General Information

Elgibility	Program Director	Living Arrangements
Trips and Cultural Excursions	Travel Arrangements	Flight Preparation and Travel Tips
Some Initial Packing Tips	Pre-Departure Orientation	Passports and Visas
Insurance	Expenses and Program Costs	Financial Aid

Eligibility
The program is open to high school seniors and college students at any accredited university or college in the United States, as well as to secondary school teachers. No previous knowledge of Italian is required. The program offers language courses at the elementary, intermediate, and advanced levels. Art and culture courses are conducted in English. (Back to top)

Program Director
Since its inception, this program has been directed by Professor Mario B. Mignone of Stony Brook's European Languages Department. Professor Mignone will accompany the group to Rome and will teach some of the courses. As the program director, Professor Mignone has the right and responsibility to ensure that students abide by the program's rules and regulations, and he assists the students personally and academically whenever possible. (Back to top)

Living Arrangements
Students are housed in a residence ("Domus Mariae") near the center of the city. This residence provides dormitory-style rooms, a restaurant, meeting rooms, and a comfortable atmosphere. Double rooms are generally assigned; single rooms are available at extra charge and with some limited availability. We can usually accommodate specific roommate requests. Program participants will be provided with three meals a day while at the Domus Mariae. Students wishing to make their own living arrangements are free to do so. Program participants also receive a public transportation pass for the month of July to facilitate travel throughout Rome.
Accommodation and some meals are provided during the program excursions, as described below. This is all covered in the program fee. (Back to top)

Trips and Cultural Excursions
Program costs include planned excursions to some of the most beautiful cities and sights in Italy.

Assisi, Florence and Siena: three-day weekend tour
Padua and Venice: three-day weekend tour (half pensione)
Capri: one-day tour
Tivoli: half-day tour with banquet (Back to top)

Travel Arrangements
A group flight is arranged by the program director on regularly scheduled airline flights. However, students wishing to make their own travel arrangements may do so provided they are in Rome by the beginning of classes and remain until the academic program is completed. Students flying with the group and wishing to stay longer may do so as long as they request the desired date of return at the time they purchase their ticket.
Ground transportation is included from the airport to the place of residence for students arriving on the group flight. (Back to top)

Flight Preparation and Travel Tips
If you have not previously taken an international flight, check with the travel agent regarding luggage restrictions once the group flight has been arranged. Typically you can carry books, a handbag, and a carry-on bag with you on the plane and can check up to two bags. All bags are subject to size and weight restrictions by the airline, and you should make sure that you can carry all the luggage yourself. Be sure to lock your checked luggage and have a tag on it with your name and address; it's not a bad idea to put your name and address inside the bag as well. When retrieving your baggage upon arrival, many bags look alike, so check the narnetags to make sure you have the right ones. Some people like to place a piece of colored tape or string on their luggage for easy identification. (And most of them use red, so try to find another color!)

When you arrive in Italy, you will first go through Immigration, where your passport will be checked. Do not pack your passport in your checked luggage. After Immigration you will retrieve your luggage and go through Customs. The Customs officials have the right to open and check your luggage; it is always best to respond to their inquiries in a polite and straightforward manner. Since you are responsible for anything you carry into another country, do not transport anything illegal and certainly do not carry anything that was given to you by someone else.

If you were on the group flight, after Customs you will proceed to the bus. Carts are available; porter service is expensive.

Remember that your airline ticket envelope contains your return ticket. Do not throw away the envelope on departing the airport! While you are in Rome your return ticket should receive the same care as your passport. (Back to top)

Some Initial Packing Tips
Rule Number One: Don't pack more than you can carry! Really, it's okay to wear the same outfit more than once. You can plan on the same type of clothing that you would want for a summer in New York, bearing in mind the following:

