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Comments about Bocconi University
from Past Participants

for more complete comments, please check out the binders in 1055 BIF

Location

"I wish I realized how fashionable and expensive the city was going to be." - Donika Tonchev, Spring '12

"Milan is definitely not your typical Italian city. When I pictured Italy, I pictured beautiful villas out of a movie. Milan is far from that. It is not the cleanest city and there is a lot of graffiti. It is a little cluttered and overall not that pleasing to the eye. The main square where the Duomo is located, the Duomo itself, and the shops around that area are absolutely beautiful though. Even though Milan is not the most aesthetically pleasing, it is truly a special city. The hip, cool style of Milan definitely becomes something you learn to love. It is a very young city with a lot of things to do. It is extremely fun and most of the best spots are the hardest to find, you just have to know where to look. I would compare it to a downtown Chicago in the sense that it is a very young, live city with a lot of awesome things to do. There are 3 universities right in the city so you could imagine how many college kids are in town. One downside is it is not the most touristy city, thus there aren't that many Americans, and English isn't spoken as much as one would like. This can be a good thing though because you get a feel for a real Italian city. Milan also is not that big area wise and pretty easy to get around with public transportation. Overall I loved Milan and if I spoke the Italian language better, I could definitely see myself living there when I get older." - Christopher Prchal, Spring '12

“Milan is Beautiful! There is a ton of culture there even though on the surface you may not see it right away. Lot of grafitti in the areas around the dorm/outskirts of the city. BUT the Duomo is amazing and surrounding areas are awesome. It is the BEST city for travel abroad because you are in a major city and have 3 international airports. Travel in and out is way cheaper, so we were able to get outside of Italy quite a bit, as well as travel within it very easily. (other people in Florence would have had to take a train to Milan/Rome then a plane to get to other countries in Europe which costs a lot more time and $$$) In addition, the Nightlife was OFF THE HOOK. we were in some of the hottest/classiest clubs I've ever been to. Champaign is just not the same now.” – Christopher Bozzetti, Spring ‘11

“Milan was a great location in regards to traveling all across Europe. With two airports right in the city and one less than an hour away, the freedom to go wherever allowed me to go to whichever country I was interested in seeing. I was able to travel all over Western Europe. I had friends who also traveled to many eastern European countries and other places like Egypt. The city itself had a lot of opportunities to see cultural events. While Milan is not known for its historical and artistic sites, there are many venues that allowed us to see a variety of things. Big names traveled there (such as Backstreet Boys and Lily Allen). The key to experiencing what Milan has to offer is to going out there and looking for it. Milan doesn't have a lot of things that attract tourists. Many of the things that are cool to say are not talked about. You have to go out of your way to ask where things are and find them.” – Laura Beschomer, Fall '09

“I absolutely loved Milan. It's an unbelievable city with extensive opportunities to see and learn so much about Italy and the culture. What I loved most about the city is that it wasn't too touristy, like some Italian cities are, so you really have to opportunity to be immersed in the culture. You constantly run into people who don't speak any English which really allows for you to really be part of the city. As well, there are endless things to do throughout the city. Whether you want to tour the Duomo and other churches, see the finest art in museums, eat fantastic food, shop, or even just see a foreign field, Milan has infinite options of activities to do. The city is large and you can spend a whole day roaming around and see something new, but at the same time it still feels extremely familiar. There are numerous outlets for travel (trains, flights, etc), which makes it really easy to see even more of the country and Europe. For going out and nightlife, Milan had one of the best in all the countries I traveled too in Europe, and had great deals for exchange students. There really is little to find bad about the city.” – Janel Higgs, Spring '09

“Milan is centrally located within Europe, so travel was very easy. Additionally, there isn't very much English spoken there, so it is easier to immerse yourself. The Milanese culture is very different and refreshing from the pace of that in America, although it is still viewed as extremely ‘hustle-bustle' by the majority of Italians.” - Chris Riend, Spring '09

