Sorrento, Italy

This course examines the culture of Italy in a summer program in Sorrento, Southern Italy. Through academic and first-hand field experiences, students explore the values and characteristics unique to the Italians, make comparisons and contrasts with their own culture, and thereby increase their own intercultural competency. Learning involves class discussions, lectures, and a final research project. More specifically, field experiences help students gain an understanding and personal appreciation for the diversity of the Italian culture; the final research project will be a reflection paper pointing out how their own culture compares with the Italian one.

This course focuses on the importance of all communication in the workplace. Students assess their own career goals, strengths, and weaknesses by exploring principles of effective professional communication with assignments on business style writing and by delivering presentations. This section of BUS COMM emphasizes cultural communication with this travel component to Italy.

Estimated cost is $8,000 per student. 

Program cost includes:

• Tuition for two classes for WNE credits (total 6 credits)
• Transportation from campus to Newark Airport on day of departure 
• Airfare
• 3 weeks of housing in fully equipped apartments (with wifi/air/washing machines/bedding/towels/weekly cleaning/bathrooms) in historic district of Sorrento. 
• Daily breakfasts and dinners for entire trip (except personal days)
• Special Welcome Lunch and Farewell Dinner
• Payment for all site visits and activities (See locations of excursions under Site Visits link)
• Private bus tours
• Private guided tours for every site visit
• Boat ride to Naples for day-long site visit
• Boat ride to Capri for day-long site visit
• Access to discounts at area businesses from our partner school of Sant'Anna Institute
• Health insurance
• 24/7 support from faculty
• All administration fees for WNE/Sant'Anna

Sorrento Study Abroad Program includes these site visits and activities:

• Walking tour of Sorrento first day of classes
• Amalfi Coast
• Naples 
• Olive Oil Farm and Factory tour and tasting
• Gelato Laboratory - class and tasting
• Italian Farm with lemon trees and cheese factory with tasting
• Pompeii Ruins
• Villa Rufolo
• Capri Island
• Ravello
• Positano
• Caserta Royal Palace
• Authentic Italian Cooking class and tasting (Our dinner for that night!)
• Specialty coffee factory and tasting

Students must be in good academic standing to participate in study abroad opportunities. Students participating in year-long or semester-long study abroad programs must satisfy the specific grade point average required by the foreign university they will be attending.

Sarah Dubuque
Actuarial Science major

“This trip was a truly life-changing experience, opening my eyes to a different culture and language; something that I am privileged to be able to say so early in my life. I am proud to be representing Western New England University here in Sorrento.  

“Along with the breathtaking site visits, studying at the Sant’Anna Institute in Sorrento has been a highlight of this trip. Meeting students and professors from all over the world and sharing stories of our travels here in Italy has been remarkable.”

Mackenzie Douglas
Human Resource Management major

“Being able to explore and study in a new country is highly rewarding and is an eye-opening experience. Many do not know how different the United States is from other countries and do not have the chance to travel abroad. Being able to study abroad while attending WNE is such a special experience because I was able to explore the world, meet lifelong friends, and receive academic credits. As a commuter student, this trip has allowed me to get out of my comfort zone and try something new. 

“I will be eternally grateful for this opportunity and will remember it for the rest of my life.”

Alex Smith
Business Management major

“Seeing the site visits with our tour guide, Paolo, was incredible, but being able to connect everything in class and seeing the references that Paolo mentioned was truly amazing. 

“Being taught Roman history back in the United States was helpful. However, living in the culture and being a part of it is an entirely different story. Giving us a chance to learn more about where we are and how impactful the history was to contemporary Italy is something I will never forget.”

Anthony Cavallo
Sport Management major

“Being able to travel is an eye-opening experience. It allows us, as students, to fully immerse ourselves into a completely different culture, which may be outside of our comfort zone. Doing this gives us a contrasting perspective of daily life as we know it. Throughout our time here, we were able to visit a handful of historic sites with many tales to project the evolution of civilization. These sites consisted of the beautiful city of Naples/Napoli and the breathtaking Amalfi Coastline, where you will find other villages with amazing scenic views, such as Positano and Ruvello. Our host university did a phenomenal job with our Italian Cultures course and taught us all of the precedent events to give context to all of our site visits. Seeing a gorgeous cathedral and all of the art through the frescos on the walls is one thing, but understanding what they are depicting and the stories behind them make you appreciate it much more.

“Not only was the culture, education, and history eye-opening, but the bonds and friendships that were made among classmates is something truly remarkable. It was the adventure of a lifetime.”

For more information, contact:

Dr. Marcus Davis
Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences and Director of the Study Abroad Program
Phone: 413-782-1444
Email: marcus.davis@wne.edu

Brenda Garton-Sjoberg 
Faculty, Department of Communication, Media and the Arts
Director, WNE Sorrento Summer Program
Phone: 413-782-1260
Email: bgarton@wne.edu