Istituto Venezia (Venice Institute), Italy

Venice, Italy (Europe)

Quick Facts

Spring 2021
Dates: Late January - Early May, 2021 
Application Deadline:  October 15, 2020  
Costs:  
Intensive Italian
$10,240 CCIS Member  | $10,640 Non-member 

Venice Civilization and Culture  
$11,640 CCIS Member  | $12,040 Non-member 

Fall 2020
Dates:  September 10 – December 19, 2020
Application Deadline:  March 15
Costs: 
Intensive Italian
$10,240 CCIS Member  | $10,640 Non-member 

Venice Civilization and Culture  
$11,640 CCIS Member  | $12,040 Non-member 


Apply Now


Please note that if you see dates or costs for a prior term above, that future terms will have similar dates and costs.  We will update info as soon as it becomes available.

*Fall 2021 program scholarship available. Apply HERE*

*Please note $800 due two weeks after acceptance.

The Fall 2023 application cycle will open in January 2023 – you can click Apply Now then to get started for those terms.


Click here for Istituto Venezia Summer Programs


 

Program Overview

Venice is situated on 118 islands connected by 378 bridges. Called the Queen of the Adriatic, the city has a setting that no other city in the world can rival. It is a network of rii (streams), canali (canals), calli (streets), and campi (squares).

The richness and charm of Venice does not derive solely from the presence of significant works of architecture and art (Bellini, Tiziano, Veronese, Tintoretto, Palladio, Sansovino, and many others) but also from the general layout of the city and its way of life.

The program is situated in the heart of Venice in a 16th century palazzo. The interior of the building has been recently restored for instructional purposes and is also a center for art and culture. It has eight standard classrooms, a modest library, and a communal meeting room. The Palazzo is located in the very center of the university and off the beaten path of tourists.

Gallery

Contact Program Sponsor and Advisor

This program is sponsored and administered by the College of Staten Island CUNY.

Academics & Program

Istituto Venezia in Venice

The Istituto Venezia has been offering language instruction for Italians and foreigners since 1994. Program participants have an opportunity to study Italian with students of all ages and from around the world. No previous knowledge of Italian is required. Italian is offered at the beginning, intermediate, and advanced levels. Because the program in Venice is small, courses are offered on the basis of individualized study, unless five or more students enroll in a course. A professor is assigned to work with a student. The student and professor meet for an hour a week to go over the material to be covered and assignments of the previous week. Students do not meet in regular classes with other students, but rather have the concentrated attend and exclusive guidance of a single professor for each course; assignments are often tailored to the student's special interests.

The language of instruction is English with the exception of the language courses.

Course Offerings

Program I: Super-Intensive Italian Language Program (12 credits). Student may register for a total of 12 credits only in this program.

Program II: Venetian Civilization and Culture (14 credits). Students take six credits of Italian language and two four-credit courses. Students must take a placement exam before registering for intermediate-and advanced-level language courses.

Course Descriptions

Program I

Super-Intensive Italian (300 hrs, 12 credits) 4 hours per day, 5 days a week Weekly seminars in Italian culture and art history tours are mandatory for all intensive Italian language courses.

Levels: There are five levels of Italian instruction. All beginners start at the first level (1). All other students, regardless of their language competency, are tested by the Istituto Venezia instructors before classes begin. The test determines the level in which they are placed.

Italian Levels:

• Level 1: This course addressed beginning students who have no knowledge of the Italian language. At the end of the course, students are able to communicate in the most frequent daily situations, using basic vocabulary and grammar.
• Level 2: This course is designed for students who have a basic knowledge of Italian. It allows the student to increase his/her communication ability, expanding basic vocabulary and grammar.
• Level 3: This course aims at strengthening comprehension, communication, and writing skills by using advanced grammar.
• Level 4: This course builds a good command of the language. The student develops complex grammatical structures and enriches his/her vocabulary, thus improving fluency.
• Level 5: This is an advanced course that can be repeated by those who want to reach a high level of fluency. The course investigates different aspects of the Italian language.

Program II

Venetian Civilization and Culture (14 credits), Italian Language (6 credits), Venetian History, Politics, and Society from the 12th to the 20th Century (60 hrs, 4 credits). The central aim that underlies the course is "to study the history of Venice, from the birth of the Republic to the present, watching and seeing (in the historical and modern city) the testimonials of it and the progressive changes."