Even though it is quite warm, shorts are not that popular in Italy. Certainly short shorts will be the cause of much attention - unwanted attention.
You will be visiting churches, and churches are houses of worship. Occasionally, the officials crack down and refuse to admit people in abbreviated costumes.
Bring comfortable, low-heeled shoes; you will be walking a lot.
It is important that you bring a pair of slippers or flip-flops; if you go barefoot on the cold marble floor at "Domus Mariae" you will be sick within four to five days!
Remember your sunglasses.
Please do not bring valuable jewelry with you.
Hangers are scarce items at "Domus Mariae"; bring a supply of wire hangers with you.
You are expected to provide your own soap. Take a reasonable supply. You can buy American brands of cosmetics in Italy, but expect to pay more for them.
Although towels are provided, the ones you find in Italy tend to be rather small, so we also recommend that you take a bath towel.
Linens are provided, as is Linen service.
Voltage in Italy is 220, as opposed to 110 in the U.S., and the outlets are shaped differently. For any electrical appliances you will need both an adapter (for the size of the plug) and a transformer (to convert the voltage). If you plan to take an electrical appliance, purchase the adapter and transformer for it here.
If you take a clock make sure it's either a wind-up or quartz-run. Even with a transformer, electric clocks will lose 10 minutes every hour. (Trust us.)
A guide book can be useful up to a point, but this is completely optional.
Don't forget your phone card. You can call home collect, but that is very expensive. Most major telephone companies have an overseas option which allows you to dial an access code and get connected immediately to a U.S. (and therefore English speaking) operator who will complete your call for you. This service is typically much cheaper than calling collect. Check with your long-distance carrier. (Back to top)

Pre-Departure Orientation
Since you will have numerous questions prior to departure, you'll be receiving a complete "Orientation Kit" from Stony Brook. We will fully prepare participants and answer all their key questions about travel, money, credit card usage, passport, insurance, packing, type of baggage recommended, mail, how to be reached in case of emergency, etc. For those who are able to attend, we schedule a pre-departure orientation meeting at Stony Brook, in addition to the on-site orientation session in Italy. (Back to top)

Passports and Visas
Application for passports should be made well in advance of departure. All U.S. citizens participating in this program will need a U.S. passport that will remain valid beyond the end of the program. It takes from three to six weeks to obtain a passport, especially in the spring and early summer when everyone is planning to travel abroad. 'Me location of the nearest Passport Bureau can be obtained from any U.S. Post Office. Near our University, students should go to the Stony Brook Post Office in Stony Brook Village. In addition, the Study Abroad Office tries to keep some applications on file; feel free to request one. Expect to pay a fee of approximately $65 for the passport. You will need two passport-size photos for your passport application. The ID/Meal Plan Office in the Melville Library, Room 0319, on the Stony Brook campus now provides this service, as do many travel agencies.
Participants need their passport in order to apply for a student visa; at the time of this publication, no visa is required of U.S. citizens if the stay does not exceed three months. If needed, a visa may be requested at the Italian Embassy or the closest Italian consulate.
If you travel around on your own before or after the program, you should know that most Western European countries don't require entry visas for short-term U.S. visitors. However, some other countries may require entry visas in addition to a passport. Visas are obtained from the consulates or embassies of the host country. Most countries have consular offices in New York and Rome. Where required, you will need to have the visa in order to enter the country you are visiting, so you apply for it before going to that country. Visas are stamped into the traveler's passport, so you will need to have the passport before even applying for the visa. (Back to top)

Insurance
The State University of New York requires that all students traveling abroad on SUNY programs have adequate medical insurance for the duration of their overseas program. Details of this insurance will be sent to participants under separate cover. Students who prove prior to our waiver deadline that they are covered by comparable personal insurance will be allowed to waive the main policy; however, SUNY regulations require that all participants purchase the Evacuation/ Repatriation coverage (cost is approximately $4 a month) regardless of individual health/accident insurance. Appropriate forms will be included in the student's acceptance packet. (Back to top)

Expenses and Program Costs
Students and their families should be aware that the cost of living abroad is affected by fluctuations in the strength of the U.S. dollar and by personal preferences and taste. It is therefore difficult for us to estimate the amount of spending money students will need. However, the program fee, which is to be paid to Stony Brook before students depart for Rome, covers housing, three meals per day, numerous excursions, and a public transportation pass in Rome for the month of July. The program fee is approximately $2,300. In addition to the program fee, students are responsible for Stony Brook tuition. As with all other universities, tuition and fees are subject to change. Stony Brook makes every effort to keep costs as low as possible, consistent with the essential program quality. The program fee represents the differential cost, beyond the Stony Brook tuition, of conducting the academic program in Rome.
Additional costs would be the airfare, insurance, and any personal expenditures a student chooses to make.
Please refer to the insert at the back of this brochure for recent cost information. (Back to top)

Financial Aid
This program has been arranged so that it does not negatively affect a student's eligibility for financial aid, and most forms of financial aid may be applied to program fees. Upon request, the Study Abroad Office will provide the student with a list of program costs which the student's financial aid office can use to determine the aid award. Participants should apply for financial aid through their home university. Please note, how ever, that summer aid is not always released by the date program fees are due; students waiting to receive aid are still responsible for paying program fees by the stated due dates. (Back to top)