Wine Marketing in Siena, Italy

The program as a whole has been an unreal experience. If I could do it all over again, I would do it in a heartbeat. With that being said, the school aspect is more of a chore rather than an educational experience. Our two professors were often unprepared and didn't keep the students on the same page. In addition, the work load is sometimes unnecessary given the fact that we were often in school for a long period of time throughout the day, or at an excursion for the whole day and then expected to have a presentation to show the day after in class at 9:30am. However, the teaching staff from Siena have been incredible. No complaints about them.

This trip and study abroad was overall amazing. The academics were tedious at times, but overall I feel like I learned a lot about marketing basics. It was nice to have long weekends to travel different places too! My favorite memories are the winery class excursions along with my several weekend trips!
Side note: I have a long PowerPoint about my trip experience and lots of tips and tricks. If you’d like to see it, you can email me at samanthakin7@gmail.com!

Throughout the course of my 8 weeks abroad, there was one sentence I said over and over again: “I could not have picked a better place to study abroad”. Siena is so unique and truly began to feel like a home away from home to me. It’s away from all of the hub cities and feels like such a close knit community. There isn’t a day you won’t see people catching up with one another on your way to class. Not to mention the history of Siena. It is so deep and the passion that the Sienese have for their home is something to admire. While abroad, I was lucky enough to be in Siena during the Palio, and it is an experience I will never forget. We learned about he history and meaning of the event leading up to the race itself, making watching the race and being a part of it that much more meaningful. It has given me even more appreciation for Siena. In regards to academics, there was a lot to do, but we had three day weekends most of the trip, so it made traveling to other destinations very doable. I think our class excursions to the different wineries, the Palio and getting to travel with friends (new and old) were my favorite moments of my trip. In terms of post life, I have gained a new passion for travel. I cannot wait to travel throughout the rest of my life and hope to have the opportunity to travel for work someday. There is so much to see in the world, and I don’t want to miss it. My biggest tips would be, 1) pack light! You can buy more clothes and toiletries as necessary when you’re here. 2) Get comfortable walking shoes, your feet will thank you (chacos or tevas, converse will hurt your feet). 3) bring a small bag for weekend trips, you want to haul the least amount of stuff as possible 4) bring a journal, I don’t think I would be able to remember everything I did without my journal. Plus it’ll be fun to look back at in the future and will make it easy to tell the parentals what you were up to

Spending 8 weeks in Siena, Italy has been amazing. We not only are exploring many wineries and learning about marketing within the wine industry, but also the hidden history within Siena and towns throughout Tuscany. The GEO directors give us many opportunities to explore other parts of Italy. For example, one weekend we were all taken to Florence where we could see the accedemia and the Statue of David all included in the price of the program. The only problem I see with the program is the work load given by the teachers at the beginning of the course, but once they were aware of the problem, they did lighten up on all the reading.

Living in a different country for 6 weeks was way out of my comfort zone, but it was by far the best decision I've ever made. I got to spend my summer learning about wine marketing, social media marketing, and the Italian culture. We would go on weekly excursions with all the members of the program to different wineries across the Tuscany region. At the wineries we would learn about how each winery crafted their wine, imported their products, and marketed their wines locally and globally. After each excursion, we were provided wine and light snacks which bonded our entire program. On the weekends, I got to travel to Rome, Florence, Cinque Terre, and Paris! I formed close relationships with many of the members on my program, I gained a lot of professional experience, and an endless amount of memories. I recommend this program to anybody interested in marketing or wine lovers!

I had a wonderful time in Siena for six weeks. I visited many wineries and had the opportunity to drink wines and eat delicious Italian food. During the week we could go on excursions to places within the Tuscan area. Our professors were hands on and great people I was able to connect with. On the weekends, we would travel to places such as Rome, Florence, Elba and Positano. We also got the opportunity to take an Italian class to help get around the city. 10/10 Would recommend going on this trip, I grew as a person and loved the city! A wonderful opportunity!

The Siena program far exceeded even my highest expectations for studying abroad. I loved being able to go on wine tasting excursions with the whole program and learn about the products we were trying to market to customers through our class. I loved being able to try all of the different wines that Tuscany has to offer and learn what makes types of wines different from one another. I also really loved how easy it was to travel all over Italy from Siena and how much there is to do in Italy. I did travel one weekend to Amsterdam and it was one of the most amazing trips and I was so happy to be able to do it with people on the program. Siena is such an amazing little town and it was so much fun to be able to live there and learn all about the culture.

When people ask me how studying abroad was, I always describe it as being in a constant “wow” factor. While traveling, I would see something beautiful like the Trevi Fountain or the Cinque Terre and think it was the most beautiful landmark. But five minutes later, I would turn the corner and find something else that would strike me with it’s beauty. The culture, people, and wine were so rich and held so much beauty that I was constantly in awe. I lived in Siena, Italy for six weeks and it was one of the most humbling and extraordinary experiences. I became friends with my Italian roommates, drank rich tuscan wine, and learned to appreciate life more. I know people say studying abroad is a life changing experience but it truly is and I would not trade it for anything.