<p> Larisa Lehn Bocconi University [email protected]</p><p>Orientation/Arrival First arriving at Milan can be overwhelming, especially if you’re not familiar with the Italian language. There are two airports that go to Milan, Malpensa and Bergamo. Most people will fly into Malpensa when first coming to Italy. The best way to get to the center of Milan is via bus, from both airports. It’s about 5-7 euro for a 50-minute ride from both Malpensa and Bergamo. I’ve never taken any other mode of transportation just because these buses are so convenient. The buses will take you to the Central Station and from there you can either take a cab or the metro. To ride the metro it’s 1 euro each time. There are police that will occasional check to make sure you’ve paid for your ride, and they’ll make you pay about 35-60 euro on the spot! Otherwise, cabs are reliable as well. As long as you actually are getting in a cab. There are people outside of the Central Station, right by the buses, saying “Taxi? Taxi?” They’re not real taxi drivers, the taxi drivers are at the end of the long bus ‘driveway.’ The fake taxi drivers will take you to the right place BUT they’ll charge you about three times too much, so don’t get conned (like me ).</p><p>Transportation Getting around Milan can seem very tricky at first but public transportation plays a huge part. There are underground metros, above ground trams, buses, and taxis. I walk a lot of places, only because I like walking, but the public transportation is 1 euro each time. I had never seen police checking for tickets on the above ground public transportation (like buses or trams) until the last month being in Milan (in June.) Otherwise, there would be police at the Metro fairly frequently. So I would recommend getting the discounted student pass, which is about 17 Euro a month to ride unlimited on all forms of public transportation.</p><p>Housing The housing situation at Bocconi is not 100% organized. When I applied for housing, I wanted Capitano (which I would recommend) but I was not accepted into housing. So my friend and I decided to separately find our own place after we got here. We stayed in a hotel for the first week and went to our school were we looked on bulletin boards and the SEN (Student Exchange Network) had a list of number we could call. However to make these phone calls we needed to get our cell phones first. We found cheap cell phones at a Super Market for about 40-50 Euro for the phone. However, when applying for housing I will give you some suggestions. I only know about three of them: Pensionato, Spadolini, and Capitano. Pensionato was called a “prison” to my friends that had lived there. It was on the same block as the school, which is convenient but they’re strict at the front desk. It’s not the nicest looking but if you want to meet other exchange students or Italians this would be a good place. There’s a cafeteria and a computer room in Pensionato also, so that’s convenient. Because Bocconi does NOT have wireless Internet, which really surprised me. Capitano is about five blocks from Bocconi. There’s 24-hour front desk that is pretty strict as well, like you CANNOT have visitors from outside of Capitano past midnight. But the rooms are pretty standard dorm rooms. There are community kitchens and computer rooms as well. I would try and live there if I were you. Otherwise, there’s Spadolini. Spadolini is fairly far from Bocconi, about a 15 minute walk and not much of public transportation to get you to school But it’s a really nice place to stay. Again, the front desk is open all day, and strict, no visitors past midnight. But in rooms you get your own room, own bathroom and you even have your own kitchen. I don’t know anything about Donna Javote but what I have heard was never really anything positive. I personally really like the fact that I had my own apartment to stay in. It was right on a tram line, about 10 minutes from Bocconi or a 15-20 minute walk. I lived with three other girls, all from Madison, and we have two bedrooms, a kitchen, balcony, bathroom and funny, friendly neighbors. Plus, my apartment is less than the cheapest housing option through Bocconi. Finding a place was really stressful the first week, but after we had I am so glad to not live in the dorms. However, it was fairly difficult looking for places when I didn’t really know any of the language. So luckily our landlord speaks English.</p><p>Academic experiences at the partner school General academic structure: The structure of classes at Bocconi is very informal and casual. Class schedules are changed all the time. And not attending class is an option. Class times change, class rooms change, and even the professors change. So as long as you have a flexible attitude about classes it should be fine. </p><p>Classes taken/ how they compare to courses here: The classes I took were International Business Strategy, International Marketing Research, Organizational Networks and Entrepreneurship and Biotechnology and Pharmaceutical Sectors. My International Business Strategy class was held at the exact same time as my International Marketing Research class. Since both classes transfer back directly as required classes I took my International Marketing Research class as a non-attending student. That means that I didn’t have to attend class at all or do any of the class projects. Instead, I must teach myself the material directly from the book. If you can be dedicated and put the time in outside of class I would say this is worth it. However that final test will then be 100% of my grade so that’s a little nerving. The rest of the classes were fairly easy. Understanding teachers of different nationalities posed a problem at time, but you manage. I have found it to be less work than at Carlson. However, since grades are just pass/fail I am not going to be receiving the same grades as I do at Carlson, but that could be because I put in less work and have chosen to travel more throughout Europe than to study as frequently as I would at Carlson.