Out-of-County Residents
All students admitted to a Study Abroad Program will be mailed a copy of the application for residency certificate upon registration. Typically mailings begin approxiamately 60 days prior to the start of the semester and then weekly thereafter for new registrants. The application must be completed, notarized, and presented to the County Treasurer of the county in which the student resides. The County Treasurer will then issue a residency certificate to the student.  This certificate must be sent to the Student Accounts Office at Broome Community College prior to departure for the program overseas along with payment of your bill.

List of NYS County Officers 

The listed program costs for in state students assume submission of a residence certificate from their home county. Tuition charges will double for students who fail to submit their residency certificate.

Non-NYS residents do not need a residency certificate.

Payment by consortium agreement will require execution of a pormissory note.

Quito Summer 2009

Guayaquil Summer 2009

Tuscania Summer 2009

Florence Summer 2009

Venice Summer 2009 Program Costs

Dominican Republic Spring 2009 Costs

Rome Spring 2009 Costs

Tuscania Spring 2009 Costs

Florence Spring 2009 Costs

Venice Spring 2009 Program Costs

Florence Fall 2008 Program Costs

Rome Fall 2008 Program Costs

Rome Summer 2008 Costs

Dominican Republic Spring 2008 Costs

Venice Spring 2008 Costs

Rome Spring 2008 Costs

Since I’ve gotten back from Italy, I’ve remembered some key things I wanted to be sure students were aware of:

Check out these websites and their publications available once you get to Italy.

In Florence, there is a publication (and a website) http://www.theflorentine.net/ that is all in English. I believe it comes out weekly and has all the great events that are going on in Florence, along with news articles, sports events and classifieds. It’s called “The Florentine”- definately check it out!

In Rome, there is a publication (and a website) http://www.romereview.com/ that is “The premier resource for English speakers in Rome”. It is called Rome Review. In fact, while I was visiting AUR, I was able to sit in on a graphic design class where the students were participating in a competition designed by Rome Review. Students were to create a poster to advertise Rome Review to other English speakers in Rome and they were judged by the owners of Rome Review. The student from AUR whose poster won the contest would have the priviledge of seeing their poster all throughout Rome- even on billboards.

Also, if you are a student going to Lorenzo de’Medici in Florence and you are intersted in:

Interior Design- check out their blog at www.lorenzodemedici.it/interior

Fashion Department- check out their blog at www.lorenzodemedici.it/fashion

Graphic Design- check out their blog at www.lorenzodemedici.it/graphic

These departments are very active within LdM and I encourage you to check out what they’re currently doing!

Finally, yes- there are gyms where students can purchase gym memberships- both in Florence and in Rome. Many are very near the schools and pretty affordable. Details can be picked up at the campus center for AUR or LdM after your arrival in Italy.

Well, this is BCC Study Abroad signing off for now. Stay tuned in the summer when I hope to visit our programs in Ecuador and the Dominican Republic!

Right now, I’m sitting in the airport in Milan waiting to get on my plane that will take me across the pond once again. My flight has been delayed almost 2 hours and I’d just like to be home. It’s beginning to look like I might miss the Third Eye Blind concert I was planning on going to tonight.

So, I spent yesterday in Venice. Let me tell you- it’s a pretty amazing city. I loved that there were no cars. We stayed in a lovely bed and breakfast just a few minutes from the school. The school is in one floor of one building. It’s truly a place where people from all over the world come strictly to learn to speak Italian. I was able to see one student’s apartment and speak with a few students about their time there. I sat in on a class as well. I was glad to have a few hours to walk around the city and get ready for the next morning’s trip to the airport. I ended up walking to Piazalle Roma and then took a bus from there to the airport. Luckily I got my ticket the day before because the ticket office wasn’t open at 5:15am.

If you are a student interested in learning to speak Italian, I really recommend our school in Venice (and also Tuscania, of course). I’d like to go back to Venice someday with a friend on vacation. I’m sure there is so much more of the city to see and it’s impossible to see it all in one day.

Gondola outside my window    2nd gondola outside my window         Market on a boat

Tables to walk on in flood    Venice    Istituto Venezia    School sign    Rialto bridge at night

B&B view from window    Students in class    Courtyard outside Istituto Venezia  

Building at night    Kitchen in apartment    Living room in apartment   

Bedroom in apartment   

It rained this morning on the way to the train we took to Florence. Fitting, since I was mourning inside for having to leave Tuscania so quickly. Luckily, I sat in the front with Carlito (Massimo’s puppy) who promptly fell asleep on my lap after giving me loads of kisses. (Don’t you dare tell Gus!) It rained for most of the morning, but on the train from Orte to Florence we were dry and after almost 2 hours, it stopped just in time for us to grab a taxi into the city of Florence.

