Letters from Abroad Ciao from Bologna!

Bologna is truly unlike any other city in Italy! Bologna is a lively place filled with constant activity and people. I’ve grown accustomed to the noise of pre-dawn trash collectors, student filled streets, and restaurants bursting with people dining and conversing. The University of Bologna’s presence creates a college town feel in the center of rich history and culture.

As I walk the streets each day to my classes at the Dickinson Center, I rarely hear English being spoken. My fellow Dickinsonians and I have spent our many weeks here immersed in the sights, sounds, and smells of Italian culture. Our home away from home in Bologna is very Italian; however, it does have elements of our beloved Dickinson campus in Carlisle. There are a wealth of resources and staff to support us. Our small class sizes create opportunities to know our professors and to fully participate in the learning experience. There is a good blend of being “home” while away. This has been a key to my success as a student studying abroad.

The Dickinson Center’s proximity to the University of Bologna has given me the opportunity to take a class at the University of Bologna (U.B.).  The university has 78,000 students and is very different from my Dickinson experience. There are one hundred students in the economics and international trade class that I’m taking. I’m one of few American students in the class. Unlike my Dickinson experience in Carlisle and Bologna, the professor does not create relationships with students. In addition, success in the class is contingent on the final grade on the exam. Studying abroad has been a very powerful experience for me. It is truly one I will never forget. My opportunities to experience life in another country and culture combined with an education have changed my perspective. Dickinson’s key tenants “to create students decisive, useful, curious and unafraid to take risks,” are evident in the support and encouragement I have received in my experiences here and will continue to shape me in my future experiences back in Carlisle and in my personal and professional life. Ciao!