The Best Choice to Study Abroad in Florence

My experience abroad was incredible. Although my semester was cut short due to COVID-19, AIFS made my time in Italy so exciting. The housing offered through AIFS is perfect, centrally located throughout the city and are filled with plenty of character and culture. If you choose the apartment living style in Florence you are no more than a 25-min walk from the university and walking distance to all your friends/peers apartments and major attractions in the city. AIFS is very caring and attentive and when we had an issue with out shower they sent someone to fix it within the hour of our call. AIFS also provides a great list of activities and field trips to take outside of class that are usually free or at a very low price. Activities included cooking classes (making homemade ravioli, and tiramisu), trips to Venice and other cities around Florence, and reduced tickets to Florentine Soccer Matches, ballets, operas and other performances. These cultural activities allow you to feel more accustomed and like this city really is your new home. The knowledge from these activities give you a better understanding of the culture of your host city more than any class could. The professors and staff at the University of Richmond Florence are extremely intelligent and caring. They took such grate care of all students and really made sure they knew every student at the school and said hello to them everyday. The professors were passionate about their topics and it showed through their teaching. The classes were interesting and went by so fast because of how hands on they were. Professors took classes on field trips many times throughout the semester to give students a better understanding of the material and they also believed that students could learn more outside of the classroom. When we unfortunately had to go online due to COVID-19 our professors were extremely helpful in that transition from in-person class in Italy to online class in our American homes. The classes from home were still as interesting and mostly the same as before we left in Italy. Lastly, AIFS also offers a meal plan that gives you access to a large majority of restaurants located throughout the city. These restaurants are delicious and provide authentic experiences of living and eating in Italy while offering some of the most delicious food you could get in the city. With our meal vouchers we were able to enjoy the city and dine out most nights making my friends and I really feel like Florence was our new home. We even made friends with one of the waiters who worked at our favorite restaurant! AIFS was the perfect choice for me and this was proven with how the staff, faculty and professors handled the COVID-19 pandemic and how they helped get us all home safely and quickly. I am so thankful for AIFS for offering me this experience and making the time I spent in Florence, Italy some of the best memories of my life.