With a location in the historic center of Rome, and an international student body, a summer at JCU is far more than the typical study abroad experience. SAI summer students at JCU can choose from more than 100 courses taught in English, including specialized courses in Engineering and Math. Students in JCU’s 5 week summer programs select 1 or 2 courses from the large offering for a total of 3 - 6 credits. SAI offers two Summer 5 week sessions at JCU, each with different start dates and course options: Summer I and Summer II.
Application open until: February 20, 2025
Application Requirements
Complete online application
Personal statement (300-500 words)
Official transcript
Italian privacy consent form
Supplemental JCU privacy consent form
Highlights
- Live and learn in the vibrant Trastevere neighborhood of Rome.
- Courses emphasize exposure to the city with on-site learning at museums and historic sites.
- $500 scholarship for STEM students.
Program Dates
May 21, 2025 – June 28, 2025
Eligibility Requirements
Age: 18+
Academic Year: High school graduate or above
*contact SAI if you don’t meet requirements
Cumulative GPA:* 2.5 (on a 4.0 scale)
English Language:* Non-native English language speakers must submit TOEFL: 85+ (internet based) or IELTS: 6.5+.
Art History and Archaeology | Art History
Business, Law, Management, and Marketing | Business
Business, Law, Management, and Marketing | Law
Business, Law, Management, and Marketing | Management
Business, Law, Management, and Marketing | Marketing
Classical Studies | Classical Studies
Communications, Media Studies, and Journalism | Communications
Communications, Media Studies, and Journalism | Media Studies
Computer Science, Mathematics, and Natural Science | Computer Science
Computer Science, Mathematics, and Natural Science | Mathematics
Creative Writing, English Composition, Literature, and Language | Creative Writing
Creative Writing, English Composition, Literature, and Language | English Composition
Creative Writing, English Composition, Literature, and Language | English Literature
Economics and Finance | Economics
Economics and Finance | Finance
Engineering | Engineering
Foreign Languages | Italian Language
Foreign Languages | Latin Language
History and Humanities | History
Philosophy and Religious Studies | Philosophy
Philosophy and Religious Studies | Religious Studies
Political Science | Political Science
Social Sciences: Sociology and Psychology | Psychology
Social Sciences: Sociology and Psychology | Sociology
The main objective of the course is to prepare students to learn the use of the NEW CAMERAS, their settings, and the new perspectives in photography given by the use of specific SOFTWARE. The students will be able to create their own Portfolio, including eight/ten photos, and a one written page explanation of their work. In this part of the course the teacher and the fellow classmates following two criteria will critique the works: Techniques and Creativity. The best pictures of all students will be presented with a multimedia slide show during the final exhibition of classes.Pre-requisite for the course: each participant must have his/her own digital camera with a wide lens or an optical zoom 3x or more and/or 35mm TTL camera with 28/80mm lens zoom or equivalents.
This course makes use of the unparalleled resource that is the city of Rome itself; each class meets at a different site around the city. Students work in sketchbook form, creating over the course of the term a diary of visual encounters. Instruction, apart from brief discussions of the sites themselves, focuses on efficient visual note-taking: the quick description of form, awareness of light, and the development of volume in space.
The aim of this course is to give students a comprehensive introduction to visual communication and to demonstrate how Graphic Design can be an effective and powerful tool for business. It covers a broad spectrum of different design disciplines, ranging from corporate identity, branding, brochure design, poster design, to packaging and illustration, and provides precious insight into the world of Graphic Design. The course is open to all students, particularly those who do not have a background in design, and complements other courses including Business, Management, Marketing and Communication.
This introductory studio course engages students in historical and contemporary techniques of printmaking and its theory. The course positions drawing and mark-making as fundamental ways to investigate visual culture. Exploring the basic intaglio and relief processes of mono-printing, linocut and collagraph, students will heighten their sensitivity to line, color, tone, texture, transparency, layout and overall composition. This will provide students with an introduction to the creative thinking and visual exploration involved in making a multiple edition print and understanding its relevance to art, design and today’s image-based culture.
This course offers an exploration of the expressive possibilities of ink, watercolor, and acrylic. Painting is done mostly on paper, directly from life, both in the studio and outdoors. Emphasis is on control of color, the creation of a coherent pictorial space, and the discovery of technical effects which suggest light, form, and movement.
Rome City Series – This on-site course considers the art and architecture of ancient Rome through visits to museums and archaeological sites. The course covers the visual culture and architecture of Rome beginning with the late Bronze Age and ending with the time of Constantine. A broad variety of issues are raised, including patronage, style and iconography, artistic and architectural techniques, Roman religion, business and entertainment. On site activity fee may apply. On Site Activity Fee may apply.
Rome City Series – An on-site course that enables the student to visit many of the major and minor monuments of Baroque Rome – churches, palaces,piazze, etc. – and thus to study firsthand important works by such artists as Bernini, Borromini, Caravaggio and Pietro da Cortona, among others. On site activity fee may apply.
A survey course covering the innovations of the Early Renaissance to the High Renaissance (14th into the 16th Century). The works of Brunelleschi, Alberti, Donatello, Ghiberti, Masaccio, Botticelli, Ghirlandaio, Pollaiuolo, Leonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo, Bramante and Raphael and others will be studied.
Coming soon
Rome City Series – This on-site course will study the monuments of Renaissance Rome: painting, sculpture and architecture produced by such masters as Bramante, Raphael, and Michelangelo, all attracted to the lucrative service of popes, cardinals and nobles of the Roman court. On-site classes will investigate examples of palace and villa architecture, chapel decoration that encompasses altarpieces and funerary sculpture, as well as urbanistic projects where the city itself was considered as a work of art. In-class lectures will introduce historical context and theory allowing the student to understand artworks studied conceptually and place commissions of painting and sculpture within a socio-historic framework.
Specialized courses offered periodically on specific aspects of the art of the modern and contemporary world. Courses are normally research-led topics on an area of current academic concern. May be taken more than once for credit with different topics.