To realize this goal, the course is designed to combine class lesson and visit to the sites of secular class lessons and visits to the sites of secular historical importance: The Basilica of Saint Mark's, The Ducal Palace, and the Arsenale; the commercial sites of the city and the modern industrial sites in the suburbs; the future solution for the program of high water; the mobile dam in Pellestrina. Venetian Art and Society from the 12th to the 18th Century (60 hrs, 4 credits). 

The course aims to introduce and explore the specificity of Venetian art and architecture: the origins, development, and affirmation; their elaboration of influences from both East and West; their originality and social, political, and cultural role in the life of the Serenissima Republic; and their relationship with contemporary Italian artistic centers like Florence and Rome.

Classes are for the most part in the form of field trips. Venice is a city that, like few others, has kept almost intact its ancient appearance and urbanistic structure. The history of its artistic development can therefore be read as in a live book, simply by identifying the clues left everywhere for us to find, in each wall and façade, church and palace, bridge and well.

Masterpieces not only can be viewed in the city's museums, but also can be admired in the exact sport for which they were made, thus offering the rare possibility of a much deeper understanding of the artwork as devised by the artist. Moreover, the direct experience of the actual masterpiece-otherwise studied in art books, isolated from its context-offers the possibility of analyzing the interaction with previous and following artworks coexisting in the same place, and stimulates the student to identify the net of relationships linking artistic production throughout the centuries.

Of equal importance are the visits to nearby significant artistic centers, where different artistic traditions have developed, cities like Ravenna, Padova, and Vicenza, whose links with Venice underline at the same time the interaction of different cultural influences and the uniqueness of Venetian art and architecture.

Course Credits: 12-14 credits depending on the selected program
Language of Instruction: English and Italian

Student Life & Housing

Student Life

The Istituto Venezia organizes several activities during the week to give students the opportunity to make the most of their cultural experience in Venice. There are many walking tours with each focusing on different aspects of Venice-social life, cinema, cultural events, art, and other topics. The Istituto Venezia arranges apartments for students, located within walking distance or a vaporetto (water bus) ride from the institute.

Housing

Apartments are modest and they all have similar facilities, but no two apartments are alike. Each apartment is furnished and equipped with towels and bed linen, basic pots and pans, and kitchen utensils. They are not provided with washing machines, telephones, and air conditioning. The housing coordinator at The Venice Institute assigns roommates based on the completed housing profile. Students are assigned to single rooms in the student apartments, which are shared with other students in the program or with local residents. Opportunities for sporting and outdoor activities such as tennis, sailing, and swimming are available. E-mail is available for a small fee.

Duration & Costs

Duration
Spring 2021: Late January - Early May, 2021
Fall 2019: September 10 - December 19, 2020

Costs
Spring 2021
Intensive Italian
$10,240 CCIS Member  | $10,640 Non-member 
Venice Civilization and Culture  
$11,640 CCIS Member  | $12,040 Non-member 

Fall 2020
Intensive Italian
$10,240 CCIS Member  | $10,640 CCIS Non-member 
Venice Civilization and Culture  
$11,640 CCIS Member  | $12,040 CCIS Non-member 

Please note that if you see dates or costs for a prior term above, that future terms will have similar dates and costs.  We will update info as soon as it becomes available.

Costs Included: Tuition, Housing (Venice Institute-arranged single), Administrative fees, International Medical and Travel Insurance, Orientation in U.S. & Italy

Costs Not Included: Airfare $1,200, Meals $1,700, Textbooks $300, Personal expenses $1,700, Permit of Stay (approx. $220)

Please note $800 due two weeks after acceptance.

All costs, fees, and dates are subject to change without notification. Contact the program sponsor to verify all costs, fees, and dates for this program. 

Please refer to your acceptance materials for information on arrival, orientation, and academic calendar. The refund policy is program specific and non-transferable. Refer to your acceptance materials for the comprehensive refund policy or contact the program sponsor.

Eligibility & Deadlines

Have you talked with your study abroad advisor about your home institution's application process? Your institution's deadline might be earlier than the CCIS program application deadline. Check now to make sure all of your material is submitted on time!
 

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