I toured the campus of Lorenzo de’Medici Florence with the director of the school for the majority of the afternoon. The campus really spreads out throughout the city. I was amazed at the studio art space, restoration examples, fashion design facilities, and involvement LdM has within the community of Florence.

Sample classroom    Fashion design room    Dance room    Computer lab- one of many

Student Commons    Art Restoration    More Art Restoration    Jewelry Design lab   

Jewelry Design

These students clearly have the space and support to be creative in many ways. The school’s facilities are wonderful and their administrative staff is fantastic. I was finally able to put a face to each name I have sent faxes to for almost a year now. I must say, they are all much younger and more beautiful than I had pictured!

We had lunch with Carlotta, one of the student advisors that works most closely with our study abroad students and dinner with the director and owner of the school. They are both so generous and lovely. Tomorrow we have a few meetings, I will be able to sit in on another class (today I visited an Italian language class), and I will tour the housing! I know the future students are very interested in seeing the housing! I will take lots of pictures, as always, but I’m pretty sure I won’t be able to post tomorrow night. We are leaving Florence on a 4pm train direct to Venice, and will arrive in our accommodations in Venice quite late at night. I will get the pictures up and post again as soon as I can!

To answer your question Mom, I’m terrified to find my way to the airport on my own at 4am in Venice on Saturday, but I’ll figure it out! I think it’s a water bus to someplace, then a bus or taxi on land from there. “Aeroporto?!”

 Mary in a cooking class!    View of Florence from a sample apartment

Cindy, Stefania, and Marco (the chef) in our cooking class    sample bedroom

Sample single    sample kitchen    sample living space    living room    another bedroom

bedroom

 Monday night we were taken from Rome to Tuscania by a lovely man named Massimo and his adorable puppy, Carlito. I’ve learned very quickly that you take your life in your own hands everytime you get into a car in Italy. It doesn’t matter if it’s a resident, taxi driver, paid driver from the school or friend- they all drive like maniacs! In fact, I seriously caution pedestrians as well. Look both ways repeatedly, and don’t stop until you get to the other side of the street! These cars are tiny and can come out of nowhere without any notice. So, needless to say, I got sick in the van on the way to Tuscania. Note to self: get some motion sickeness meds ASAP.

We checked into our hotel called (cleverly) Hotel Tuscania (just outside the walls of the city) a little after 10pm. The ride from Rome took about an hour and 15 minutes. The rooms at the hotel were very simple. Mine had a lovely green tiled, spacious bathroom and lots of hot water for showers. These rooms are often inhabited by students during the summer sessions. The best part of the room was the view out onto the Medieval city of Tuscania. I had a fantastic terrace outside my room where (if it were warmer) I could have spent the next week gazing at the city.

View from my hotel room          City of Tuscania      Mountains in the distance

In the morning, we had a simple breakfast and then went to visit the Lorenzo de’Medici school in Tuscania. It was a 3 minute walk from the hotel, sunny and beautiful all day. We met with the director of the school, had a lovely tour and a short meeting.

Computer Lab      Computer lab again    Garden area    Kitchen for cooking classes

I have to say, the building the school is in has been remodeled on the inside. The outside is still the same as it was in the Medieval times, but the inside is very modern with wood, glass and metal elements. Trust me, it’s gorgeous! Ceiling in school  Front doors of LdM

After the tour, I was able to visit many of the various housing options. Again, each one is very different and no two are the same. These students live like princesses and princes! Some were homestays just outside the walls of the city, and others were apartments within the walls of the city.

House    My favorite apartment    Bedroom of my fav. apt    adorable kitchen!

Another sample    Living room    Inside the homestay    Another kitchen

The school is just inside the walls of the city. School building 

After touring the housing, I was taken on a tour by one of the professors at LdM to St. Peter’s Church. I could have spent hours in this church, just taking in the history, frescos and architecture. Unfortunately, we didn’t have hours to spend there. And, they didn’t allow pictures to be taken inside (very common of churches in Europe), so I bought a very well illustrated book with great pictures of the inside of the church.