One previous course in Art History or permission of the instructor
The visual arts have served to foster, construct and promote national identity from the very inception of the modern nation. This course aims to broach methodological and historical issues at the intersection of art of politics. Understanding how the visual arts have been instrumentalized, brandished, weaponized and subverted, or have actively chosen to promote a national(ist) agenda is the focus of this course. Each class takes a specific work as a case study to examine the political role(s) it was made to play, to what ends, and how this informs our understanding of the much larger historical debates around nationhood, citizenship, ethnicity, class, etc from the late 18th to the late 20th centuries. Official manifestations, such as Worlds Fairs, biennales and public commissions equally contribute to the comparative history of art and nation-building.
This course considers management problems of founders, owners, managers, and investors in small business. Acquisitions, location, organization control, labor relations, finances, taxation, and other topics of interest to entrepreneurial business management will be analyzed.
This course examines the entrepreneurial process, from recognizing opportunity to planning, organizing and growing a new venture. We will highlight innovation and its methods and applications on business opportunity analysis. Topics covered also include significance, status, problems, and requirements of entrepreneurial businesses. Students will have the opportunity to identify a business opportunity and develop the idea to the point of being start-up ready.This course will serve as a foundation for students who might want to own a business, and it is meant to be accessible also for non-business majors.
This course aims at studying in depth the model of Resonant Leadership and its positive effects on the increase of efficacy, creativity, motivation, conflict resolution, decision-making, and stress reduction within the workplace.Using the latest studies in the fields of Psychology, Neuroscience, Behavior, and Organization participants will learn the theory, research and experience of employing Mindfulness and Emotional Intelligence within the work environment.The course will be divided in two parts:a) a theoretical part in which the participants will be introduced to the model of Resonant Leadership informed by Mindfulness, Emotional Intelligence, Neuroscience, and the most recent cognitive research; b) a practical-experiential part in which Mindfulness techniques and the development of Emotional and Social Intelligence will be learned in order to promote resonance in leadership.
In this transdisciplinary course, students develop a first-hand project that is commissioned from a real non-profit organization and they learn how to mainstream the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) – including social, economic and environmental sustainability – into it. The students will act as a consultancy unit for the non-profit organization and, under a strict supervision, will submit a proposal for the resolution of the problems that the project implies. The non-profit organization will be significantly involved in the class, the first-hand project will be agreed beforehand, and selected members of the non-profit will provide a detailed feedback on the submitted proposal. The non-profit may propose diverse managerial challenges that help the organization achieve its own objectives, including, for example, the devising of contingency and operational plans, the generation of funds and social communication campaigns.This course will offer students the capability of managing and solving real-life challenges and directly interact with external organizations and professionals. Students will learn how to discuss a project internally and communicate externally and to combine the priorities of the whole organization with the specific project. In the end, students will gain a first understanding of the financial analysis for program management and performance review. Moreover, this learn-by-doing approach will be accompanied by a sound theoretical framework in which the role non-profit organizations play in the fragmented system of global governance will be analysed, the ways in which they can contribute to achieving the SDGs enshrined in the United Nations 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development will be examined and the complexities of evaluating interventions are assessed
This course introduces students to key concepts of intellectual property rights and their philosophical foundations. Students will explore different theories of property as put forward by Plato, Aristotle, Aquinas, Hobbes, and Locke, and interpret US, UK, and EU judicial opinions on patent, copyright, trademark, and trade secret rights.
This course examines the basic concepts of public international law, to enable students to critically evaluate the interplay between legal claims and power relations. Starting with a theoretical overview of the character, development and sources of international law, the course examines such law-generating and law-implementing institutions as the United Nations, international arbitration and adjudication, international criminal tribunals, national systems and regional organizations. Such substantive areas as the law of war (the use of force and humanitarian law), international criminal law, human rights, and environmental law will be given special attention.
Disruptive innovation, as well as technological, social and economic changes are key characteristics of the New Economy,” drastically impacting all aspects of businesses and social life. Information Technology (IT) is at the center of the Digital Transformation of companies for the optimization, redesign or reinvention of their business in response or in anticipation to the disruptive impact of emerging technologies and new business models.All managers are directly or indirectly concerned with IT, either because they work in the IT department or because they are involved in the definition, purchase, deployment, and usage of IT infrastructures, software, and applications. This course will provide students with a basic understanding of IT as an introduction to the changing managerial role in organisation.
Management issues related to the procurement and allocation of resources in the production of goods and services in order to meet organizational goals. Topics covered include product and process design, facility size, location and layout, quality management, production planning and control.
The course examines human personality, behavior and relationships as applied to business, industrial and organizational settings. Topics include: social systems at work; human needs, attitudes, human relations; leadership patterns, group dynamics, teamwork, communication, motivation, participation and reward system; technology and people, managing change, models of organizational behavior and management. Teamwork and group participation are emphasized.
A major component of this course will be exposing students to proofs, with the aim of having them learn how to read, write, and understand a proof.
During the course students will undertake studies on brand assessment, goal setting; defining brand equity and target; Crafting a Communication Strategy; Establishing the Marketing, Communications, Public Relations and Media Strategies; Building the Marketing Plan; and Measurement and Strategic Brand Audit. Students will complete a group project where they choose a brand or create their own and take on the role as brand manage to build, manager and market a brand using successful public relations, communications, and media strategies.
This course focuses on the study of consumer decision processes, consumer behavior models and their impact on the development of marketing strategies. The emphasis is on researching and in-depth understanding of the consumer decision process. Teaching methodology includes case studies and an emphasis on experiential research.
This course approaches Internet marketing from a marketing management perspective. The course looks at the Internet both as a tool to be used in the marketing planning process and as an element of a company’s marketing mix. The course explores how traditional marketing concepts such as market segmentation, research, the 4Ps and relationship marketing are applied using the Internet and other electronic marketing techniques. Website design is not covered.
This course first examines the basic principles underlying consumer information processing and how marketing can influence this process. It then addresses the design, coordination, and management of marketing communications, focusing on the role of integrated marketing communications in the marketing process, particularly as it relates to branding. The second part of the course may take the form of an extended case study/IMC plan or may address special topics: for example, the relationship between public relations (PR) and marketing, the history and development of advertising and public relations, public opinion and its role in IMC planning, media relations, research for campaign design, global communication, and crisis management.