Courses

"I really enjoyed Economic History with Luca Fantacci. The class is pretty interesting and Luca is phenomenal. He is a tough teacher but he's very good. Also, he spoke fluent English with an American accent, which is very rare for teachers over there. I could understand him perfectly. I also enjoyed Financial Contracting, which fulfills Finance 321 at Illinois. This was taught by Fausto Panunzi. The class was pretty boring but Fausto was awesome. I have never seen a teacher that passionate about his material. Analysis and Interpretation of Financial Statements was pretty hard and extremely boring. It fulfills a fin major elective but nonetheless is pretty brutal.Bocconi University if a very hard school. It is considered the most prestigious university in Italy and one of the best in Europe. As a result, the material is rigorous. It is a completely different system than what we are used to in America. For every class there was no homework, no quizzes, no group projects. There was either only a final or a midterm and a final. Whatever you got on these is what you ended up with in the class. As you can imagine, there is a lot of material to cover and a lot of material to study in order to do well on an exam. I liked this because there was no busy work and it was a practical approach. You're taught the material, then tested on it, and what you get is what you end up with. The quality of instruction I have mixed feeling toward. Two of my teachers weren't that good and two were great. The accents are also a little difficult to get used to. The overall teaching approach is different too. It is very common for the instructor to ask the class a question and he simply won't go on until anyone answers. Teachers challenge students and students a lot of the time challenge teachers. Class discussions erupt, everyone gets involved, and the topic of the class completely changes. I thought it was great. The students and the professor truly wanted to be there and learn just for the sake of learning. " - Christopher Prchal, Spring '12

“My favorite class was International Relations- I feel like I learned a lot from this class that will stay with me forever. It expanded my knowledge about the international scene, the EU, China, and countries relations with one another.” – Angela Zappani, Spring ‘11

“I recommend taking Risk management with financial Derivatives with Alonso Pena -- great teacher, really learned a lot in the class. It was interesting to learn about it from a European market perspective. Also Management of a Fashion Company - fun, very easy class. Awesome guest speakers-- for example Ray Ban came to speak to our class and delivered an excellent presentation. Grading system was not as clear as it is at the University of Illinois. I really did not know where I stood with my grades until the end of the semester. The workload was substantially less. Most classes had one test worth 100% of your grade at the end of the semester. Thus, it was entirely up to you to keep up with the readings and practice problems throughout the semester. There were no quizzes or check points along the way.” – Jillian Senechalle, Spring ‘11

“Marketing Research online was great because it was mostly at your own pace and the project was very interesting. Bocconi is a very prestigious school, which means courses are a little more difficult. The professors mostly have English as their second language, so it can get difficult to understand them, but they are very knowledgeable. Most of the coursework is much lighter than it is here. Most of the weight is in the exams.” – Trilla Barry, Spring ‘11

“You have the choice of taking classes in English or Italian. English alone limits the courses you can take. But they were listed long before we left, and we had to get them pre-approved any way. You have a few weeks- a month to add/drop courses as you wish. Took Analysis and Interpretation of Financial Statements, Marketing Research Online (EASY take it!)I recommend doing the Non-Attending version WITHOUT a project. I had friends take the non-attending WITH a project and they struggled on the exam plus had to put a ton of hours in for a project. Take the management of a fashion business class: it's crazy easy and very, very interesting to see the business side of fashion. Finally, I took Econ History and this was my favorite class. It was a little challenging with quite a bit of reading, but I found it very interesting regardless.” – Christopher Bozzetti, Spring ‘11

“Registering was a little confusing and it allows you to register for two classes at the same time since you can do non-attending. The classes were confirmed before I got there and I did not have any trouble getting the classes I wanted. My favorite class was the Fashion class because it was exciting to learn about fashion while being in one of the fashion capitals of the world. I would not recommend taking business law there because it is a graduate class and it was hard. I ended up getting a decent grade but it was very stressful during finals time.” – Sarah Wunning, Spring ‘11

