleston, Illinois (home of Eastern Illinois University)!

While the largest portion of students probably went to Florence, there are twenty different regions of Italy that you can consider for your study abroad experience. Each region has its own government and president and has something different to offer by way of geography, culture, and cuisine.

Now, I will take you on a short tour of the different regions. Note, the number next to each region corresponds to the number on the map above. Clicking a number on the map will bring up a list of all study abroad programs in that region.

Northwest Italy

(1) Piedmont  (Turin)
(2) Aosta Valley  
(3) Lombardy (Milan)
(7) Liguria (Genoa, Chiavari, CinqueTerre)

Piedmont and Aosta Valley are beautiful mountainous regions with lakes and some plains. This area is a great study abroad destination for students who enjoy exploring the outdoors by bike or foot, and love fine wine, good food, and truffles. Right on the edge of the Alps, it’s also a great place for students who want to ski during their study abroad experience. Pied monte actually means “foot of the mountain”  (in French). Yes, there’s considerable French influence here. ‘Turin (Torino) is the capital of Piedmont and home to a few study abroad programs.

Lombardy is the most populated and richest region of Italy, known especially for its industrial and commercial development. Like Piedmont, it’s also a beautiful area with mountains, lakes, and rivers. Milan, the capital of Lombardy, is a modern city with lots of hustle and bustle. A mecca for fashion and shopping, Milan is the place for the classy student who desires to catwalk through an extravagent (and expensive) study abroad experience. If your aspiration is to become a fashion designer, runway model, or photographer, then Milan may your ideal study abroad experience.

A view of the Lake Como

Liguria is where you find the beautiful coast, better known as the French Riviera. As you can probably imagine, Liguria is home to many seaside resort towns similar to Cannes and Monaco on the French side. Famous Cinque Terre and Portofino are both part of Liguria. Genoa is the capital of Liguria and Italy’s largest commercial port. Genoa is a great place to study abroad if you want to learn Italian because the majority of people don’t speak much English. This city is loaded with architecture, art, music, gastronomy, and history. The University of Genoa dates back to the 13th century and is the oldest university in Italy.

Northeast Italy

(4) Trentino Alto Adige/Südtirol (Bolzano, Trento)
(5) Veneto (Paderno del Grappa, Padova, Padua, Venice, Verona)
(6) Friuli-Venezia Giulia
(8) Emilia-Romagna (Bologna, Ferrara, Portico di Romagna, Reggio Emilia, Rimini)

Trentino Alto Adige is the place to go if you want to learn German in Italy. Once part of Austria (before World War I), most people in this area speak German and eat würstel and zauerkraut. Between the Dolomite mountains, this area of Italy is breathtakingly beautiful. Trento, the cosmopolitan capital on the Southern side of the region, does speak lots of Italian though. There are plenty of study abroad students in Trento, from all over the world. Trento is a biking city. It’s also a good place if you like to ski.

Veneto is a nice place to wonder, without a lot of hustle and bustle, and no cars in the city of Venice! If you’d like to have a quieter lifestyle to go along with your study abroad experience, then Venice may be the place for you. Students who choose to study abroad in Venice tend to be more independent. Locals aren’t quite as friendly to foreigners and tend to be more reserved. Venice is a beautiful, breathtaking city, especially for the study abroad student who likes bridges (there are more than 400 bridges in Venice), boats, and water.

Friuli-Venezia Giulia is probably the least visited by Italians but most versatile region of Italy and a melting place of different cultures. Trieste, the capital, is the third largest Mediterranean port and a good place to learn Italian language.  The University of Trieste is home to the Advanced School of Modern Languages for Interpreters and Translators. There are also several Italian language schools in the city.  

Emilia-Romagna is full of fields and plains between the Apennine mountains and the Po River. This region is better known as Italy’s capital of gastronomy. Bologna, the capital, is both a medieval town and home to the oldest university in the Western world, the University of Bologna. Some of its alumni include Dante Alighieri, Nicolò Copernico,  Torquato Tasso, and Petrarch. Petrarch once said there was no other place so free or so beautiful as Bologna.

Central Italy

(9) Tuscany (Arezzo, Chianti, Cortona, Elba, Florence, Lucca, Montepulciano, Pietrasanta, Pisa, Pistoia, Siena, Viareggio)
(10) Umbria (Assisi, Città della Pieve, Corciano, Orvieto, Perugia, Spoleto)
(11) Marches (Macerata, Urbino)
(12) Latium or Lazio (Rome, Tuscania, Tivoli, Viterbo)

Tuscany is a beautiful region with a rich artistic legacy, commonly regarded as the birthplace of the Italian Renaissance. Florence, the capital of Tuscany, is a popular destination among U.S. college students. Some sources describe it as the largest U.S. study abroad center in the world. If you want to go to Florence, there are plenty of study abroad programs here. Students can study nearly any subject, although a mecca for art. If you want to learn Italian though, don’t go to Florence. Because there are so many Americans in this small city, English is everywhere.