An investigation of the marketing concept in a global environment. Factors in assessing world marketing opportunities; international marketing of products, pricing, distribution and promotion program development in dynamic world markets. Marketing practices which various businesses adapt to the international environment are studied. Attention is also given to comparative marketing systems, and planning and organizing for export-import operations.
This course will give students a solid understanding of the fundamentals of the strategic marketing planning process including: methods and tools of market assessment, customer segmentation analysis, development of the value proposition, positioning and planning of marketing tactics designed to deliver value to targeted stakeholders. Emphasis is placed on the need to align marketing principles and theories with the management skills needed for the preparation of a marketing plan. Students will be able to analyze opportunities and threats in both the macro and micro-environments. Students will also conduct a marketing research gathering data for effective decision-making and will develop their ability to evaluate gaps.In this course, students will begin to learn how to conduct a competitive analysis, analyze environmental trend, forecast changing market demand and develop competitive marketing strategies.
The course examines the principal myths of Classical Greece and Rome, with some reference to their evolution from earlier local and Mediterranean legends, deities, and religions. The importance of these myths in the literature and art of the Western World will be discussed.
This course surveys the history of ancient Rome and Italy, focusing on the origins and metamorphoses of Rome from its archaic foundations as an Italic-Latinate kingship to an imperial city. The course examines the establishment, expansion, and conflicts of the Republican period; the political and cultural revolution of the Augustan Principate; the innovations of the High Empire; and the transition into Late Antiquity. Course materials include the writings of ancient authors in translation (these may include Polybius, Sallust, Cicero, Livy, Augustus, Suetonius, and/or Tacitus) as well as modern historians and archaeologists, along with considerations of Roman art, architecture, and archaeology.
This course focuses on the literature of Ancient Rome and its role in shaping modern notions about the customs, social practices, and ideas of its citizens. Emphasis will be placed on using Roman literature as a means of studying Roman civilization, while simultaneously examining stylistics and literary techniques particular to the genres of comedy, rhetoric, epic and lyric poetry, satire and history. Texts, which vary, are chosen from Terence, Plautus, Cicero, Catullus, Virgil, Horace, Ovid, Tacitus, and Juvenal. All texts are studied in translation.
This course introduces students to the technical, conceptual, and aesthetic skills involved in video production through the single camera mode of production. Still the most dominant mode of film and video production, the single camera mode places an emphasis on using the camera to fullest capacity of artistic expression. In addition to the multiple skills and concepts involved with the camera, the course also introduces students to the principles and technologies of lighting, audio recording and mixing, and non-linear digital video editing. Special focus is given to producing content for successful web distribution.
An exploration of some of the historical and political conditions that make intercultural communication possible, the barriers that exist to effective intercultural communication, and possible solutions to the problem of intercultural misunderstanding. The course examines examples of differences in communication styles not only between cultures but also within. As a result, issues of race, nation, class, gender, religion, immigration, and sexual orientation will be of significant concern. The course stresses the notion that knowledge of human beings is always knowledge produced from a particular location and for a particular purpose. As a result it encourages students to think carefully about the discipline of Intercultural Communication, its conditions of possibility, its assumptions, and its blind spots, as well the need to be mindful of the limitations and interests of our positioning as investigating subjects.
This course is designed as an introduction to the art, history, and business of film. It presents an introduction to film aesthetics and the formal properties of film, locating specific styles and narrative forms within specific classical and alternative film movements. Film theories and critical strategies for the analysis of film will be investigated. The course will be divided into weekly screenings and lectures.
From photojournalism to Instagram, 21st century communication is primarily image-based. Whether its mass media, individual expression, social media or alternative media, images are used for promoting ideas, products, information and political discourses. In this course students investigate the role of visual culture in daily life, exploring fine art, popular culture, film, television, advertising, business communications, propaganda, viral social media and information graphics. As a critical introduction to visual communication, this course mixes theory, analysis and practical activities for an applied understanding of key issues, including the relationship between images, power and politics; the historical practice of looking; visual media analysis; spectatorship; historic evolution of visual codes; impact of visual technologies; media literacy; information graphics literacy; and global visual culture.
This course examines the various media systems, both news and entertainment, from the southern Mediterranean all the way to Iran through screenings of films and television programs from the region. The topics to be covered include the motion picture industry, news and entertainment media, including satellite TV, magazines, newspapers, internet, and alternative media and their role in the perception and practice of Middle Eastern politics and culture. Special emphasis will be put on questions of gender as well as the use of the media by social movements and the ways these transform the institutional arrangements between the media, publics and governments, both nationally and transnationally.
This course provides students with an introduction to the fundamentals of rhetoric and how they are applied in oral communication, and how these principles and concepts lead to effective public speaking. Students will learn how to prepare and organize persuasive speeches by learning the fundamental structures of the persuasive speech. In addition, students will begin to acquire basic skills in critical reasoning, including how to structure a thesis statement and support it through a specific line of reasoning using idea subordination, coordination, and parallel structure.
This course surveys films, directors, and film movements and styles in Italy from 1945 to the present. The films are examined as complex aesthetic and signifying systems with wider social and cultural relationships to post-war Italy. The role of Italian cinema as participating in the reconstitution and maintenance of post-War Italian culture and as a tool of historiographic inquiry is also investigated. Realism, modernism and post-modernism are discussed in relation to Italian cinema in particular and Italian society in general. Films are shown in the original Italian version with English subtitles.
This course will focus on the essential skills for podcast production and will give students a working knowledge of current trends in audio production. This course is designed to familiarize students with all aspects of podcasting and to train students to think critically about stories they consume. Students will learn how to identify an audience, distribute and market their podcast, all within a framework of ethical production.
Using contemporary theoretical approaches, this course examines both Race and Gender as social constructions, and the role and function of Cinema and Television texts in circulating and contesting those constructions. Focusing on analyzing Cinema and Television texts for their construction of meaning, this course looks at the complex ideological operations at stake in the operations, maintenance, and resistance to meanings constructed around race and gender.
