Moving to Tuscany has been one of the best choices I’ve ever made and, after 13 years, I can finally call it home! It all started in 2010 when I left my hometown in the south of Sardinia to study at the University of Siena. In the beginning, it wasn’t easy but now I’m glad I have three different locations I can call ‘my places’.

After my bachelor’s degree in Italian Literature, I got a master’s in Italian Linguistics and Cognitive studies. During my university years, I had the opportunity to study abroad – first for six months in the UK and then for one year in Indiana, where I worked as an Italian teaching Assistant at DePauw University.

These experiences abroad taught me that cultural differences are what make real connections between people, and I like to consider them resources more than barriers. Starting in an international environment and experiencing cultural differences, students have the biggest chance to grow as they face new challenges every day. From my own personal experience, I can say that the most I’ve learned as a student was during my time spent miles away from my hometown, family and friends, being fully immersed in a completely different country and lifestyle.

Once back from the United States, I decided that international education was the right environment in which I wanted to work and I’ve been working for the past 5 years in the housing field of international institutes in Florence. I consider being a consistent part of students’ abroad experience as a privilege knowing that, for them, it’s going to be a life-changing experience.

Working with international students is a continuous exchange and a great possibility to meet people and make friends from all over the world.