ISA Study Abroad in Florence, Italy

It's really difficult to sum up such an amazing program in such short space. The people who work with ISA in Austin and in Florence are very helpful through every step of the way. I emailed and called the ISA Austin office so many times leading up to my semester abroad that I lost count, as did most of the people that I talked to. The excursions that ISA puts on are tons of fun, well organised and creative. My apartment here was great, it had a very central location and was actually very spacious considering it housed 6 girls total. The people you meet here will become some of your best friends before you know it. If you're looking for a study abroad program I can't recommend this one enough. If you're having doubts about studying abroad and aren't sure if it's for you, just do it. Even if it's not with this program, it will be one of the best experiences of your life.

The experiences I had and the friendships I made were more significant that I could ever imagine. The excursions offered with the program allowed me to travel with my new friends without the pressures of having to plan the trips myself. The courses I took were unlike anything I've ever taken in America, I went on class trips and gave performances. I took cultures and opera. I could go on for hours about my amazing host mom. I strongly suggest living with a host family because it just adds a whole other level to your trip. I learned the language, had homemade meals, and met so many people. I wish I could go back everyday. I miss the city filled with so much art, beauty, history, and love. If you want a memorable study abroad experience this is the program you need to take.

I only spent three weeks in Florence but they were by far some of the best weeks of my life. I met amazing people and also had amazing experiences. I took an Italian wine and culture class. Going in, I knew nothing about wine, but now I consider myself to be pretty knowledgeable. My teacher did a great job. We went on a field trip one day to Montepulciano and Pienza. ISA provided excursions to Cinque Terre and Rome. Both trips were amazing! Some of my friends and I also did some traveling on our own. Traveling around the country is very easy. We went to Pisa, Viareggio, and Venice, although I wouldn't suggest going to Viareggio if you don't know any Italian. My apartment was in the same building as the ISA office and was a one minute walk from Ponte Vecchio. Being so close to the city center was amazing and I immersed myself in the culture as much as I could! I would do it again in a heart beat!

Studying abroad in Florence with ISA was the best decision I could have made. The staff in both America and Italy were warm, welcoming, and extremely helpful. The trips provided by ISA (which were many- both weekend and day trips) were not only well planned and educational ( depending on the trip), but a great time to explore different areas of Italy, and learn more about the country you chose to study. The program offers a language exchange where you can be teamed up with an Italian student and practice your Italian and help them with their English. The staff is always willing to help with anything you need from housing concerns to printing a document. I can't express enough how wonderful the women that work at the ISA office in Florence are, they really make you feel at home. Walking everywhere is a bonus, you get to see all of the wonderful sites in Florence, and discover hidden gems. Plus your located close to FUA (the school you will be studying at) and my apartment specifically was extremely authentic and made me feel even more part of the Italian culture. Also, I cannot forget to mention GELATO AND PIZZA are the greatest things ever along with tons of other Italian dishes- and I would go to Pino's sandwich shop- the bomb. This experience was amazing and I highly suggest using ISA - never had one problem during my 4 months abroad, great program, great staff, and fantastic memories!!!!

Going abroad with ISA was a great decision. They provided us with activities do to a lot of the days we were there, and even planned excursions to Cinque Terre and an overnight trip to Rome. The ISA staff abroad was very helpful and were always around if you needed them. When my roommate got sick, the staff made her a doctors appointment and walked us there so we wouldn't get lost. The only difficulty I had while abroad was getting lost in the city. After a couple weeks I had learned where everything was and was able to find my way around. We had a very nice apartment in Florence, and I was able to make a lot of new friends that I will have forever. Living in another culture for a month was a great experience.

Studying abroad in Florence was one of the best decisions I've made while going to college. It was a chance for me to grow and to get to know myself and other people from not only the U.S. but also Italy. ISA gave me an experience I would have never expected. I expected the use of tours and guides to be boring but I found that the guides were so useful in learning about the places we visited and their history. It was like I was stepping into a part of history. My study abroad experience is one I can never forget and will be continuing to talk about it for the rest of my life.