Ponte Vecchio in Florence, Italy

Umbria is a land of rolling hills and castles. Perugia, the capital of Umbria, is near the Tiber River on top of a hill. Like Florence, Perugia is a university city, but better suited for students who want to learn Italian. Universita per Stranieri has a great program for foreign students to learn Italian language and culture. Courses are available at all language levels. There are other opportunities in Perugia to take courses taught in English, too. Don’t miss the Umbria Jazz Festival in July; it’s regarded as one of the premier in Europe.

The Marches is another gorgeous region off the beaten path. Ancona, the capital, is a large seaport which makes a nice base for visiting several small and medieval towns, such as Urbino, Ascoli Piceno, San Leo, Pesaro,  and Camerino. Portonovo is a stunning beach known for its clear, turquoise waters, on the Monte Conero coast. During the summertime, you can take a shuttle here from Ancona. There aren’t a lot of study abroad programs in the Marches, but you can find schools to study Italian language.

Latium (Lazio) is the region of Rome.  Before the rise of Rome, it was the home of the Etruscans. Rome, of course, is an amazing center of history and culture. The whole city is a museum. While expensive, it can be a wonderful place to study abroad. You should never get bored in Rome. There is too much to see and do. There are also many study abroad programs in Rome, which have a smaller and more intimate feel than the city. Keep in mind that Latium (Lazio) is not only Rome, and there is more to see and do outside of the city limits.

Southern Italy

(13) Abruzzo (L’Aquila, San Giovanni)
(14) Molise
(15) Campania (Amalfi, Capri, Naples, Pompeii, Salerno, Sorrento)
(16) Apulia (Leece)
(17) Basilicata
(18) Calabria (Tropea)
(19) Sicily (Catania, Palermo, Salemi, Syracuse, Taormina)
(20) Sardinia (Olbia)

Castel del Monte, one of Abruzzo's little-known hill towns

Abruzzo, Molise, and Apulia are quiet, sparsely populated regions best described as a natural paradise. A third of Abruzzo is a national park with mountains, lakes, greenery, and coast; this region is also known for its well-preserved Renaissance and medieval hill towns. Harvard University runs an intensive summer language program on Abruzzo’s southern coast.

Campania is home to the world-renowned Amalfi Coast, a stretch of coastline from Positano to Vietri sul Mare. Naples, Campania’s capital, is the third largest city in Italy (behind Rome and then Milan). If you know Italian, you can take more than Italian language and culture classes in Naples. If you don’t know Italian, consider some other cities in Campania, like Sorrento. Don’t forget to visit Pompeii and the romantic Isle of Capri.

Basilicata is a dry, mountainous region that is sparsely populated. It’s known for its Greek ruins and medieval castles. Because the locals are so friendly, and there’s virtually no tourism, this region would be an ideal place for study abroad students to immerse themselves in real Italian culture.

Calabria is a mountainous region with some of the nicest beaches in Italy. Pictures speak louder than words.

Cliff at Tropea, Italy

Sicily is its own unique and rich culture. Having been conquered by the Greeks, Romans, Vandals, Ostrogoths, and Byzantines, the region is quite different from the rest of Italy.  You will find more Greek and North African influence than Italian. In fact, before the Unification of Italy in the 1800s, Sicily was an independent kingdom. Sicily is known for its fertile soil and natural beauty. Its main agricultural products include citrons, lemons, oranges, olives, olive oil, grapes,  wine, and almonds. Its cuisine is a mix of Italian, Greek, and Arab, and is exquisite!

Nuragic site in Sardina

Sardinia is the second largest Mediterranean island, and seems to have escaped time. Many different languages and dialects are spoken on the island. Stone towers called Nuraghi date back to 1600BC. These Nuraghi are the Mediterranean’s largest stone structures after the Egyptian pyramids. Similar to the Basque language found in Spain, Sardinian is a Romance language that comes from Phoenician, Etruscan and the Near East, with additional influences from Latin, Spanish, Italian, and Arabic.

Other Considerations

If you’ve reached this far in my post, then you probably know more about Italy, but still need some help deciding where to study abroad. Before you make up your mind on a region and a program, let’s look at the big picture.

First of all, Italy is a relatively expensive country by U.S. standards. In fact, it’s one of the most expensive countries in Europe. If you’re strapped for cash, you must know there’s a huge difference in cost of living between the north-central regions and the south. There’s also a big difference between the urban centers and rural areas.  

Just to give you an example, I read a blog about someone who moved from Milan to the city of Cosenza, Calabria. He rented a beautiful modern apartment for only 180 euros a month. The apartment was twice the size of his place in Milan and a quarter of the price. He found a job right away and was able to save enough money after a year to buy some property in a nearby town.

Not to be biased (can you tell?), but the majority of people seem to be a lot friendlier in the south also, as well as in the rural areas around the country. If you want to immerse yourself in the culture, get to know Italians well, and perhaps learn to speak Italian as a foreign language, then consider a site far away from the hustle and bustle of the big city. While not everyone’s cup of tea, the south is a wonderful (underrated) option that not too many students consider.

Think carefully about what you want to get out of your study abroad experience, and whatever you decide, have the time of your life!

For faculty and study abroad professionals, read Faculty-led Study Abroad in Italy for some excellent sites around the country.

Posted by Wendy Williamson, Director of Study Abroad, Eastern Illinois University