This course helps students develop the advanced skills that are necessary in personal productivity office applications, such as word processing, data management and analysis, and presentation/slide design. The course follows best practices and reviews available internet tools for data storage.
Coming Soon
This course introduces fundamental computer programming concepts using a high-level language and a modern development environment. Programming skills include sequential, selection, and repetition control structures, functions, input and output, primitive data types, basic data structures including arrays and pointers, objects, and classes. Software engineering skills include problem solving, program design, and debugging practices. The goal of this course is to advance students computational thinking, educate them to use programs as tools in their own field of study, and to provide them with fundamental knowledge of programming strategies.
This course explores the fundamental topics of traditional Calculus such as limits, continuity, differentiation and anti-differentiation, with emphasis on the business and economics applications of maximization, minimization, optimization, and decision making.
This course builds on the fundamentals of the calculus of one variable, and includes infinite series, power series, differential equations of first and second order, numerical integration, and an analysis of improper integrals. It also covers the calculus of several variables: limits, partial derivatives, and multiple integrals.
This course provides an introduction to ordinary differential equations. These equations contain a function of one independent variable and its derivatives. The term “ordinary” is used in contrast with the term partial differential equation which may be with respect to more than one independent variable. Ordinary differential equations and applications, with integrated use of computing, student projects; first-order equations; higher order linear equations; systems of linear equations, Laplace transforms; introduction to nonlinear equations and systems, phase plane, stability.
This course provides a review of elementary algebra for students who need further preparation for pre-calculus. Students enroll in this course on the basis of a placement examination. The course covers the basic operations of addition, subtraction, multiplication and division involving algebraic expressions; factoring of polynomial expressions; exponents and radicals; solving linear equations, quadratic equations and systems of linear equations; and applications involving these concepts. This course does not satisfy the General Distribution Requirement in Mathematics and Science.This course is a review of intermediate algebra and has few prerequisites other than elementary familiarity with numbers and simple geometric concepts such as: finding the least common multiple of two or more numbers, manipulating fractions, calculating the area of a triangle, square, rectangle, circle, etc. Its objective is to prepare students for Pre-calculus.
This course introduces students to the techniques of linear algebra and to the concepts upon which the techniques are based. Topics include: vectors, matrix algebra, systems of linear equations, and related geometry in Euclidean spaces. Fundamentals of vector spaces, linear transformations, eigenvalues and associated eigenvectors.
An introduction to Calculus that focuses on the study of elementary functions, polynomial, rational, exponential and logarithmic, mainly oriented towards practical applications in business and economics. Particular emphasis will be placed on functions as the first step to analyzing real-world problems in mathematical terms.
An introduction to descriptive statistics, elementary probability theory and inferential statistics. Included are: mean, median, mode and standard deviation; probability distributions, binomial probabilities and the normal distribution; problems of estimation; hypothesis testing, and an introduction to simple linear regression.
A continuation of Statistics I. Topics include more advanced hypothesis testing, regression analysis, analysis of variance, non-parametric tests, time series analysis and decision- making techniques.
The course aims to develop the creative, editorial, and reading habits needed for the production of literary fiction; to develop self-editing skills; and to foster an aesthetic sensibility for use in writing literary fiction. Students will read both contemporary literary fiction and materials related to analyzing and editing literary fiction and participate in a traditional creative writing workshop through in-class writing exercises, reading classmates’ fiction, and producing and workshopping their own fiction. Students will compile a portfolio of the work they produce during the term. Students completing this workshop course will be familiar with the skills needed to produce literary fiction, to self-edit work in progress, and to discern the characteristics that make quality literary fiction.
To develop the creative, editorial, and reading habits needed for the production of poems; to develop self-editing skills; to foster an aesthetic sensibility for use in writing poems.
Coming soon
This course reinforces the skills needed to write well-organized essays, focusing specifically on argumentative essays. Elements covered include thesis development, critical reading, organizing and outlining, paraphrasing and summarizing, and citation and documentation standards. Techniques of academic research and the use of the library and other research facilities are discussed. In addition to regular in- and out-of-class reading and writing assignments, students are required to write a fully documented research paper. Students must receive a grade of C or above in this course to fulfill the University English Composition requirement and to be eligible to take courses in English literature. Individual students in EN 110 may be required to complete additional hours in the English Writing Center as part of their course requirements.
This course concentrates on the development of effective paragraph writing in essays while introducing students to the various rhetorical modes. Elements covered include outlining, the introduction-body-conclusion structure, thesis statements, topic sentences, supporting arguments, and transition signals. Students will also become familiar with the fundamentals of MLA style, research and sourcing, as well as information literacy. To develop these skills, students will write in- and out-of-class essays. Critical reading is also integral to the course, and students will analyze peer writing as well as good expository models. Students must receive a grade of C or above in this course to be eligible to take EN 110. Individual students in EN 105 may be required to complete additional hours in the English Writing Center as part of their course requirements.
Presupposing no previous knowledge of literature, this course deals in an intensive manner with a very limited selection of works in four genres, poetry, short story, drama and novel. Students learn the basic literary terms that they need to know to approach literary texts. They are required to do close readings of the assigned text, use various critical approaches and write critical essays on the specified readings.
This course entails the study of five of Shakespeares plays in order to assess how he located and historicized his Italian-based drama. Thanks to the Rome location, students will be able to directly compare the archaeology of Shakespeares creativity with the splendors of ancient and Renaissance Italy that are integral to the works covered by the course. Visits to the Colosseum, the Roman Forum, The Capitoline Museum and Romes Jewish Ghetto will vivify the perceptions of these plays. Throughout, the course will track the intersections of Shakespeares dramatic narrative with the notion of Italian cultural difference in Shakespeares time, allowing students to learn how he dramatizes the Italian Other. In doing so, they will read his primary sources and evaluate how Shakespeares creative brilliance responded to the writings of historians such as Plutarch and Macchiavelli and story tellers such as Ovid, Matteo Bandello and Giovanni Fiorentino. The course will also attempt to gauge whether, within Shakespeare’s Italian plays, there exists a veiled critique of the Elizabethan and Jacobean courts in which his work was widely circulated. Moreover, the course will explore how filmmakers have documented Shakespeares obsession with Italy, and how their work both subverts and confirms Shakespeares imaginative settings and Italianate compulsions.
