Art History Abroad | The Autumn European Gap Semester Program

Where to start with how much I came to adore Art History Abroad during the 12 week course? To begin, I would say that you don’t have to be an art historian or planning on majoring in art history to have a fantastic time in the program. As long as you love learning and are excited by museums and historical sites, you are perfect for this trip! However, as amazing as the tutors were, with their incredibly curated lesson plans and museum tours, I would say that the learning isn’t what makes this experience the best- it was the people I met. I made some of the greatest memories of my life during this program, and met friends I know I will never lose. The experiences you get to be apart of during this trip are life-changing, I don’t think I will ever get over visiting the Vatican on a private tour or being in St. Mark’s Basilica completely alone, and those are just two of the wonderful opportunities AHA offers! The tutors become your best friends, and the fellow students become family. I can’t recommend this program highly enough- it’s a fantastic gap year opportunity I would do a thousand more times if I could.

It was absolutely amazing every single thing we saw everyday was just outstanding from the Michelangelo to Raphael if you’re really into just taking everything in this is the most perfect thing ever, the tutors absolutely lovely Flo, Clemmie, Ed, Celia, Dom, Emma, Angi and Ellie are some of the most knowledgeable people on art history and absolutely amazing! And last but not least I made some of the greatest friends ever on this trip, I would highly highly highly recommend to anyone and everyone!!!

Coming out of high school, I felt severe academic burnout. I used to love learning but felt anxious whenever I thought about starting college classes. My gap year counselor showed me AHA, and I thought the experiential learning aspect might help me get excited again. I had taken advanced art classes, but history has always been my least favorite subject. I took a leap of faith that art history might be different for me. Art History Abroad ended up being the most amazing trip I have ever and probably will ever experience. The tutors are all incredible humans (Ed, Flo, Scarlett, and Jess, to name a few), and their lessons were more engaging than any teacher I have had. They truly cared about ensuring we were safe, happy, and engaged. I still text and visit my friends from AHA all the time and went on to travel with one of them for the rest of my gap year. I genuinely cannot recommend the semester program enough (or any AHA program). The memories you make are unforgettable. I felt energized and excited to learn when I got to university the following fall. I now minor in art history and still use the lessons I learned on my trip. If you are considering going on an AHA program, DO IT!!!

I loved my time with AHA. Six weeks of adventure, laughter, and memories I will forever cherish. I was able to experience Italian culture firsthand and learned so much about art history, which I am currently studying at university. It’s an experience that I would highly recommend. The tutors were extremely amiable, supportive, and knowledgeable in their subjects. One tutor even helped take care of me when I was sick, she took me to the store to get medicine. Overall, this program was amazing and I am so grateful I got to be a part of this life changing experience.

AHA holds such a special place in my heart. I went on the Autumn Gap Year Program in 2022. Prior to going I loved art and loved Italy, so i had no doubt i would have a good time but i could have never anticipated quite how memorable and special those 6 weeks would be.

I made friends from all over the world, many of whom i still see regularly and keep in touch with and i learned so much - not just about art but history, music, poetry, literature, philosophy and language. The tutors were incredible and invaluable to the experience. The course completely departed from a school way of teaching, which is exactly what i wanted after finishing my A levels but this by no means hindered how much i learned (if anything the focus on discussion, listing to one another’s opinions and learning to look and learn with your eyes made me learn so much more about Italian culture compared to if i had been in a classroom!).

I really couldn’t say a single best thing about AHA - after all every single day was packed with exciting activities from visiting galleries and museums to exploring the catacombs in Naples and making pasta and rowing down the canals in Venice. But, if I had to choose, some highlights for me were walking up to San Miniato al Monte in Florence and looking over the whole city during sunset, doing the gold leaf workshop in Siena and listening to some of my friends singing in San Marco in Venice with no one else but us there. These are just a couple of standout moments but every day really was special in its own way.

I couldn’t speak higher of AHA and the time I had with them. Almost 2 years later and I have no hesitation in saying it was without a doubt the best 6 weeks of my life!!

My Fall Semester abroad with AHA was nothing short of excellence. It honestly was the best experience I have ever had. The tutors were extremely caring and genuinely wanted to build friendships with the students. The locations of the trip were incredible, and nothing like anything I have ever experienced. Learning about art history in the rich European landscape made the experience even more fruitful. Now that I am studying abroad again, I seek to travel to a lot of the locations I had been previously with AHA, and impressively, remember a lot of the history. Overall, I highly recommend AHA to anyone who is game for an adventure, and looking to make lifelong friendships with people from all over the globe.

I had such a wonderful experience with AHA, all of the administration felt like friends and not tutors(while they did a wonderful job teaching as well) the environment felt so loving and supportive! I remember one day sitting down at dinner with the entire group and Nick Ross stated that “these would be the friends we would keep for a lifetime”. It was hard to believe at first but I still keep in contact with many of the people I met on this trip. I strongly recommend joining, or atleast thinking about AHA as it was such an amazing experience I will never forget.

It’s really hard to put into words just how much this course meant to me.

I had just left school and the last thing I wanted was to be taught like I was back in a classroom, but it never felt like this. The tutors were all young, kind and friendly. Yes they were incredibly knowledgable about the subject but what made them amazing was how engaging and passionate they were. I made some amazing friends many of whom I am still in contact with two years later. It was a mixture of British, American and Australian. Everyone was like minded, kind, funny, curious and wanted to make the most of it. I really believe your experience depends on your attitude to making the most of all the opportunities and just throwing yourself in.

I loved the evenings, all eating together at the most amazing restaurants - I have no regrets that my diet only consisted of pasta, gelato and aperol for six weeks. Some of the best bits included the private tour of the Vatican, trying to learn how to row a gondola, seeing Giotto’s frescoes, a cookery course and a wine tasting. Oh and singing in San Marco in the evening was something I don’t think I will ever forget.

I really am so grateful I got do to this trip and recommend this to anyone who wants to see Italy and make the most of all it has to offer.