Why Study in Florence?

Florence is a unique city in which to live and study. In Florence students see for themselves the taste, elegance, and aesthetic sensibility that marked the Renaissance. Living and studying where the rebirth of creativity began five centuries ago is inspiring. History and language come alive. Nearly every street is a showpiece and an adventure in Italy's architectural cultural center. It is a busy city bursting with Italian vitality, a city for all ages with cafés, art, museums, shops, and cinemas. Student life is very much in evidence.

Highlights of Florence

• Open to students age 18 and older who have graduated from high school and have completed 12 units of college course work with a minimum 2.25 grade point average
• Live and study in the city where the Renaissance began
• View masterpieces of art in their original setting
• Walk through streets lined with Renaissance palaces and churches
• Sample the pleasures of freshly prepared Tuscan cuisine
• Experience the rich patterns of Italian life in the 21st century

Why Choose this Program?

This program is offered to enable students to study abroad while making normal progress toward their degree objectives, and earning fully transferable units in courses taught by community college faculty and guest lecturers. This program is offered in cooperation with several California community colleges and with the American Institute for Foreign Study (AIFS), which arranges transportation, living accommodations, and a wide range of student and instructional support services. Students need not be currently enrolled at one of the sponsoring colleges in order to participate. Units earned in Florence will appear on transcripts issued by the participating colleges.

Dates and Meetings

Program Dates

• Depart the US: Sat, Jan 26, 2013
• Arrive in Italy: Sun, Jan 27, 2013
• Mid-Semester Break: Mon, Mar 11 to Fri, Mar 15, 2013
• Depart Italy: Fri, Apr 26, 2013

Optional Pre-Program Tour

• Depart the US: Tue, Jan 22, 2013
• Arrive in Paris: Wed, Jan 23, 2013
• Transfer to London: Fri, Jan 25, 2013
• Arrive in Italy: Sun, Jan 27, 2013

Important Dates

• October 5, 2012 – Priority application deadline
• October 18, 2012 – Local application deadline
• November 5, 2012 – Late applications on space available basis deadline
• January 12, 2013 – at DVC: Mandatory pre-departure orientation meeting

Fall 2012 Information Sessions (for Spring 2013 Departure)

• Information sessions facilitated by Bob Duxbury (rduxbury@santarosa.edu), our SRJC instructor who will go to Florence with NCSAC-AIFS consortium faculty and students in the Spring of 2013.

Florence 2013 Informational Meetings (PDF version)

• Mon, Sept. 10, noon - 1:00 pm 4245 Doyle, Santa Rosa
• Wed, Sept. 12, noon - 1:00 pm, PC726 Mahoney, Petaluma
• Tue, Sept. 18, 5:00 - 6:00 pm, 4245 Doyle, Santa Rosa
• Thurs, Sept. 20, 5:00 - 6:00 pm, PC726 Mahoney, Petaluma
• Mon, Oct. 1, noon - 1:00 pm, 4245 Doyle, Santa Rosa
• Wed, Oct 3, noon - 1:00 pm, PC726 Mahoney, Petaluma

Program Costs/Scholarships/Financial Aid

• AIFS program costs for Florence 2013
• Financial aid information (PDF)
• Scholarships information and application (PDF), Word doc version