Now that studying abroad is over, it’s time to reflect on the experiences of this opportunity. Though there are many that could be considered noteworthy, there is one in particular that shines on the cultural differences of the United States and Italy. As my Italian friend and I discussed, however, it is appropriate to know that Italy is not the United States and therefore the goal of analyzing cultural differences is not to compare two completely different countries to show that one is better and instead we should analyze for our own benefits to learn from different cultures.
The experience that most stood out to me about studying abroad in Italy was in general the educational part of this program–the difference between universities and the teaching methods. Three days into the program, we were guided to visit The American University of Rome, where we would be studying abroad. The first thing to notice was the size of the classrooms and buildings, something that could be described as uncomfortably small one would think. I remember looking at the stairs meditating on how thin they were and thinking how students would walk up and down the steps. It was not too long after, actually like two days later, when classes started and I was required then to go up the stairs I had meditated upon a few days earlier. My first thoughts that came to mind were, “will my professors speak fluent English?”, and “will I understand my professors?”. The ice broke when I walked into class and was greeted by extremely well-speaking English professors. As I found my seat on the first day of class, on a hot summer late August day, I could not avoid thinking about one strong difference that was all too concerning at first, the fact that all of the classroom windows were open and there was no AC. Thankfully, the first days of school are just syllabus and we will be out quick, is how I comforted myself at that moment. However, I will admit that while this difference did catch me by a big surprise after a while I began appreciating the open windows and different classroom spaces.
It was not only the difference in sizes that stood out to me about studying in Italy but the methods of teaching within the classrooms as well. As I had imagined, the first week of school was syllabus week with all the information of the course regarding the assignment and assessment dates on the sheets. I was relieved to count on the support of a syllabus for the organization of the semester. Moving forward with the semester the courses at The American University of Rome were taught very discussion-based with a lot of projects and long class presentations, a least in my own case which all were 3 or 4 level courses for college senior year. I consider however that this experience was very beneficial for my learning since most classes would analyze a real case and research real-world solutions. As an economics student, I ended my time abroad with a general study on the economy of Canada and to finalize wrote almost a 20-page paper on it! Overall, I would say that the classroom experience in Rome, Italy was different but special in its own way. I will never forget these experiences and hope to use them for the benefit of motivating other students to pursue them as well!