CIEE High School Abroad Program in Italy

  Italy

• All Other Areas in Italy: 
Amalfi (southern Italy)

Durations of Program: 3-6 months and 7-12 months

Description: The High School Abroad program is the best way for you to become a global citizen and achieve fluency in Italian. Mondo Insieme will place the student in a carefully selected Italian family or families for the duration of the program. Students will be placed in any region of Italy according to availability.

Mondo Insieme will interview host families at their home to ensure that they have the capacity and the economic resources to properly host a teenage exchange student. The host family will provide accommodations and meals in the home. All meals away from home (including school lunches) are to be paid for by the student.

Each student will be assigned a supervising local coordinator by Mondo Insieme. They provide complete supervision and support for the students during their program.

Academic Program

Classes are conducted in Italian. High School Abroad participants are expected to follow the Italian school curriculum and to fully participate in the academic program. Mondo Insieme will enroll the student in an Italian State High School at the appropriate grade level.The designation of the student's grade level and class schedule are at the discretion of the school.

Classes are generally held from 8:00am to 1:00pm Monday through Saturday, with some students returning to school in the afternoon for additional classes or extracurricular activities. Class schedules are determined by the school and participants are expected to attend all designated classes.

The student must pay for schoolbooks, and any other fees charged by the school for extracurricular activities.

Eligibility Requirements

On the day of departure, students must be between the ages of 15 and 18 years old and have completed the equivalent of two years of high school Italian language study. Students must have completed their first year of high school and be in good academic standing. Students must demonstrate, through the application process, their flexibility, maturity, adaptability and readiness to face the challenges of living in Italy.

Highlights: The history of Italy spans more than 3000 years of peoples, cultures, styles and foods. If you had been traveling in Italy a couple of thousand years ago, you might have met tribes of Latins, Veneti, Ligurians and Umbrii living in city-states, republics and duchies. The creation of a single Italian nation is a recent phenomenon (1861) and even today, people are more likely to identify themselves as Florentines or Romans than as Italians. It is only in the last few decades that Italian has been the language for the majority of the country, and many regional dialects are still used on a daily basis.

Italy's balmy Mediterranean weather qualifies it as Europe's Garden of Eden. The country is teeming with colorful flowers, bountiful fruits and vegetables, and eating well is an art practiced daily. Pasta and gelato are synonymous throughout the world with pleasurable taste. Italians call their country il bel paese, (the beautiful country) and with its mountainous landscape and spectacular coastline, it is indeed a captivating place to behold. Italy is home to some of the most magnificent sights in the world from the ruins of Pompeii to the Amalfi coast, the charming Lake Como, and the roads that lead to Rome.

Italian style and design are world renown in everything from modern fashion to furniture to fast cars. Italians are passionate about the sports such as soccer, car racing (they gave the world Lamborghinis and Maserattis) and cycling. Calcio (soccer) is considered "the beautiful science", and it is a national pastime. The Giro d'Italia bike race has attained international recognition and prestige.

Today Italy is a member of the European Union and a thoroughly modern country, but the core of its daily life remains unchanged. A humorous cliché says that while you may see everyone on the street talking on cell phones, they are simply calling home to say they are on their way so that the pasta is ready when they arrive.

Cost in US$: Please visit our website. Early Application discount for Fall term of USD 150, if application is received by January 31 (September departure) / July 31 (February departure).

    * Selection, interview and screening of an appropriate unpaid, vounteer Italian Family
    * Room and meals with family
    * Placement of student in a high school
    * Supervision and support throughout the program by a Local Coordinator
    * Orientation prior to departing the US
    * Orientation within two weeks of arriving in Italy
    * International airfare between US departure city and Italy
    * Health and liability insurance

Program does not Include

    * Round-trip domestic travel to US departure city
    * Monthly spending allowance
    * Textbooks and supplies
    * Personal phone charges or other personal items
    * Transportation to and from school
    * School lunches and meals outside the home
    * Passport and Visa fees

This Program is open to American Participants.

CIEE's Mission Statement: Since 1947, the Council on International Educational Exchange, known as CIEE, has been in pursuit of its mission, "to help people gain understanding, acquire knowledge, and develop skills for living in a globally interdependent and culturally diverse world. Our services to young people studying, working, teaching, and traveling abroad are more important than ever.

Year Founded: 1947