By examining short stories, this course develops students’ critical abilities in reading and writing about narrative fiction. The students are introduced to a comparative perspective on literature and learn to identify and evaluate the short story’s formal elements, acquiring the skill to read fiction critically, to look beyond the content, to appreciate the ambiguities and complexities of the literary text, and to communicate their findings in critical papers of academic quality. The selection of short stories may vary, offering a historical perspective, a thematic one, or a selection of masterpieces in the genre.
An introduction to international trade and finance. Analysis of the causes and consequences of international trade and investment. Major topics include international trade theory, international trade policy, exchange rates, open-economy macroeconomics, and international macroeconomic policy.
An introduction to the basic principles of the macro economy, such as national income accounting, determination of national income, business cycles, inflation, unemployment, fiscal and monetary policy, macroeconomics in the open economy, and economic growth.
This course introduces the students to the basic principles of microeconomics and the study of the behavior of individual agents, such as consumers and producers. The first part of the course reviews the determinants of supply and demand, the characteristics of market equilibrium, the concept of social welfare, and the consequences of price controls, taxation, and externalities on social welfare. The second part of the course deals with market theory, with a review of cost concepts and market structures: competition, monopoly, oligopoly, and imperfect competition.
To investigate the main economic and political aspects of the structure and operation of Italy’s macro-and micro-economic systems. To show students the usefulness of simple analytical models in understanding developments and characteristics of an economy and to give them the ability to apply these analytical tools intelligently. To expose students to research literature.
This course examines both the theoretical and applied foundations required to make decisions in financial management. The main areas covered include an overview of the financial system and the efficiency of capital markets, evaluation of financial performance, time value of money, analysis of risk and return, basic portfolio theory, valuation of stocks and bonds, capital budgeting, international financial management, capital structure management, and the CFA Institute Code of Ethics and Standards of Professional Conduct.
This course is an introduction to the basic financial accounting concepts and standards. Relevant concepts will be analyzed in detail, including: preparation of principal financial statements, application of accounting principles to the main asset, liability, and owners equity accounts. The course emphasizes the construction of the basic financial accounting statements – the income statement, balance sheet – as well as their interpretation.
The course emphasizes the structure and analysis of international capital and financial markets, Euro-currency financing, and the financing of international transactions.
This course focuses on the role of accounting in the management process and where accounting can provide critical support to management decision making. Cost-volume relations are introduced, along with identification of costs relevant to management decisions. Process costing and job costing systems are covered. The development of a master plan, preparation of flexible budgets, and responsibility accounting are covered, and the influences of quantitative techniques on managerial accounting are introduced.
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Coming soon
This course covers theory and application of fluid statics, momentum transfer, and viscous fluid flow. Fundamentals of microscopic phenomena and application to macroscopic systems are addressed. Course work covers both open-channel and conduit (pipe) flow. The fluid statics and dynamics of incompressible and compressible fluids are considered.
The course provides a study of the fundamentals of solid mechanics of deformable bodies. The engineering structures covered in this course are determinate and indeterminate assemblies of tension members, columns (including buckling), beams (flexural members), shafts (torsional members), and thin-walled pressure vessels (tanks). The course also contains an introduction to common categories and types of engineering materials and their failure mechanisms. The importance of safety factors and their application in the Allowable Stress Design philosophy is emphasized throughout the course, leading to an enhanced awareness of the professional and ethical responsibilities inherent to the role of the engineer.
This course provides an introduction to statics, the branch of mechanics that is concerned with the analysis of loads (force and torque, or “moment”) on physical systems in static equilibrium, that is, in a state where the relative positions of subsystems do not vary over time, or where components and structures are at a constant velocity. When in static equilibrium, the system is either at rest, or its center of mass moves at constant velocity. Course content includes vector algebra, forces, couples, moments, resultants of force couple systems; friction, equilibrium analysis of particles and finite bodies, centroids; and applications.
Principles of Chemistry; Introduction to Physics
This course provides an introduction to Thermodynamics, a branch of physics concerned with heat and temperature and their relation to energy and work. It defines macroscopic variables, such as internal energy, entropy, and pressure that partly describe a body of matter or radiation. It states that the behavior of those variables is subject to general constraints that are common to all materials, not the peculiar properties of particular materials. These general constraints are expressed in the four laws of thermodynamics, which can be explained by statistical mechanics, in terms of the microscopic constituents. The course includes basic elements of classical thermodynamics, including first and second laws, properties of pure materials, ideal gas law, reversibility and irreversibility, and Carnot cycle; control volume analysis of closed simple systems and open systems at steady state; engineering applications, including cycles; psychrometrics.
An introduction to digital systems and microcontroller programming including basic logic functions, microprocessor architecture, input and display devices, sensors, motors, and C programming for microcontrollers. The emphasis is on programming a microcontroller in C for practical applications.
A continuation of IT 102, this course focuses on consolidating the student’s ability to use Italian effectively. Emphasis is given to grammar review and vocabulary expansion. Selected readings acquaint students with contemporary Italy.
This course is designed to give students basic communicative ability in Italian. By presenting the language in a variety of authentic contexts, the course also seeks to provide an introduction to Italian culture and society. Students work on all four language skills: speaking, listening comprehension, reading and writing.
A continuation of IT 101, this course aims at developing and reinforcing the language skills acquired in Introductory Italian I, while placing special emphasis on oral communication.
Introduction to Latin syntax, vocabulary, and simple sentence structures. This first-semester course will complete all the first three declensions of nouns, present, imperfect, future and perfect verb tenses, subject, object and possessive pronouns. Study of cognate words in Latin/English will be a frequent subject of study. The course will also examine the Roman cultural context such as history, daily life, religion mythology and politics. Students will translate sentences for practice from English to Latin and vice versa on a daily basis. There will be an introduction to continuous prose passages from the original authors or adapted for study to be translated throughout the course.
