ECU Tuscany: Fall 2024
Program dates (August 27 – November 21) allow you to be home for Thanksgiving with a long holiday break before the spring semester.
Fall is our favorite season in Italy, warm and golden, with brilliant colors on the vineyards as grapes are harvested and the weather turns crisp and cool. It’s the time when Italians host many seasonal celebrations; street festivals, food festivals and Medieval games in full costume. AND, we enjoy weather warm enough to swim in the Mediterranean Sea!
After landing in Rome, we begin the program on the Amalfi Coast in a lovely hotel overlooking the bay of Naples and Mount Vesuvius. The cliffs and rugged shoreline are covered with pastel colored fishing villages, and we have a spectacular view of them during our boat trip from Positano to Amalfi. Nearby we can tour the ancient ruins of Pompeii before traveling to Orvieto, one of the jewels of Umbria, and a favorite of our students. From there it’s a fun day trip to nearby Civita di Bagnoregio, a tiny village sitting high atop an eroding crest of rock. After settling into our apartments and beginning classes in Certaldo, we will spend 3 days exploring the Cinque Terre, hiking, swimming and kayaking this memorable world heritage site.
Students have some free weekends and a 5- day fall break for independent travel after our group trip to Lake Garda, where paragliders and sailboats dot the skies above and the water below. Trips to Lucca, Pisa, Florence, and Siena, are easy to take from Certaldo and we will explore the Chianti countryside around Volterra and San Gimignano together. We end this semester with three days in the enchanting city of Venice, and 3 days in Rome before flying back to the states from Rome. Both cities are especially lovely during November, with fewer tourists and quieter streets as cool weather and the holiday season begins.
Don’t miss this opportunity to study in Italy during the stunningly beautiful fall season!
Application Instructions
Click on the Apply Now button in the top right corner of this website to apply. Or you can go to the ECU Pirates Abroad website. Click ‘login/register’ and login with your PirateID and passphrase. There you will see the ECU Tuscany application. Click on the application and complete all of the questionnaires and read and sign all of the signature documents. Your application will remain pending until all signature pages and all questions are filled out. The application will be reviewed as soon as it is completed in full, and you will receive e-mail notification once your application is reviewed by program staff. If you would like to inquire about the status of your application at any time, please contact the Education Abroad Office at studyabroad@ecu.edu.
- No one will review the application until it is complete .
- It will be pending until all signature pages and all questionnaires are filled out.
- Only when it is complete with signatures will it be reviewed, then you will receive an e-mail telling you the status of the application.
- As soon as you are notified that you are accepted you should pay your deposit and application fee if you are sure you want to join us. Until you pay, you will not be confirmed on the program and you may lose your spot.
- Once the program fills with those who have paid their deposit, we will start a wait list.
Once you have been accepted
Once you have been accepted
After you receive an acceptance e-mail, a non-refundable $75 study abroad administrative fee and a $200 housing deposit will be due to secure your spot. Your place in the program will not be confirmed until these funds are received. Payment should be sent as soon as you are sure you plan to attend, even before the deadline for applications. If the program fills prior to receiving your payment, even if you have been accepted, you will be placed on the waiting list. Please contact Shadawn Simmons with questions regarding payments at simmonssh@ecu.edu.
Once you have been accepted you will receive an e-mail with instructions on how to pay the two separate payments (application fee/housing deposit). You can also login to your Pirates Abroad application post-acceptance to view payment instructions.
It is required in Italy, that all study abroad students be vaccinated – and proof of vaccination must be shown to enter museums restaurants and to ride on public transportation. Vaccinations are valid 9 months from the last dose.
Course Registration
Our classes include fine arts, humanities, science, language, and social sciences. Once you have been accepted into the program you will receive a questionnaire asking you to re-confirm your class choices. You will not register yourself on campus because our classes will not be listed on the ECU registration website. We will register you in the Study Abroad office. You can drop and add classes during the first week you are in Italy.
List of courses offered for Fall 2024.
Cost for the fall semester is $11,700 + $75 study abroad administrative fee.
Cost includes:
- Transportation to and from airports in Italy
- International health insurance while abroad-no copay and no deductible
- Lodgings and utilities in beautiful apartments in Certaldo
- Lodgings on all overnight trips
- Tuition
- Transportation on all school trips in Italy
- Dinners on all class days
- Breakfast and dinners on overnight trips
- Museum entrances and tours
- 3 days in Rome
- 3 days in Venice
- 3 days in Cinque Terre
- 5 days on the Amalfi Coast, Naples, Pompeii, and Umbria
- Day trips to San Gimignano, Bagnoregio, Volterra, Florence, Pisa, Siena, and Orvieto
- Entrance to Cinque Terre National Park on the Mediterranean
Students budget for their own lunches and breakfasts in Certaldo. Our apartments have washing machines and full kitchens available for cooking. Grocery prices are very reasonable. Group dinners are provided on all scheduled class days as well as both breakfasts and dinners on all overnight trips.
Fall 2024 Payment Schedule
- Upon Acceptance – $75.00 non-refundable study abroad administrative fee due along with $200.00 non-refundable housing deposit. All ECU Tuscany scholarship applications are due March 1.
- April 30, 2024 – $2,200 payment due
- July 15, 2024 – $9,300
Note: your spot on the program will not be held until we receive your $75 administrative fee and $200 housing deposit!! Plan to pay the deposit as soon as you are sure you want to join us. If the program fills with students who have paid their deposit before March 1st, even if you have been accepted, you may lose your place by waiting. When you receive an acceptance e-mail you will also learn how to pay the application fee and housing deposit to hold your spot! You can also login to your Pirates Abroad application, post-acceptance, to view payment instructions.
Students can pay the full amount at any time after acceptance and up to the final payment date of July 15, 2023. If you are on financial aid, we will know, and your program payments can be delayed until the aid is awarded.
Fall 2024 Itinerary
Do not book flights until you hear from the director to do so. We need to arrive at about the same time to take advantage of group transportation from the airport!
| August 27 | Depart from USA (after acceptance you will receive flight info) |
| August 28-31 | Orientation trip on the Amalfi Coast and Pompeii |
| September 1-2 | Classes in Orvieto |
| September 3 | Bus to Certaldo |
| September 4 | Orientation day in Certaldo |
| September 16-19 | Classes in Cinque Terre |
| Sept. 29-Oct.3 | Classes in Lucca and Lake Garda |
| October 4-9 | Free time for Independent Travel |
| November 7-10 | Classes in Venice |
| November 18-20 | Classes in Rome |
| November 21 | Depart for the States from Venice (after 10am) |