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Eager to hear from a college student who studied abroad in Italy? We recently caught up with AIFS Abroad program participant Stephanie who studied abroad in the historic city of Florence during the 2024 Fall semester.
Read on to learn more about how Stephanie’s experience in Florence helped her advance her education, forge close friendships, and dive into Italian culture.
Brett: Welcome back. My name is Brett, and I’m a student at Flagler College in St. Augustine, Florida. I studied at the University of Granada in Granada, Spain, in the spring of 2023. So, Stephanie, would you like to go ahead and introduce yourself?
Stephanie: Hi, I’m Stephanie. I’m a sophomore from Cairo, Egypt [studying in the United States]. I did the Florence program through the summer, and it was about the museums of Florence.
How did your program meet your expectations?
Stephanie: It actually exceeded my expectations. I wasn’t prepared to go to Florence because it was my first time traveling alone and not with family. AIFS managed to make it a very easy transition from the U.S. to Florence. It was a very nice experience overall.
Brett: Perfect. So, you’re coming from Egypt—have you been in the U.S. just during your time in college, or did you come here when you were younger?
Stephanie: No, I only came here for college.
What travel experience did you have prior to studying abroad?
Stephanie: I’ve traveled a lot around Europe, but I’ve always had my family with me. It was my first time traveling without family. My grandma is from the UK, and my grandpa was from France, so I used to go to France and England almost every summer.
How was your experience with Italian culture?
Stephanie: It was my first time going to Italy, and it was full of culture and history everywhere you go, especially in Florence. Everywhere I went, there was just so much to learn about. So, that was definitely a new experience for me. As I mentioned, it was my first time traveling alone, so I got the chance to experience the place better. I ended up going to different museums on my own. I also went to Rome, Florence, and we even took the train to Milan—it was a very fun trip.
How was it traveling independently for the first time?
Brett: So, this was your first time traveling by yourself. Did you have any concerns or worries before you went alone?
Stephanie: I had a lot of anxiety. I was very worried about how the travel process would go, especially with accommodation and then once we got to Rome, how we would get to Florence—whether by bus or train. There were just so many logistics I was worried about, but AIFS had planned all of it for us, so they made it much easier for everyone. They made it easy for my family. My parents probably wouldn’t have let me go to this study abroad program if it wasn’t all planned out beforehand, and AIFS managed to do that.
Brett: That’s perfect. It’s definitely comforting to know that you have a support system there for you on the ground in your host country, rather than going by yourself. It makes all the difference.
How have your experiences studying abroad affected your worldview?
Stephanie: My worldview has definitely changed. I think what struck me the most during this program was the people and the community I met through it. I did travel with two of my friends, but I came out of it gaining maybe six new friendships. It was also really hard for me to make new friends, especially because English isn’t my first language. Going to Florence and being able to talk to other Americans who were in the exact same position I was in—we were all in the same boat, all new to the city, and we all helped each other out. I made great new friends and built a really strong community in Florence.
About my worldview… it was just so interesting to see how different Florence was from Egypt, the UK, or even the U.S. Even though Florence is a really small city, it had so much to it. It was such a new experience. We used to do something different every single day, and it wasn’t boring at all. Coming back to the US, I feel like I’ve grown so much as a person. I know so much more about Italy and Europe in general. It’s helped me build my character, for sure. I wouldn’t have been able to do this without going to Italy. And now I can speak freely, which I wasn’t really able to do before Florence.
Brett: That’s great. When I was in Spain, I took my classes in Spanish, and I feel like having the opportunity to make connections with people from other places and countries gave me confidence. Spanish isn’t my first language, but now I have these connections in Spain that I probably wouldn’t have had any other way. I think that’s an aspect of study abroad that people don’t necessarily think about, but it has a huge impact on you while you’re there and really for the rest of your life.
What was your favorite experience while studying abroad?
Stephanie: The thing I remember most from the whole trip was how they put us all in the same area. We were a huge group, but we were all in buildings right next to each other. The whole building was all AIFS students, so it was always so much fun to come back home after a day of studying—we would all go back and cook dinner together… the people on the first floor would come up to us. It was just so much fun being in the exact same building and the exact same place. It made us build a really strong connection.
Brett: It sounds like you had a great experience in Italy. Thank you so much for sharing everything.
Any advice for future study abroad students?
Stephanie: I would definitely say that this experience has shaped me and my friends. I’ve built so many new, different friendships with people, and if someone is just considering [studying abroad], just go do it. You have to take the risk and do it because you’re either going to have a great experience or not, but you end up learning something new every day, either way. So, it was just an amazing learning experience. Plus, for me, it was so much fun. So, I just say go for it.
Brett: Perfect. Thank you so much for sharing.
Stephanie: Thank you.
Are you a student who’s ready to go for it and study abroad like Stephanie did in Florence? We’d love to help you start your journey!
Here at AIFS Abroad, we know a thing or two about helping college students and pre-professionals study and intern abroad. Our programs are incredibly inclusive, which takes a lot of the stress out of planning. From coordinating your housing to providing things like cultural and social activities, excursions, comprehensive insurance, 24/7 emergency support, on-site staff, and more, you’ll take comfort in knowing you’ll have support throughout your entire experience abroad.
Are you a parent interested in hearing from Stephanie’s mother about how to navigate and support your child during their study abroad experience? Read our Parent Perspective piece on the subject.