“Courses were not as demanding over the semester as they are here. The teachers seemed educated in the courses they were teaching and willing to embrace the different backgrounds of students in the classes. Because there were many different students, I was able to see a variety of viewpoints which allowed me to understand another way of looking at the situations. Because courses are not challenging during the course of the semester, I didn't have much motivation to study. Once finals came along I had to motivate myself to study even thought I was still traveling every weekend” – Laura Beschomer, Fall '09

“There were courses that transferred which were very convenient. Fashion Merchandising was a great course, especially when studying in a city like Milan. The Italian Crash Course before school starts is a MUST, and a really great way to practice your Italian. There's not a lot of variety in the courses. Other friends that studied in Italy had the opportunity to take really interesting course about Italian history and culture, but Bocconi only offers business course…..understandable but it would've been nice to mix up the course load. I also disliked that most courses don't have assignments until the final exam, and you're grade is completely dependent on that one exam.” – Janel Higgs, Spring '09

“Courses required little to no effort on a day-to-day basis outside of class time. Instructors come from diverse backgrounds and are very well versed in the subject matter that they teach. Understanding their English was a non-issue. Grades are largely, if not solely, dependant on exams, which can be repeated up to three times. It would have been nice if UIUC told us this so we could adjust our departure date accordingly. Because of this, exchange students are put at a serious disadvantage as compared to Italian students by only taking an examination one time.” - Chris Riend, Spring '09

“My regular semester courses were interesting and all taught in English. I took courses on International and Supra National Organizations, Marketing Research(online), Fashion Management and Marketing, and Comparative Business Law. I was able to work out my schedule so that I transfer back all of my courses and credits for classes that fulfill major requirements, and I only had class Monday through Thursday.” - Maggie Modica, Spring '10

Housing

"I lived in a dorm called Arcobaleno with mostly other Americans, Canadians, and Australians. It was far from campus and downtown Milan but other than that I absolutely loved it. I met some great friends in the dorm and it really allows you to develop close friendships with a lot of people because you all live together. You cook your own meals in the public kitchens and the rooms are fully furnished. It was like freshman year all over again but better!" - Christopher Prchal, Spring '12

"The residence hall I lived in was all international students like myself, and that was great. It was pretty pricy though and for a program without a meal plan and so far away from school it did seem a bit outrageous. However the people you meet and the friendships you make with everyone you live with make it all very worth it." - Donika Tonchev, Spring '12

“Our residence hall at Arcobaleno was amazing. We had our own balconies, maids to clean up our suites. There was no meal plan however, but I loved living here.” – Kevin McAlpine, Spring ‘11

“You live in Arcobeleno dorm and cook for yourself. It's awesome to live in the dorm again and meet (about 400) people from the U.S. and other places from around the world. Everyone is great and you basically get to live freshman year over again. Completely 100% satisfied. Tips: People that lived in apartments had a WAY different experience. If you do decide to get an apartment, don't worry about meeting people because you WILL any way. You'll just have to put some effort into it. BUT I've had friends that roomed in apartments with ITALIANs and they LOVED it getting a more cultural experience than a lot of us did in the dorm. Looking back I wish I would have lived in the dorm for the first month as I was looking for an apartment, THEN moved out. (It is WAY cheaper to rent an apartment than the dorm) but you'll have to worry about dealing with a landlord/ roommates ETC probably in Italian.)” – Christopher Bozzetti, Spring ‘11

“I lived at the international dorm, Arcobaleno. It was nice living with people from all over and always having someone to go out with or cook dinner with. I got to meet people from all over the world who were always up for doing something or travel somewhere. The international dorm, where I stayed, was situated slightly outside the city and took awhile to travel to the city center (about 30-40 minutes). There was also constant noise going on from the kids that lived in the apartment complexes surrounding the dorm. Even though it was slightly obnoxious, it wasn't that big of deal because I tried not to be there that often. Even though I loved meeting people from all over the world, it was kind of hard to be completely immersed in the Italian culture. Some of my friends lived in the Italian dorms and got to meet Italians from all over.” – Laura Beschomer, Fall '09