St. Peter’s Church    Closer view

I was told there are 50 churches in the city of Tuscania- which when you visit there, you will find hard to believe. It is a very small city, very easy to walk everywhere (unless you have heels on- girls: do not pack heels!) The original cobblestones line each narrow road. we even passed by etruscan baths where ladies used to do their laundry (up until 30 years ago) outside in the fresh air. There was an earthquake, and much of Tuscania had to be rebuilt. This church’s ceiling collapsed and they never rebuilt it. It is a church with no roof, and it’s beautiful. Outdoor church with no roof  Frescos in the outdoor church 

More frescos outside   Very colorful

 I was able to sit in on a class taught by a well published illustrationist. She had 5 students total in her class and they were all amazingly talented! These students truly learn under masters of their fields.

In the end of the day, the newly acquired chef for Lorenzo de’Medici Tuscania cooked us a wonderful meal which we finished with his secret recepie cookies. I truly thought I was full after the meal and all the wine that accompanied it, but I probably ate about 10 of these cookies. They are to die for- and luckily coming home with me in my suitcase!

Long story even longer, I truly fell in love with the city of Tuscania. I will come back, and soon if at all possible. I want to study the Italian language at Lorenzo de’Medici, live in the city where the elderly gentlemen slowly walk, strategically placing their canes along the cobblestone roads, and study the culture and language under the master’s employed by LdM. I would love to take advantage of the archaeology workshop in the summer where they do digs of etruscan ruins, too! Someday, I will, and I will love every minute of life in Tuscania!

Today (Monday 11/12) we toured the AUR facilities and housing. I skipped breakfast at our four star hotel because I wanted to sleep in as much as possible. It seems as though I’m experiencing some jet lag…

We arrived at AUR and were met by the Director of Study Abroad and Student Life at the University. We went to a newly acquired building that houses the studio space for the architecture and fashion design programs in addition to faculty offices and the media center. I was able to sit in on a graphic design class in the afternoon where the students were preparing posters for a contest for a local business in Rome. The business is called Rome Review and they produce a publication in English that outlines the weekly events going on in Rome. The winners of the contest will have their poster plastered all throughout Rome as an advertisement for their business.

I also visited two apartments and was able to get some more pictures of apartments from the housing coordinator at AUR. It is crucial to remember that NONE of the apartments are the same. They all vary in location, size, shape, furniture, etc. All housing is equipped with wireless internet and one computer with a desk. I have changed my mind about traveling with a laptop. If you are studying at AUR, definately bring your laptop! Everything on campus is wireless and the housing is too!!

Tonight, we are traveling to Tuscania and touring the Lorenzo de’Medici site in Tuscania tomorrow.

Living Room    AUR garden    Sample bedroom    AUR student entrance

Living Room in 2nd apartment    Classroom    View of Rome from student terrace

Bedroom 1    Building where classes are held    Computer Lab    sample kitchen

Bathroom 2

So I made it to Rome first thing in the morning on Sunday November 11th. I don’t know what happened on the flight over here, but I got super sick. Not a good way to start out a week-long trip. I’m now traveling with Cindy from the College of Staten Island (our partner school). Cindy and I were picked up at the airport by her friend Carla who lives in Rome. Carla was kind enough to take us to her apartment since we came in at 8:30am and can’t check into the hotel until around 3pm. We walked down to the Ponte Milvio and took pictures of the locks on the bridge. It is a 2000 year old bridge where lovers go to show their love for each other. Couples buy a lock, place it somewhere on the bridge and throw the key in the river to symbolize their never-ending love for each other. This act is highly discouraged as the locks end up cluttering up every lamp post on the bridge, but is very popular with the tourists. In fact, they added chains so that the lamp posts wouldn’t be harmed. This bridge crosses the Tiber River which is where people used to bathe in the old days. Women on one side and men on the other. Trust me, you wouldn’t want to bathe in there now!

I have found there are a lot of dogs in Rome, which I love since I had to leave my two puppies at home while on this trip Yoko & Gus . However, where there are dogs, there is “evidence” of dogs…all over the sidewalks. (Yuck!) Italian laws are in place ordering dog owners to pick up after their pets, but this law clearly is not followed. So, I advise: though there are thousands of amazing things to look at in Rome, be sure to watch where you are stepping when walking around the less tourist-populated areas.

I just checked into my hotel finally. It’s really quite beautiful! The bathroom is very long and narrow, but pretty sweet. Check out the shower! It’s the smallest, jet packed shower I’ve ever seen! And there’s plenty of hot water!!

Well, tonight we are having dinner with some staff from AUR and then tomorrow I am touring the American University of Rome (AUR). I can’t guarantee I’ll be able to find internet (and time) to post tomorrow- but I will do my best! Check back tomorrow to see more of Rome!

Spring 2008 Study Abroad Students are encouraged to use this post to discuss hopes, fears and questions about studying abroad. This is a great place for students to get together and meet each other before arriving overseas.