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!

I'm so glad I decided to go on SAI's FUA session in 2012. It was one of the greatest experience of my life and I will never forget my time there. I lived in a nice apartment this 6 other girls two streets away from the Duomo. We were also two streets away from central market which was amazing and we made frequent trips there to get produce to cook. MY apartment didn't go out to eat all the time since the market was right around the corner and it had some of the most delicious and fresh produce, plus I love cooking and cooking this this food was amazing and saved a lot of money for trips. I was nervous i would get lost the first day but after day two you start to understand how the city was built and it is very easy to navigate.

SAI offered many amazing excursions to go on and I went on many; wine tastings, lakes and marble quarries all were amazing. The advisors at SAI are amazing they are so helpful and knowledgeable. They are great at recommending places to visit and eat. My favorite trips i took with my roommate were when we went to the train station and just took the first train coming in to a different town. We went to some amazing places we would have never even thought of going to...just don't forget to plan you trip back when picking where your going to.

My classes were amazing at FUA my favorite classes were the Art History classes because you literally walk down the street and will pass many things you are learning about. The classrooms are extremely beautiful and different from American class rooms and all the buildings are easy to get to.

While studying abroad I had an emergency that sent me to the ER in florence and one of the SAI advisors was by my side the entire time. Words can't event explain what a great advisor Camilla was. When the emergency happened it was the middle of the night into early morning and she was there within 20 minutes, she came to every doctors appointment and helped explain to me what was going on. She made me feel comfortable and safe in an extremely difficult time. Never have I met someone so kindhearted, helpful and thoughtful. Camilla truly did everything she could to make sure I was okay and I am truly grateful for her.

Every advisor at SAI was very friendly every time I saw one walking around they would stop and chit chat to see how things are going. It's amazing to me how they know every student, you're not just another kid studying abroad to them they know you name and interest. SAI does a great job selecting their advisors, they pick ones that care about all students.

Truly an amazing experience.