An extensive introduction to the formation of Islam and its historical developments from its origins (7th century C.E.) until the time of the sack of Baghdad by the Mongols (13th century C.E.). This course surveys the major political changes and intellectual trends of this period, introducing students to the foundational texts of Islam and the central aspects of the Muslim faith. Structured chronologically, with thematic sessions about theology, literature and law, emphasis is placed within each period under consideration on the extent to which regional, ethnic, religious and linguistic differences amongst the peoples in the Islamic world were absorbed into a communal Islamic identity.
This course explores the history of Europe and its relations with the larger world from the French Revolution to the outbreak of World War I. In it, students investigate the cultural, diplomatic, economic, political, and social developments that shaped the lives of nineteenth-century Europeans. Significant attention will be given to the relationship between Europeans and peoples in other parts of the world, the development of new political ideologies and systems, and the ways in which everyday life and culture changed during this period.Satisfies “Modern History” core course requirement for History majors.
Some of sport’s greatest historical moments – Jesse Owens’ Olympic triumph in 1936, or the ‘Miracle on Ice’ were in fact about politics. The relationship between sport and politics, economics, society and culture is fascinating and complex. Studying sport can offer us a way to examine totalitarian regimes in Germany and Italy, construction and maintenance of national identity in newly independent nations. Issues about race, empire, gender and class can all be explored within the context of professional and amateur sport. This course will focus on a selection of different historical and political realities and a variety of sports to assess some of the intersections between sport, politics and society. Taking a global perspective, we will examine a wide variety of case studies from Italy, other European societies and the USA, but non-Western cultures will also be important. The end of European empires has often witnessed acts of ‘post-colonial revenge’ on the sports field, and offers a way to look at post-imperial power an angle for considering international relations or insight into the dynamics away from high politics.
Course description is currently unavailable. Please contact your admissions counselor for additional information.
This course explores the history of Europe and its relations with the larger world from World War I through the aftermath of the Cold War. In it, students investigate the cultural, diplomatic, economic, political, and social developments that shaped the lives of twentieth-century Europeans. Significant attention will be given to the relationship between Europeans and peoples in other parts of the world, the experience and significance of the World Wars and the Cold War, the development of democratic, authoritarian, and ‘totalitarian’ political systems, and the ways in which everyday life and culture changed during this period.Satisfies “Modern History” core course requirements for History majors.
The philosophers of ancient Greece and Rome debated fundamental questions with an imagination, subtlety, and daring that have captured the attention of thoughtful people in every epoch. For example, they considered the nature and origin of the universe, what changes and does not change, as well as what causes change, how perception and reasoning produce knowledge, the relation between the soul and the body, the meaning of justice and beauty, and the nature of the good life. Through a careful reading of selected texts in the form of dialogues, poems, aphorisms, or treatises the course will introduce you to the great questions and controversies of ancient philosophy.
The course provides a historical introduction to philosophical reflection through reading and discussion of major works in the Western philosophical tradition. The course requires attentive outside reading to enable the individual student to engage him- or herself in active classroom discussions and argumentation and thus to progress in the learning and practicing of philosophical analysis and thoughtful discourse.
How are moral standards established? How do we differentiate right from wrong? Why should we be ethical? This course will seek to provide both religious and philosophical answers to these questions. We will begin studying the ethical code of Christianity, which provides us with a divine command to act ethically, and a divine example to imitate, that of Christ’s sacrifice. We then compare this code to that of Buddhism, which uses the concepts of reincarnation and interdependency to instill morality in its adherents and stresses that human suffering can be overcome only through ethical action. We then turn to philosophical theories, studying the ethical theories of ancient Greek philosophers Aristotle and Plato, the duty ethics of modern philosopher Kant and postmodern philosopher Lvinas, the utilitarian ethics of Bentham and the ethics of desire of Spinoza, as well as Nietzsche’s plea to rid ethics of morality. Finally, we will assess the relevance of these theories in a discussion of cultural relativism, and apply these views to current debates (euthanasia, abortion, ecology, bio-technology, suicide, the death penalty)
This course is a survey of classical and modern theories on the appreciation of art and beauty. Attention will be given to the phenomenological analysis of perception and of the aesthetic experience in particular. Special consideration will be given to architectural and figurative works within the Roman area. One previous course in Philosophy is required for this course.
The history of the Catholic church is essentially intertwined with the history of Western Civilization over the past 2,000 years. The aspirations and struggles of Christendom constitute the fabric of the Christian tradition as it unfolds throughout time. This course represents an historical survey of the Church from its primitive beginnings in Jerusalem (c. 33 A.D.) to the Pontificate of John Paul II (1920-2005). The development of the course will trace the major events, ideas and people that went into the shaping of the Western Church, without ignoring the fundamental importance and influence of the doctrine of Jesus Christ regarding the institution he founded.
A survey of the history politics, institutions and policies of the European Community from its origins to the present day. Covered are the historical evolution of the European Community from its beginnings through the end of the 1980s, the Community’s institutions and processes, the recent major developments and challenges such as the Single European Act, the Maastricht Treaty and the Enlargement issue, the major policy areas of the Union, and a discussion of future scenarios for Europe.
This course examines public policy challenges in addressing international environmental protection. Students will examine such issues as climate change, sustainable development, protection of biodiversity/ecosystems/species, resource extraction and energy, which involve conflicting value systems enmeshed in complex power relationships. This course draws students attention to issues of scale, interconnectedness, boundaries, and the importance of creating solutions that are workable across and between jurisdictions. Students will engage these global challenges in order to develop the knowledge, and the problem solving and communications skills, to facilitate environmental policy work in the international arena.
An introduction to the major political theorists, from the classical to the modern era, who devoted themselves to the task of analyzing the social order. Their theories also provide the foundation for the formation of the modern nation state. Among the theorists examined will be Plato, Aristotle, Machiavelli, Hobbes, Locke, Rousseau, Mill, Hegel, and Marx.
