Cornell in Rome
Cornell in Rome is a semester long study abroad program of Cornell University’s College of Architecture, Art, and Planning. Hosting students for nearly 30 years, Cornell in Rome provides a transformative experience for young, developing artists, architects, urbanists, and scholars. Students experience extraordinary art and architecture first-hand, while living in a major international city and center of European history and culture. The program offers studio work, field research, on-site classes, art-based internships, and an extensive field trip program to Italy’s most notable cities, towns, archaeological sites, gardens, and historical and contemporary art collections.
The program is open to Cornell students from the Colleges of Architecture, Art, and Planning, Human Ecology, Agriculture and Life Sciences, Hotel, Engineering, and Industrial and Labor Relations. All courses are taught in English. Non-AAP students should consult with their home college to determine how courses will be applied toward their degree program.
The program is open to students from outside Cornell in the disciplines of architecture, visual arts, and urban studies, as well as related fields such as art history, landscape architecture, classics, European studies, medieval studies, and sociology.
Cornell in Rome provides undergraduates an unparalleled semester. Drawing upon the historical and cultural resources of Rome — its museums, art, and architecture — and the city’s beauty and complexity as an ancient and yet modern world capital, a semester in Rome has proved to be a pivotal semester for both intellectual and personal growth.
The course work is rigorous, using the city and its wealth of museums, galleries, archaeological sites, villas, churches, and remarkable public spaces for on-site study, as well as Rome’s many neighborhoods for field-based learning activities. The field trip program beyond Rome to many different regions of Italy and a varied and dynamic lecture series featuring contemporary architects, artists, and planners complement course offerings.
Courses are offered both fall and spring terms in architecture design, art, architectural history, art history, drawing, photography, architectural theory, contemporary Italian culture, and Italian language. The spring roster also includes courses in urban studies and European politics. The program is small with a maximum enrollment of 55 to 60 students each semester.
Cornell in Rome’s resident faculty are chosen from the best local and internationally known scholars, critics, architects, and artists, and are all expert at using the city as an unparalleled resource for instruction and inspiration. Additionally, distinguished Cornell professors from the architecture, art, and city and regional planning departments, live and teach in Rome for the entire semester.
While primarily an undergraduate program, Cornell in Rome also offers course work and full-time internships in international agencies to graduate students in the Department of City and Regional Planning and others interested in urban planning, policy development, and international development during spring semesters. Students from the master’s program in city and regional planning and Cornell Institute of Public Affairs (CIPA) frequently attend.
Cornell in Rome internship placements have catered to such varied interests as refugee management, transit related urban redevelopment, food systems and food security, European Union (EU) agricultural policy, international law, and U.N. policy-making. In addition to the obvious networking that occurs and professional experience gained, students frequently also use their internship as a springboard for their thesis or exit project.
The program is based at Palazzo Lazzaroni, a handsomely restored seventeenth-century building, in the historic center of Rome. Large, completely furnished student apartments with wireless access — all within easy walking distance of studio and classroom space — house undergraduate participants.
As five-month-long residents of the center of Rome, students enjoy daily contact with the urban life of a major European city and its nearly 3,000 years of history and extraordinary backdrop of art and architecture.
Further information, including the application process, can be found online at www.rome.cornell.edu. AAP students can find additional department-specific information below.