IES Abroad Milan

My experience at the IES Milan - Music: Voice, Composition, and Instrumental program was life-changing, filled with amazing opportunities to learn about Italian music, language, culture, and social issues. I studied opera there and received the finest instruction from music professors like Patrizia Zanardi, Anna Fre, and Stefano Pintor. I was able to apply what I had learned in recitals and one-act operas that my fellow students and I presented at IES.. Not only that, but I was also able to learn by attending five La Scala opera productions, four of which were paid for by IES. My Staging Italian Opera class also got to observe a rehearsal at La Scala for Mozart's Idomeneo and tour the opera house's workshops. These opportunities shaped my abroad experience, and I am very grateful to IES for having provided them.

Not only was my music education wonderful, but my other classes were stellar also. For example, I took Service Learning and gained insight into the European migration crisis by volunteering at the Municipality of Milan's immigration office, putting the skills I was learning in the seminar (and in my advanced Italian class) to action. I also volunteered as an English tutor to the social worker I shadowed at this office, helping him better serve the English-speaking migrants who came to the office.

I found all of the staff at IES Milan to be extremely helpful. Whenever I had a question about anything, whether it involved an upcoming IES-sponsored trip or a personal health concern, they always answered my questions and showed that they cared about me. I felt that I was in very good hands for the entire semester.

I lived in a homestay with a very kind and loving Milanese family, and I wouldn't trade that experience for anything, as it was so fun to have younger Italian siblings and to truly immerse myself in the Italian language. My homestay became my home away from home, and in difficult moments I was so grateful to have Italian parents to give me homemade gelato. And the food was incomparable, of course! Nothing in this world is better than a home-cooked Italian meal.

I hope that anyone who reads this will be able to study at IES Milan, especially if you are an undergraduate music student. It was the best semester of my life!

Study abroad was the best opportunity I have ever taken. I was able to grow as a person, and truly gain awareness of the culture around me. In only 5 months, I was able to travel all over Europe and make some new best friends. IES did a great job of helping us adapt to being in a new place and made the experience the best it could be! IES took us on unique trips, provided opportunities to truly immerse ourselves in Milan, and overall did the most it could to help us. The staff were always willing to help us out whenever we needed. The classes I took allowed me to grow in my area of study in new ways. I gained a broader perspective on topics I learned about in my abroad classes. I would highly recommend studying abroad to anyone who is interested in it!

My experience with the IES Abroad Program in Milan, Italy was absolutely incredible! When I first started to look through my university's study abroad programs, I didn't see many for music. So when a friend pointed out IES Abroad's music programs in Vienna and Milan, I was immediately excited. Both Italy and Vienna can be considered birthplaces for music, as many important composers of the past were born or have worked there. I knew I couldn't pass these experiences up. Many of my friends also decided to apply to the same program, which made it even more exciting. The months after we were all accepted were a whirlwind. Finally, the day came to leave for Milan.
Arriving in Milan, I felt anxious but excited overall. When I arrived at the apartment where I would spend the next 3 month of my life, I was really impressed. The housing was in a really nice area with a historical landmark just down the street. My CA was also very welcoming and friendly.
Most of my classes were at the IES Abroad Center, except for my music lesson and orchestra. The teachers were all very friendly and very willing to help, especially my Italian Language professor. I really enjoyed every class I took, and I can say that I learned a lot in each class. Don't expect to be able to coast through the semester just because you're abroad.
Overall, I truly had a wonderful time in Milan, and I miss it every day, especially now since I am back at my home university. The memories I have mad in Milan will stay with me and throughout my life.

This was my very first time out of the United States and my first time even being on a plan. I knew that it was everything was going to be a new experience, but I did not anticipate the emotions I would feel. Being a young black woman surrounded by Italians was quite overwhelming in the beginning. Our program told us that Italians do have a staring problem, but I felt like it was on a whole other level! I knew that because I would be experiencing a lot of new things (food, fashion, art, and traveling), i specially choose a course of study that I knew that I would enjoy. Through all of the struggles and stress that I experienced abroad, being apart of the music program kept me happy and upbeat. The things that I was going through did not matter once I enter the class room, it was rehearsal time. I had amazing opportunities to perform around Milan, Italy and had amazing professors that worked had worked in conservatoires prior to this program. I was getting a high quality music lessons and gained more experience with preforming. With everything new and moving around me, music never failed to keep me grounded. I am so glad that I had the opportunity to be apart of this program.

Although it sounds cliche, studying abroad really does change you for the better. Traveling to Italy alone on a plane seemed nerve racking at first, leaving my family and friends behind, but as soon as I stepped outside if the airport, I knew I had found my home. The city was beautiful, the food was unreal and the people were friendly and inviting. I was placed in a perfectly located apartment, with the most amazing roommates who I grew so close to over the course of the semester. Throughout my time in Milan I was able to study Italian, History of the Mafia and Fashion and Brand Management as well intern twice a week at a tech startup. Not only was I able to take classes so relevant to my host city, I had the opportunity to work there as well. Overall this experience taught me so much about myself. I have become much more independent, spontaneous and open as a result of this journey. This was truly the best four months of my life and I thank IES and Milano for making this experience so unforgettable.

Through IES, I was able to get so much out of my abroad experience! The Center's incredibly dedicated staff helped me to partake in an internship with a local business for class credit, as well as take an outside course at l'Università Bocconi. This allowed me to really immerse myself in the Italian community, in addition to the courses I took at IES which brought us out on field studies around the area. Outside of school, I was placed in an apartment located directly in front of il Duomo, putting me at the very heart of the city with every mode of public transportation and shopping indulgence at my disposal! I would highly recommend this program, not only for all the city of Milan has to offer, but mainly for all the ways IES allows you to take advantage of it.

The opportunity to study abroad in Milan brought about the most joyous 3 months of my life. From the delicious food to the beautiful fashion, Milan's unique charm was unmatched. What makes Milan so interesting to me is that you can get the large, metropolitan feel of a modern city, while also still being able to find and appreciate all the old-world, antique qualities that define Italy/Italian culture. I cannot thank the IES staff enough for making the immersion process seamless and enjoyable. The genuine relationships I built with native Milanese people, through both IES and my internship, will last a lifetime. My beloved friends at IES pushed me out of my comfort zone and challenged me to look for adventure in each day. Because of this, I will always consider Milan my second home.

My Milan study abroad experience was the most rewarding and incredible experience of my life. The friends I made there have changed my life so positively, and I will always be so thankful for the opportunity to have met them! IES staff was so helpful and supportive throughout the entire process. I believe Milan was the perfect city to study in, since it is a city that makes you feel right at home. Although the city mainly speaks Italian, even my friends who did not speak Italian at all found that they could get around. Also, the IES Italian classes are very in-depth, which helped raise my own level of Italian. I highly recommend Milan to anybody looking for an experience in a young, exciting city that’s located in the center of all the action!