Mathildas exchange year in Italy

Ciao, my name is Mathilda and I’m 17 years old. I’m from Finland and I spent my exchange year in Italy during the 24/25 school year. I was placed in the beautiful Northern-Italy near lake Maggiore.

Why did I choose Italy?

I always knew that I wanted to do an exchange year when the time would come, but a few years ago I was still thinking about which country will be good for me. I knew from the start that I wasn’t interested in America like many people are but luckily STS had many other countries around the world for me to choose from. I came to the decision to stay in Europe and to experience a different culture from my own. I looked at Spain and Italy and made the decision to choose Italy because: of the delicious food, versatile nature, fun people and the gorgeous language. I thought that Italy had so much to offer, which it did.

What was school like in Italy?

I was sure that school will be much harder than at home, and it was true. Italian students have a lot of work to do at home and in school they mostly listen to the teachers. But of course for me as an exchange student, who doesn’t even need any grades from the year, the teachers didn’t give me the same work as they got. I got to customize my timetable a bit to get more italian and subjects I’m interested in. In Italian high schools, there are different “lines” for example language line, scientific line, artistic line and many others.

After school activities

Finding something to do after school is very important to keep you busy and meet new people. In my area it wasn’t possible to continue my sport from home, so it was an excellent opportunity to try a new sport. I chose tennis and I’m happy about my decision. I learnt a new sport that I now continue back home and I got new friends. I played in a small group with girls my age. In addition to tennis I taught english as a volunteer at my host-sisters elementary school. This experience taught me a lot of things and the little kids were adorable. Every friday I went to Italian lessons with a few other exchange students and some days I went for lunch with classmates.

Building relationships

Having a good relationship with your host family and building friendships is important during your exchange, but it can be hard. It is important to spend time with your host family for example cooking with them, playing games or going outside. I felt this very easy because italians love to be around people. I found my best friend from my class. We had talked a bit and then I got the courage to ask her for lunch after school and that’s when we started to get closer as friends. You can’t expect that everyone will approach you so as an exchange student you will have to do some work as well to build strong relationships.

Learning a new language

This was easily the biggest thing I was scared of before my exchange. Having to learn a new language from zero. I knew some words before so during the first days I caught people saying those specific words sometimes but little by little I started to understand the language and memorizing more words and phrases. In the end it is quite easy to catch a language because you will hear it at school, hobbies, family and shops etc. Around christmas time I felt more comfortable and started to speak only Italian. It is a journey that needs time and patience but it is worth it!

Highlights of my year

During my year I was lucky enough to visit many beautiful places in Italy. My exchange organization in Italy made trips during the year and I participated on trips to Florence and Venice. With my host family we went skiing for a week in the mountains and over easter time we visited Croatia. Also I really enjoyed visiting Milan often.

Why did I choose STS

I felt very comfortable choosing STS because I knew they are reliable and care about each student. They truly want a safe and fun experience for every exchange student. It was nice that they were in contact with me during the exchange year and asked me how I was going.

Find out more

• Read more student stories from Italy
• Read more about a high school exchange in Italy
• See all our high school exchange destinations