What do you think when I say Italy? That gorgeous Mediterranean climate? The birthplace of the Renaissance? Pizza? What about a country to study abroad? If this is something you haven’t considered before, then let’s run through some reasons why Italy is a great place to choose to study abroad.

The Culture

As we’ve already discussed, Italy was the birthplace of the Renaissance: a cultural movement which swept across Europe and laid the groundwork for the beginnings of the modern world, as we know it.

The Renaissance left Italy with a rich artistic heritage.  The Mona Lisa was painted by Leonardo Da Vinci, the roof of the Cistern Chapel was painted by Michelangelo, Machiavelli wrote his treatise the Prince, while Dante Aligherhi composed the Divine Comedy.  And this is just a tiny fraction of the artists that Renaissance Italy produced.  There’s also Petrarch, Rafael, Donacello and Botticelli.

In short, if you’re studying a Liberal Art, then Italy is definitely the location for you.  Soak up the atmosphere and go be inspired by the greats.

The Science

But what if you’re studying a scientific discipline instead of an artistic one? Don’t worry.  Italy has you covered too.  The Renaissance spawned great scientific thinkers like Galileo and Copernicus who proved that the Earth orbited around the sun, while this scientific progress led to the development of the Printing Press: one of the most important inventions in human history.

Italy has just as strong as a scientific heritage as it does an artistic one.  It is a great location for young scientific minds to come and learn more about the basic ideas, which founded their disciplines. 

The Universities

As well as a diverse heritage, Italy also boasts 30 universities which feature in the QS World University Rankings of 2018.

The Polentiecnico di Milano is the 14^th in the world for Structural Engineering and the joint 7^th for art and design.  There is also the universitá di Bologna, which is the oldest university in the world, as well as the università di Roma, which has produced six Nobel laureates including Particle Physicist Carlo Rubbia.

In short, Italy has a fantastic collection of universities to choose from including some of the best in the world.

The Student Lifestyle

Italy boasts a great collection of cities, which has all a student might want to keep themselves entertained.   So let’s talk through some of the best.

The most obvious to begin with is Rome. Before there was the Renaissance, there was the Roman Empire: one of the greatest empires in history, which spawned such great thinkers like Ovid, Cicero and Horace. 

It also holds some of the most famous tourist attractions in the world, such as the Forum and the Trevi Fountain.  But beyond this there are also flea markets, book bars and theatres, and we’ve already seen just how impressive the università di Roma is.

If you’re more into fashion than history, then Milan is an excellent option for you: it is one of the fashion capitals of the world after all.  And with eight universities, it has the biggest student population in Italy.

As we’re talking about student population, special props should go to Pisa too.  Beyond posing at the famous Leaning Tower, you will find students exploring its 20historic churches, sampling the finest wine bars or singing in karaoke bars.  And the universitá di Pisa is a major selling point with its most famous alumnus being none other than Galileo.

Finally, we have Bologna.  While not the most well-known, Bologna is one of the friendliest cities in Italy. It also has plenty of free museums and some of the best food in Italy.  It isn’t known as Italy’s culinary capital for nothing.

There isn’t much else to say about studying in Italy.  It offers some of the best universities in the world, has a rich cultural heritage and has thriving student populations.  What more could you ask for?