Student Life Staff
Outside the classroom, NYU in Florence staff organize cultural events and social activities to engage students with their adoptive city and ensure support and growth of students during the first semester of their college career. Through these events, students explore one of the world’s great historic cities with its breathtaking Medieval and Renaissance churches; the finest Renaissance and baroque paintings and sculptures (more than a quarter of the world’s most famous art is located in Florence); numerous museums and libraries; and exquisitely landscaped public gardens. The Office of Student Life also plans many cocurricular events, such as language immersion dinners, regional food tastings, and trips to nearby cities. Students work with the La Pietra gardeners through the gardening club or join other student-run clubs for art, creative writing, drama, music, or culture that vary each semester depending on student interest. You may also volunteer for various nonprofit organizations in the city and the region. Additionally, students have the opportunity to participate in a language exchange program with local Italian students.
Housing
La Pietra is the home of a major international community of NYU students and visiting students from other colleges and universities. Students from all over the world are engaged in learning at all levels. All freshmen live in a freshman residence hall on the La Pietra estate. A meal plan offers both breakfast and dinner in the campus dining hall. When students arrive at La Pietra, they attend a special orientation that introduces them to college life and to their new home. Staff members are available to help with settling in. The Office of Academic Support assists students with questions about course registration and scheduling.
Safety and Well-being
Students live and study at La Pietra, NYU’s stunning estate in Florence, which has 24-hour security on patrol seven days a week. All students and visitors must show identification for access to La Pietra’s villas and grounds. Live-in residence managers and peer advisers encourage close-knit living and learning communities and use their familiarity with the city to introduce students to the many facets of Florence. The Office of Student Life provides social programming, assistance with roommate relations, and referrals to other staff and resources at NYU and Florence.
Trips and Activities
To complement the curriculum, many professors organize local site visits as well as out-of-town field trips through the Office of Academic Support. These activities are mandatory and appear on each professor’s syllabus. Art history classes include visits to churches, museums, and villas in Florence and other Italian cities to view works of art in context. Local museums are an integral part of many courses, and visits regularly include the Uffizi Gallery, the Bargello Museum, the Academy Gallery, the San Marco Museum, and the Medici Chapels. Recent trips outside of Florence have included visits to the Vatican Museum and St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome and a viewing of Leonardo’s Last Supper in Milan.