Type of housing:
Apartment/House

Arranged by:
Independently - I had no other choice

If returning, I would choose:
Apartment/House
Why? Living in a flat was largely the only possibility, but I recommend sharing with Italians for language purposes.

Describe host city:
Students equally interact with the local and student community

Travel, Activities, Nightlife take/s place both within and outside of the university/student environment

Course recommendations:
Tedious beyond belief, largely because of the huge number of teaching hours, meaning that most ´proffesors´ becoming talking books - generally humourless and they are as bored as the students. Options are quite large providing your home university allows you to take any of the year groups offered. If restricted to only one year group, then the options are somewhat limited. Italy teaches political science rather than politics as in Britain - that is to say it is very technical, training people to become civil servants - 1st year students have a compulsory statistics module for example! Some teachers might take a register. However, most Italians are happy for courses to clash. Italians write down word for word what the teacher says - although useless for revision purposes, this is an excellent way to improve your Italian. I only gave one presentation all year: no essays or tests until final exams.

The language of instruction was:
Italian

My proficiency in the language of instruction:
before: Everyday knowledge (shopping, directions, etc.)
after: No problems in any areas (including slang)

Learning the language of instruction was a factor in choosing my host country

Main source of funding:
An ERASMUS grant

Other sources of funding:
Family
Personal savings

Work opportunities
I didn't explore any work options.

Personal spending habits:
Durham is cheaper than Rome for housing - as you would expect. I travelled more in Italy than I would in Britain. Bills, however, were much more expensive, especially electricity and the condominio charge (if you have to pay it).

I wish I had known ...
What an Italian oral exam meant.

In my opinion:
Most people loved it.