</p><p>Advising: The International Student Desk was of mediocre help. There office hours are extremely limited, about 2-3 hours a day, so they’re always busing when they’re open. They say that having mail sent to you at school will get there. But for packages, that is NOT the case. I had a package sent to me fairly early in the semester. It was never delivered to school so I had to track it down. I ended up paying about 50 euro, with combination of taxi and the holding fee for the package. My friend that lived in Capitano, however, used her address there and packages reached her just fine, unless you had to pay for the package, then you needed to give the front desk money ahead of time.</p><p>Did you have the chance to learn a second language? Why or why not? At Bocconi you’re given the opportunity to take a language course the first month before classes start. That was a great way to learn some basics to the language. I had known a little Spanish a head of time, and the structure of the two languages are fairly similar so that was helpful when learning the language. Then throughout the semester you can keep going with the language. I didn’t continue learning the language because the time it was offered conflicted with the times of my classes, but if it hadn’t I definitely would’ve liked learning the language. One of my really good friends here spoke Italian pretty well so she helped when we needed it, but there were times when I wish I had known even more.</p><p>Social life: Integration with other students at Bocconi were with mostly all other exchange students. I met a lot them in the initial language program before classes started and most of my classes were exchange students since the classes were in English. I only knew a few Italians through friends living in dorms that met them there or from the students that were once on exchange in the states and knew the exchange students here from before. I have made a lot of really close new friends being here though that I am definitely going to keep contact with once we’re all back home. Most students are all in the same boat and wanting to meet new friends, so it’s easy to meet people. Also, there are parties that are thrown for the international students to get together and meet just about every night of the week, every week of the year.</p><p>Surprises/comparison with academic environment in the U.S: There were a few things that are very different in Europe than they are in the U.S. when it comes to the academic environment. The whole attitude about school is different. All the students are helpful towards other students. Cheating and note sharing is quite common. There’s not the competition you will see at Carlson, but the Italian students do want 100% on everything, so they put forth a lot of effort in school. I thought it was kind of funny when we would do presentations with PowerPoint. It’s normal for the slides to be jam-packed with paragraphs, it made it difficult to learn from. And when I would be in groups with other international students and the American students would suggest making slides with fewer words, they would decline and just say that’s how it’s done here.</p><p>Ways that other exchange students can learn about and become immersed in the culture? It’s pretty easy to meet International Students early in the semester because everyone is anxious to meet new people and there are a lot of opportunities/parties to meet them. Meeting Italians, was a more difficult task. Some of the Italians at school aren’t very friendly at first so I would recommend that if you have an Italian students in your classes try to meet them. My friends and I had met some Italian guys from our school and they had offered to make us a homemade Italian dinner. The opportunities through ERASMUS and the school to visit other cities or see sites around Milan are a good way to see things. Mostly because there’s usually a price discount and also you don’t have to put too much work into the actual traveling part. Also, there a group trips arranged that a pretty fun. The school doesn’t arrange them but student groups do so they tend to be more ‘fun’ than ‘educational.’ I went to Venice, during Carnivale this way and found it really accommodating and very fun. The discos around Milan are very popular and are really fun. Drinks can be expensive and so can cover, but usually there are some discounts for exchange students and certain clubs on certain nights. I would say going out to these is the best way to meet other international students. Other than going out, my weekends and time off from class was spent traveling. I went to some many places and found it to be really easy to find cheap flights(www.skyscanner.net) and cheap accommodations (www.hostelworld.com). There are so many budget airliners in Europe, it’s easy to fly around. Trains are also really convenient and don’t have the turbulence, so that’s always nice, even though they can take much longer. I traveled with my friends from Bocconi and I even had some friends from home visit and of course my parents as well. I traveled with my family at the very end of my term abroad. Which was nice because my money was just about running out, so it was nice to be spoiled by them for a while. And by that time I was so familiar with the country and traveling that it was really easy for them to get around with my help. </p><p>Did you need a visa to enter the country? If so, how did you apply for one and how long did it take to receive? You do need a visa to study in Italy. I just followed the instructions Carlson gave me on how to apply for a visa, but instead of going to Chicago, like what is recommended, I set up an appointment with a woman who can do Italian Consulate notary’s in St. Paul. I just looked online to get her contact details. Also when you come to Italy you need to obtain a Permit of Stay. This is really important, but it is a huge hassle to get. I would highly recommend get up ridiculously early to get in line at the main Police Station. Once you arrive abroad there will emphasize the importance of this step and will give you details in addition to what Carlson tells you. There were some schools that arranged appointments for their students so they wouldn’t have to wait in line. I didn’t do that but I know some schools set it up, I would look into it if you get a chance because the group of people I went with got in line around 5 or 6 am and didn’t leave until about 11. </p><p>Budgeting: how much would you recommend students take with them? How much would you say would be the monthly living expenses in the city you lived in including rent/food/misc. expenses? When initially coming to Italy I would have a good amount of cash on you, however you must be careful since pick pocketing is prevalent towards those with a lot of luggage. Monthly living expenses can range I would say from 1000-2000 euros a month. My rent was only 325 euros a month, but living in the dorms it can range from around 450 to 800 euros a month. I also had a phone here which I spent about 50 euro a month on. There’s mostly prepay plans here using either Vodafone or TIM. There’s always shopping in Milan, it’s more expensive than in Minnesota, so it depends on how much you want to spend. On food I would typically spend around 250 euro a month but that would include going out quite a bit also. For meals while at school, there are two cafeterias close by, one under the main building of Bocconi and the other under Pensionato. The cafeteria under Bocconi is pretty nice and you can get pizza, pasta, salads, paninis for pretty cheap. Also there’s a great cheap panino (sandwich) stand outside of Pensionato and a few restaurants nearby. There’s a popular trend in Italy, called Aperitivo, where you can go to a restaurant usually between 6 and 9 and buy a drink and get free food. The quality of some of the Aperitivos vary but I would recommend Taxi Blues, which is right by Bocconi, Slice, 12 and The Coloniel. The Coloniel is really good because it serves hot food, where most aperitivos serve cold food. Other than that if I wanted to just stay in, having a kitchen in my apartment was nice and I was allowed to have people over to dinner.</p><p>Host Country Culture What were some surprises or insights you had into the culture of your host country/school? I was surprised at how frequently businesses and stores are closed. We’re used to the convenience in the U.S. but here in Italy almost everything is closed Sunday and most businesses are closed on Monday as well. There are siestas during the day from about 2 or 3 pm until 5, where businesses close temporarily. Usually, in the center of Milan, but the Duomo stores will be open but not further out from the center.</p><p>Other:</p><p>What recommendations would you give to other CSOM students going on this program (to bring, to wear, etc.)? Bocconi is known as a school that the rich kids go to in Italy, so when dressing for class a lot of the students are wearing designer clothes (i.e. Gucci, Louis Vuitton, Armani, Prada, etc.) so wearing sweatpants to class is something I would not recommend. I never once needed to dress up in business attire, but I did have a few presentations in class that I wanted to dress nicely for, but no need for business suits (unless you prefer to wear them). It’s really all personal, bring what you feel comfortable in, if you want to NOT stick out as an American then I would avoid any type of North Face fleece, tennis shoes and khaki shorts, that is the dead giveaway.</p><p>General recommendations for study abroad: Overall, I would say you’re going to have a lot of fun. I know I did and this is such a great opportunity to meet people and see so many amazing places. I traveled a lot and I got familiar with Milan a lot too. I thought Milan was one of the best places for a host city to study abroad. It’s not too touristy that you feel like you fit in as an American, but it’s a comparable to Minneapolis in the big city aspect that it’s easy to feel at home. I would recommend learning as much Italian as you can while you’re here because that’s the best way to meet other Italians and it’s always a great skill to have. Live it up and have fun, it’s going to be amazing! I wish I could have this experience all over again, I loved it! Please feel free to contact me with any questions either through email or we can meet up to talk about it also. I learned a lot being over there that I would love to share with you! [email protected]. </p>