Being an Italian major, you have already shown that you have international interests. Why not take that interest a step further and have a transformative and life-enriching experience? Go live in Italy, enroll at an Italian university and experience Italian language and culture firsthand.

Improve your knowledge of the language you have already studied by using it in everyday life as well as in school. Learn how to better express your thoughts on complex topics and follow your interests in Italian. Participate more fully in national and international politics and events. Discover greater access to Italian films, music, and the visual and dramatic arts.

Italian majors and minors who study abroad find that a term or, better yet, a full year spent in Italy not only is critical for their language fluency, but that the experience of adapting to another academic and cultural world expands their self-understanding and gives them a keener sense of the political, cultural, and social differences in today’s world.

The intellectual and personal growth students experience during their time abroad will serve them well throughout their lives. Participating in UCEAP provides further advantages when it comes to the challenges of graduate school and the competitive job market.

While it is possible for students to go abroad at almost any point in their academic careers, the particular year, semester, or quarter that you study abroad depends on what courses you plan to take. Students wanting to fulfill upper-division major requirements should, in most cases, go abroad in their junior or senior years. Students interested in language and culture programs, or in fulfilling major preparation and General Education requirements, can participate as early as their sophomore year.

If you go abroad in your junior year, you should strongly consider doing a senior honors thesis based on the coursework and intellectual interests you developed abroad. This provides an ideal way of integrating time abroad with the completion of the Italian major.

PLAN AHEAD! Applications are typically due six months to a year prior to the program’s start date and some programs have academic or language prerequisites that must be satisfied in advance.

Go to Italy, of course! And go for as long as you can, yet still graduate on time. UCEAP offers a variety of year-long and short-term programs in multiple locations in Italy. Be sure to consider a homestay if that is one of your housing options.  

The Italian Studies Program strongly encourages its students to go to the University of Bologna and take all of their courses abroad in Italian. In addition to language classes, they recommend that students consider taking Italian literature courses. If you are an Italian major, you can use up to 20 upper-division units of appropriate coursework taken abroad towards your major. If you plan to minor in Italian, you can use a maximum of 8 upper-division units towards the minor.

The undergraduate advisor will work individually with each student to ensure the most effective use of courses taken abroad for major requirements. Internships, independent study and field work completed abroad can be used for major requirements upon approval of the department and the college.

All UCEAP coursework is automatically credited towards the unit requirement for your degree. Depending on your course selection, you may fulfill major, minor or GE requirements as well. Plan ahead and consult with your advisors. If you take courses abroad for which you wish to get credit towards your major or minor, you MUST keep your syllabi, course materials, essays and exams to support your petition for major credit after your return.

Use Gaucho Credit Abroad to search for the types of credit (i.e. major, minor, GE areas, or electives towards graduation) that UCSB students received for courses taken on UCEAP. You can find more UCEAP courses in the UCEAP Course Catalog and additional course listings on UCEAP partner university/program websites.

• Explore program options
• Attend info meetings
• Contact the UCSB EAP Office
• Contact the Department of French and Italian

Academic Planning Form Tutorial

Gaucho Credit Abroad Database