Chapter 4: Other Academic Matters

Course Selection and Approval

Registration forms and instructions are available online. Print out the instructions and follow them carefully. Be sure to obtain approval for the courses you select. Fairfield University students: follow the University procedure for course preapproval. Students from other schools should obtain a signature (required) from the person who is authorized to approve transfer credit at your home institution. A normal course load is 15 credits. Keep in mind that you must take at least 12 credits while in Florence.

The Academic Culture Abroad

You may find that Italians and Europeans in general have a different approach to education. Probably the biggest difference is the expectation the institution will have of you as a student. It will be assumed that you are a serious student and that you take responsibility for your education. Don't expect that faculty members will check to see that you are completing assignments, or remind you of upcoming exams or papers. It will be up to you to ask when and how work should be done. If you have questions, professors are pleased to interact with students who seek them out.

You will be expected to complete assignments on time, and to come to class prepared and on time.

You will probably find there are fewer assignments than you are used to, and more weight will be placed on a paper, midterm and final exams. So you should direct your energies to keeping pace with the course material and familiarizing yourself with source materials and suggested readings.

You will find that computers aren't omnipresent in Italy as they are in the U.S. FUA does have a computer lab, and the building is wireless-enabled. During crunch-times, when demand for the computers in the lab is high, you can use the many internet cafes in town.

While FUA has its non-lending reading room/library, you may need other resources. Each student attending the Fairfield program will be given a Stagweb account, which provides access to the Fairfield University library holdings and services. You will find this a tremendous help in research for your courses.

In addition, there are many public, private and semi-private libraries in Florence, and you only need the initiative to find what you need. Any faculty member will be pleased to help a serious student find access to these holdings. Start with your teachers.

Interruption of Studies

In the case of an emergency, such as illness of a family member, you will work with our Program Director to plan your absence (no more than one week) and return to FUA to complete your studies.

If you withdraw from the program for any reason before completing the semester, you must remember that it is impossible to complete your semester here in the U.S. Before finalizing your decision, you should consider carefully whether you can afford to lose a semester's work.