“The housing at Arcobaleno was great for the people you're able to meet. It's the international dorm, so you have the opportunity to meet students from all over the world. The location of the housing isn't the best—it's kind of far from school and the center of the city.” – Janel Higgs, Spring '09

“We were not informed by UIUC that our housing would be on the very outskirts of Milan (basically located in a suburb called Rozzano), nor that it would cost an exorbitant amount of money to live there, only that we had better jump on the opportunity to live there before it fills up (which it never did). There were many options to live within walking distance of the university for half the price, which we were not made aware of. Local students and professionals alike found the cost of living at arcobaleno simply laughable; It would have been nice to have an extra 1,800€ to travel with instead. Arcobaleno is also the most neglected of Bocconi's residences, offering fewer amenities at a higher price because it is intended for international students.” - Chris Riend, Spring '09

Useful Advice

“Be aware that Italy has very different and shorter working hours than we are used to. There is no such thing as a store that is open 24 hours and most things are closed on sunday. When traveling, whenever possible, fly with EasyJet over Ryanair. EasyJet has no weight limit on your carry on as long as it is the right size. Ryanair is Very strict with weight and size of carry ons and will check it before security and also before boarding the plane. If it is slightly overweight or can't fit perfectly in the cage (that they make you it in to check for size) they will make you check your bag and charge you 40 Euros!” – Angela Zappani, Spring ‘11

“If you choose Bocconi, I would recommend staying away from classes that you need to transfer back. Try to take electives so that you can choose to take them as credit/no credit.” – Matthew Gilmer, Spring ‘11

“Do everything you can and try not to let the cost of things stop you from doing something, it will probably be worth it.” – Sarah Wunning, Spring ‘11

“I wish I had bought a travel book and learned more about the city….there's so much hidden in Milan that you may never find out about, and a travel book will provide necessary addition information that would've really helped me experience more of the city.” – Janel Higgs, Spring '09

“The process of getting an Italian visa needs to be started as soon as you are accepted to study in Italy, because of the amount of time it takes to get it.” - Chris Riend, Spring '09

“The language barrier was always an issue that made traveling and interacting with people difficult. Therefore, I kind of wished I would have known more Italian before leaving. In addition, I was unsure what was the best way to get to my dorm from the airport when I first arrived, which resulted in me getting lost with all of my luggage on my first night in Milan. As you could probably guess, that did not provide me with an enjoyable start to my experience and it didn't give me a very good first impression of studying abroad. It ended up working out in the end but I wish that I would have been advised with the best route so that I could have avoided all of that trouble.” - Robert Bosco, Spring '10

Costs

"Semester Expenses: books - $185; Monthly Expenses: food - $600, housing - $840, local transportation - $225 (including taxis), travel - $800." - Christopher Prchal, Spring '12

“Semester Expenses: visa - $50, books - $300. Monthly Expenses: food - $500, housing - $750, entertainment - $300, local transportation - $50, travel - $200.” – Katelyn Johnson, Spring ‘11

“If I was traveling I always spend more on food because we ate out every meal. But if I bought most food from the grocery store, I spent less. I probably spent about 75 euros a week. I probably spent about 100 euros on books.” – Laura Beschomer, Fall '09

“Depending on how much we ate out that week, I would guess I spent on food between 30-50€. I split some books with other students in my class, but I spent about 175€ for the semester.” – Janel Higgs, Spring '09

“I spent $100 on food a week, and $225 on textbooks for the semester.” - Chris Riend, Spring '09

Useful Websites

GRyanair.com (airliner)
skyscanner.net (comprehensive list of all the airlines)
hostelworld.com (hostels)
eurolines.com (buses)
trenitalia.com/homepage_en.html (trains in Italy)
momondo.com (cheap flights)
unibocconi.eu (university website)
atm.it (travel sight)
milano.tonight.eu