ISA Florence fostered the absolute best experience of my life! Although confusing at first, having students spend the first week in Rome with our roommates really made bonding and getting to know each other a lot easier. You also find out fast the program is about 90% girls. At FUA, classes are longer than at home (2.5 hours) but the teachers are incredible - studying Fashion Marketing with an actual french fashion designer? HELLO. Bring a couple notebooks, or a five star though because we all freaked out trying to find some and never really did. Books are a lot cheaper here also (maybe 30E for the semester). The nightlife is a lot of fun (way better than Rome although not as awesome as spain), going much later than what's normal at home. There are a lot of american bars with a lot of students and, if you make some italian friends, some really cool italian bars and clubs. And EVERYTHING is walking distance (be careful trying heels on the cobblestones!) and that's coming from someone who will cab it a mile. The food is absolutely incredible, of course, but trust me you will get sick of Italian 24/7 as there's not a lot of cusine variety. The included trips with ISA go to some really really awesome, insanely beautiful places but honestly for some I had more fun ditching the tour and walking the city with my friends. Overall, it was a life changing semester and I would recommend it to anyone especially if you love art or history.

You know how people always say things like "this changed my life" or how "unforgettable" something was? I am positive if you were to ask any student who went abroad with ISA, those would be one of many words they would use to describe their experiences.

I knew exactly where I wanted to go before I even began searching for my study abroad options, and that was Florence, Italy. And the program that offered the courses I needed to take to stay on track with my major was ISA. Before I left, I did take a semester of Italian 101, but that was just the basics. With ISA I was able to take all of my classes in English, and was able to get by very easily on a day-to-day basis with my broken Italian and miming.

This led to me studying abroad with ISA in Florence, Italy for two months during the summer of 2010. While there I took two classes (6 credits) at Florence University of the Arts (FUA). My academic schedule was set up so that the first three weeks of my program I would take one of the courses I picked, then had a week long break, and for the last three weeks I took the other course I had selected. Class was Monday thru Friday for about two and a half hours each day. It was intensive study because it was during the summer, however I never felt bogged down by school work and had plenty of time each week to spend time with friends, enjoy meals with them, go out at night, explore the city and travel on the weekends.

I lived in an apartment with four other girls that were a part of my program who were from all over the US. Being in this kind of living situation (with more girls from our program next door) led to me coming home with ten new best friends; or as I call them, my Firenze Family. We now try to have reunions once a year which gives me more reason to explore the US. Our apartment was about a twenty minute walk from our classes, but that was not a problem at all-I was walking through history every day, and passed by local marketplaces and restaurants. It was one of the coolest parts of living in Florence.

My entire experience going abroad was a highlight, but here are a few that stand out:
-Italian food and wine. Need I say more?
-The ISA staff: both on-site in Florence and at headquarters in Austin always make themselves extremely available to their students. They make their job to make you as comfortable as possible in preparing to go abroad, while you are abroad, and keep in touch with you when you come back. I could not have asked for a better support system than the one that ISA provided.
-ISA Excursions and Traveling: I loved getting to see new parts of Italy every weekend that were just a train ride away. And being able to utilize my week break to travel and explore Spain.
-Again, getting to walk through history every day.
-Picnics at Piazzale Michelangelo.
-"Family" dinners with ISA friends.
-Going to the Palio in Siena.

....I will leave it at that because I know how lengthy this is becoming. You get the idea? I had an INCREDIBLE time and had a new highlight every day of my trip. The biggest struggle I had during my study abroad experience was leaving Florence. It was like going through a break-up, except with a place.

Since coming back I have found a passion in telling others about studying abroad and helping them to go abroad. I also have been fortunate enough to have the opportunity to be a Global Ambassador for ISA, and am also now a peer adviser in our university's Study Abroad Office. Thanks to all of these amazing experiences I am now extremely passionate about pursuing a career in the international education/travel industry.

Thank you ISA for all that you have done for me!