The definition of Third World has been applied to countries which, albeit located in different geographic areas of the globe, are affected by similar features and problems: recent independence from colonial rule, limited economic development, overpopulation, insufficient infrastructures and availability of public hygiene/health care/education, persisting dependency on developed countries and attempts at reducing or altogether eliminating it. The course will explore the various patterns with an emphasis on three aspects. The first will examine comparative theories of social backwardness and belated development, particularly those elaborated by Bairoch, Gerschenkron, Barrington Moore jr., Skocpol and others. The second will discuss geography and historical issues: colonialism, imperialism, decolonization and the impact of the Cold War being the main ones. The third will focus on the past couple of decades and the current situation. In examining country studies, particularly focused on the roots of democratic systems and of stability, the dichotomies of dictatorship and democracy, national sovereignty and human rights, globalization and autarchy will be analyzed and assessed.
This course explores the ways in which the social and cultural constructions of gender influence the nature and practice of political life. The course revolves around two themes exclusion and empowerment and examines the practices, policies and structures that exclude different genders, as well as the strategies and repertoires of different gendered communities to protect their rights and interests and promote equality. The course is organized around a variety of topics, blending issues of exclusion and empowerment. The course begins by laying out debates surrounding gender and key themes used to examine the topic in psychology, biology, sociology and economics. We then move to examine specific synergies between gender and politics, exploring the issues of political representation, political participation, public policy, the body politic, the political economy, development, violence, rights, political mobilization and transnational issues. Using case studies, as well as lessons from practitioners, the course surveys a variety of issues and debates related to gender and politics.
This course is an introduction to the study of War, Peace and Conflict Resolution Studies. The course will draw on classical and contemporary global political theory and introduce students to the methods, cases, data, and major theoretical debates that structure the study of war and peace in global politics.
Coming soon
The course provides a general introduction to the science of developmental psychology and its applications. A number of questions will be addressed, including: What develops and when; The contribution of nature and nurture to developmental change; Mechanisms of change; The role of the child and the larger sociocultural context in shaping development; Continuity and discontinuity in development; Methods used to address the above topics; Application of developmental research to everyday issues.
Introduces the study of psychology, the study of the human mind, in some of its many facets: epistemological issues, the brain, perception, learning, language, intelligence, motivation, development, personality, emotion, social influences, pathology and therapy, and prevention. These will be seen from the scientific and scholarly point of view, but with emphasis on their relevance to everyday life. An important focus of the course will be the significance of theories and how they influence the gathering of data, as well as the difficulty of objectivity when the object of study is also its primary tool: the human mind. One of the goals of the course will also be to prepare the student to read psychological literature with a critical eye, keeping in mind the difficulties involved in attempting to study human subjectivity in an objective way.
Coming soon
The course focuses on the relationship between the individual and society, by examining how people form and sustain their attitudes, beliefs, and values. Students are introduced to current research findings in areas such as leadership and group dynamics, cults, prejudice and racism, aggression, altruism, and love and attraction. A group research project is required.
Personality is generally defined as an individual’s unique stable pattern of thinking, feeling and behaving, and its study has been an extremely important focus in scientific psychology. This course examines the various theories of personality and, according to each theory, a personality’s structure and development. The scope of theories studied will be from the Freudian tradition through to Trait Theories, Biological Perspectives, Behavioral/Social Learning theories, Humanistic/Existential models and finally to more current Cognitive theories.
Coming soon
Italy’s deep-rooted network of local food knowledge is an excellent example for students to understand what food culture is, how food scenarios changed with industrialization, and how they are evolving further today. This course presents students with the basic tools necessary for better understanding Italian food culture. Its broad perspective encompasses traditional farming and processing techniques, the industrial and global food economy and changing consumption habits. Its anthropological approach draws from classical and modern writing. Italy is world-famous for its produce diversity and vibrant peasant traditions. By exploring the complex set of influences forming the Italian food culture, students will acquire an analytical approach enabling them to read through the other “foodscapes” that they encounter in their home country or abroad, and eventually choose, value and embrace career paths into the food sector. Even apparently simple, everyday food staples contain layers of significance connecting to the following topics: the peculiar man-nature relationship needed for their production; preserving and cooking techniques; the influences from foreign cooking philosophies and/or crops; the pressure of the global market; and the type of socialization involved during the meal.
This on-site course, which will be conducted in English, aims to introduce students to a sociological analysis of contemporary Rome. It focuses on the changes which are occurring in the citys populations, its neighborhoods and patterns of daily life and commerce, and challenges conventional images of what it is to be a Roman today. On-site classes will be held in a variety of neighborhoods in the city in order to analyze the areas role as a social entity and its relationship with the wider urban context. We will examine the issues and problems facing Rome today, such as housing, degradation and renewal, environmental questions, transportation, multiculturalism, wealth and poverty, social conflict and political identities. These issues will be contextualized within theories of urban sociology and also within an explanation of Romes urban development over the centuries and, in particular, since it became the national capital in 1870. Through readings, film clips, interviews and guest speakers, students will also analyze the way the city is narrated by some of its residents.
Courses & Schedule
Courses run Monday – Thursday, meeting 2 or 4 days per week. SAI students are free to enroll in any available course.
