Program Reviews

I had the most wonderful four months of my life in the heart of Renaissance. The art, history, food, wine, people and culture have opened my eyes to a whole new world. I can't wait to be back in Firenze! A big thank you to all the members of SAI for making our stay so comfortable and fun!

I was the first person from my college to attend an SAI program. I did not have much background on the program going in, but all SAI staff members were very helpful and made me feel very safe and informed throughout the whole process. I chose SAI: Florence for the location (a dream city), course options (I was looking for fun cultural classes, like Italian cooking!), and the fact that FUA's academic calendar still allowed my to make it home in time to walk at my graduation.

During my time in Florence, I discovered many reasons why I would (and do) recommend this program to everyone. 1) The SAI Staff has thought of everything. Part of moving to a different country is the inherent fear of the unknown, but rest assured that the SAI staff is experienced, qualified, and have already addressed the concerns you don't even know you have yet. 2) The friends I made, especially my 3 roommates, are my friends for life. Together we shared our most life-changing experiences to date. I don't know how SAI chooses housing assignments, but they sure did a great job. 3) Our apartment was better than I could have dreamed. The 4 of us girls lived on the other side of the Arno river (arguably further from the city center than most students), but I absolutely loved the residential feel of the neighborhood. We got to experience both the big-city and small-town feels Florence has to offer. Also, being further away from the Duomo meant our apartment was huge! It was un-Americanized, for which I am very thankful; the true Italian nuances to our old apartment added to the entire experience. 4) Everything is within walking distance. One of the greatest disappointments I had when coming back home was realizing I had to drive to the grocery store. I miss the little Il Centro market around the corner. 5) The extra trips and activities offered by the program allowed me to make the most of my time there. I also utilized Florence4Fun and Eruo Adventures for weekend trips and spring break. There may never be another time in your life to travel as freely as you can while studying abroad, so take advantage of every opportunity to make lasting memories.

A few difficulties I encountered: 1) For the first month I was unintentionally using fabric softener instead of laundry detergent and coffee creme instead of regular milk for my cereal. Thank goodness for Google Translate, but learning experiences like these make for great stories. 2) You can spot an American from a mile away. While I wouldn't normally advise this, try your best to blend in. 3) Like many students, I got sick a lot while abroad. But SAI connected me with a great English-speaking doctor in the city who prescribed me the same medication I could get at home. 4) If you live in Italy for more than 2 months, you will gain weight and that's okay. Please don't be like some girls in my program and try to diet while in the food capital of the world. This is your free pass - eat all the pasta and gelato you possibly can.

Choosing to study in Florence through SAI was the best decision I could have made. I absolutely recommend this program to everyone - there is no way you could regret it.

I studied abroad in Florence, Italy Spring Semester 2014. I could not have asked for a better experience or program. SAI is truly amazing, there staff is the sweetest and extremely helpful, and they take you on some awesome trips as well. If you're looking to study abroad, definitely look at programs through SAI!! :)

SAI is a wonderful program with fantastic staff. They made the living abroad experience so easy, fun and exciting. They are super helpful throughout the entire process from the beginning application until you leave your semester abroad.

Once abroad, SAI helps plan awesome social events to meet people as well as wonderful travel excursions from Cinque Terre to Fiorentina soccer games! They are always willing to help students with individual travel and even dining suggestions.

If you are considering going abroad SAI is the one to choose! I promise you wont regret it! This experience will change your life!

Choosing to participate in SAI Florence for my fall semester 2012 was the best decision I have ever made. Florence is the perfect city to study abroad in, and the program allowed for a myriad of travel opportunities. The courses were extremely interesting and intellectual stimulating while not asking too much outside of the classroom in order to allow students to take full advantage of their amazing surroundings in Florence. I had some incredible teachers who inspired me to be interested in things I never knew I would like. I owe this program everything for giving me the best 4 months of my life.

SAI was a reciprocal program through my home university and I can not say enough great things about them! Our program had about 130 students in it and we were the closet out of all other programs based in Italy. We got to take a lot of fun trips together and the staff was extremely helpful in making our transition into Florence as easy as possible!

The shuttle service provided by the school was great, as was my on-site advisor. The location of the school and the apartment was awesome as well - but the academics within the school? Not as great. The teacher for the Fashion Design class was absolutely horrible. Not only for 50% of the time did he cancel class or fail to show up, he did zero teaching. It also happened to be the class that it seemed that the majority of us looked forward to - especially since it said in the syllabus that we would produce an article of clothing (which never happened) and the said majority of us were also most disappointed by. Also there seemed to be technical difficulties with the e-mails - I never once received an e-mail from any of my teachers, and therefore missed many classes due to the fact that the location for them kept changing. While it didn't really hamper my experience abroad, it's just an annoyance to bear in mind (though it might have just been unlucky me.) The students in the classes were from other programs and super friendly even though we were all from different parts of the world - the only awkward barrier there seemed to be was the Chinese students... Which was awkward for me due to the fact that I'm an American... Who is fluent in both Chinese and English. Overall, I had a great time despite the difficulties.

Great experience! Studying at Central Saint Martins was vey inspiring and I met a lot of very creative people. SAI did a lot to help me make the most out of my time here: go to the museums, visit markets, go to plays...

My experience in London at the University of the Arts was amazing and something I'll truly take with me in everything I do! I studied at the London College of Fashion, more specifically, and found the academic program there very stimulating and engaging. The SAI staff was very friendly and welcoming, and they made me feel like I had some people looking out for me (almost like parents) while I was in London. I absolutely loved the planned SAI trips that are scheduled throughout the term - they helped bring the group together and ensured that we got to see some of the major attractions in London. Overall, SAI made the entire process of studying abroad simpler and smoother, through arranging the apartments and cell phones to orientating us throughout the term. I would definitely recommend this program, at least definitely for the London College of Fashion. I experienced so many things in London I never thought I would, and I learned so much about myself through my experiences!

SAI greatly enhanced my experience in Rome. They provide so much support and are always there to answer any questions you may have. They organize events (cooking lessons, opera and ballet night, hiking and bike tours, weekend trip to Tuscany) that allow you to make new friends and get closer to your old ones. When planning one of my first trips, I had no idea how the train system worked. But one of the SAI employees took the time to sit down and help me figure it out. I also had to cancel my hostel reservation but was worried that there would be a language barrier that would make it difficult to cancel the reservation. I asked an SAI employee to make the call for me and they were happy to do it. Whenever I contacted them outside the office, they were very prompt and return my emails/calls/text quickly. I always felt like I was being looked after. I couldn't recommend SAI more! My study abroad experience was so much better because of them and I am so thankful for them being here for me from the beginning to the end. Thanks SAI!