Course Registration
SAI students complete their course registration directly with JCU through their JCU student account. Students receive their student account login about 2 weeks before registration opens. JCU courses are competitive, and students should complete their course registration on the registration date. JCU course registration begins on the following date:
Summer I: Coming soon
| Pre-Departure Calendar | |
|---|---|
| February 20 2025 |
Application Closes Applications accepted after closing as space permits. |
| Within 1 week of acceptance |
SAI Deposits Due $500 Enrollment Deposit (applied toward program fee) $300 Security Deposit (refundable) |
| February 20 2025 |
50% of Total Program Fee Due Students who are accepted and submit SAI deposits after this date will have an amended pay schedule. 50% of the Program Fee will be due within 5 business days, based on the deposit payment date. |
| February 20 2025 |
Financial Aid Agreement & Financial Aid Program Deposit Deadline Students wishing to utilize SAI financial aid payment deferment must complete the Financial Aid Agreement form and submit the Financial Aid Program Deposit by this date. Students whose deposit payment date is on or after this date will have a deadline of 5 days after the deposit. |
| March 6 2025 |
Enrollment Closes Students must complete their enrollment, including paying deposits, by this date. |
| March 6 2025 |
SAI Financial Aid Verification Deadline Students wishing to defer payment until financial aid disbursement must submit the financial aid verification form to SAI by this date. |
| March 22 2025 |
Balance of Total Program Fee Due (For students utilizing SAI financial aid payment deferment, any balance not covered by aid is due). |
| Coming soon |
JCU Course Registration Opens Registration opens at 3:30PM Pacific Time. |
| On-Site Calendar | |
|---|---|
| May 21 2025 |
Arrival & Housing Check-in Students fly into Rome Fiumicino Airport (FCO). SAI airport pickup is provided between 9:00am and 12:00pm, and students are transferred to SAI housing. |
| May 22 – 25 2025 |
SAI and JCU Orientation Mandatory SAI and JCU orientations introduce students to their city while covering safety, policies, housing, and culture. |
| May 26 2025 |
JCU Classes Begin |
| June 27 2025 |
JCU Classes End & Final Exams |
| June 28 2025 |
Program End & Housing Check-out Students must move out of SAI housing by 10:00am to return home or pursue independent travel. |
| SAI Program Fees* | USD |
|---|---|
| Application Fee | $120 |
| Security Deposit Refundable at the end of the term. |
$300 |
| Program Fee: 3 credits Includes tuition, standard housing and SAI 360° Services (see What’s Included). |
$7,790 |
| Program Fee: 6 credits Includes tuition, standard housing and SAI 360° Services (see What’s Included). |
$9,390 |
| Optional / Additional Fees: | |
| Optional Private Room Housing Supplement Private room in a shared apartment, with a shared bathroom. |
$500 |
| International Mailing Supplement When applicable, students are charged an international mailing supplement to ensure visa paperwork arrives in a timely manner. |
$90 |
*prices are subject to change
Please see SAI Policies for SAI cancellation & withdrawal deadlines.
Note: certain SAI-affiliated US universities require specific payment arrangements. These may require that some fees are paid by the student directly to SAI, and other fees are paid to SAI by the affiliated university on behalf of the student. If you attend a SAI-affiliated university please contact your study abroad office or speak with your SAI Admissions Counselor for details.
| Budget | Low Est. | High Est. |
|---|---|---|
| Airfare to/from Rome |
$900 | $1,800 |
| Immigration Processing Declaration of presence |
$36 | $36 |
| Books, Supplies & Course Fees |
$100 / course | $200 / course |
| Meals Includes groceries and eating out. |
$650/ month | $800 / month |
| Personal Expenses | $300 / month | $350 / month |
| Transportation within Rome Public transportation with some taxi rides. |
$125 / month | $150 / month |
| Weekend Travel Cost varies greatly by student. |
$300 / month | $1,000 / month |
This is a SAI 360° Services Program; it includes our full services!
- Program tuition and U.S. academic credit
- Accommodation in carefully selected student housing
- Airport pickup on arrival day
- Welcome reception and events
- Orientation to the host city and school
- On-site staff who foster a welcoming community for you and provide assistance when needed
- SAI Viva Experience: cultural engagement, excursions & wellness activities
- Student health insurance providing full coverage and medical emergency evacuation
- 24-hour on-site emergency support
- 20 meals at Tiber Cafe
- Farewell event
Pre-departure and Re-entry services
- Knowledgeable Admissions Counselor dedicated to you, providing friendly assistance
- Helpful pre-departure tools and resources
- Parent & family resources
- Online student groups to acquaint you with other SAI students
- Student visa advising
- Assistance with financial aid processing
- Need-based SAI scholarships
- Alumni Ambassador Program, with paid internship opportunities
- SAI alumni network
SAI offers all students the Viva Experience: frequent cultural activities, at no extra cost, for participants to get to know their community, city and country. Following is a sample of the activities included in this program. Please note that actual activities may differ.
Welcome Day Excursion – Escape to the Roman Hills
SAI welcomes students with a day trip to Frascati in the beautiful Roman hills. Frascati played a pivotal role in history from the time of the Roman Empire to WWII and now offers a glimpse into small-town Italian life today. Students will tour the town and learn about its history, enjoy the views from a local vineyard, and share a meal ‘al fresco’ in the town square which offers breathtaking views of Rome from above.
Sun and Sports at Lake Bracciano
Students will escape the summer heat with a day of water sports and relaxation at Lake Bracciano. Students will have the chance to kayak and paddle-board, explore the quaint nearby fishing village, or simply soak up some rays along the black sand beach.
“La Luna sul Colosseo” – Colosseum Night Tour
“The Moon above the Colosseum” is one of the main attractions in Rome during the summer months. As day gives way to night and after the crowds have all gone home, SAI will take students to visit the Eternal City’s most important monument. Students will be guided through the history of this amazing amphitheater, exploring its most important areas, including the underground chambers and arena floor – both of which are usually closed to the public.
Farewell Event
Students celebrate the end of a successful term abroad and say their goodbyes over a delicious Italian meal.
Standard Housing: Student apartment
SAI student apartments are convenient and well equipped, with shared occupancy bedrooms (option to upgrade to private bedroom, if available). Typical residences house 2 – 8 students and contain a combination of private and shared bedrooms, kitchen, bathroom and living areas. Furnishings, a washing machine, basic kitchen supplies, bed linens and towels are provided. Housing configurations are designated as female, male, and in some locations, gender-inclusive. SAI on-site staff is available to respond to any maintenance needs that may arise.
Please note: SAI housing is not related to John Cabot University housing; please do not fill out a housing application through JCU.
Passports
Passports should be valid for 3 months after planned departure from Italy.
Student Visas
In accordance with Italian law U.S. students studying in Italy for 90 days or less are not required to obtain a student visa. Therefore all U.S. students do not require a student visa for this program. Non-US nationals should consult their local Consulate for information on student visa requirements.
Social Sciences: Sociology and Psychology | Psychology