It offers a unique study abroad experience in one of the oldest and most beautiful university towns in Italy.

We are also the only school in Europe to offer deaf studies and sign language as part of its semester and summer curriculum.

At the Siena School we offer a wide range of exciting and innovative courses, taught in English and Italian, in a variety of disciplines - Italian Studies and Humanities; Deaf Studies; Sustainability Track; Liberal Arts - as well as wonderful opportunities in Community Service and a variety of Extracurricular Activities.

All of our classes are small and we guarantee a high degree of interaction between teachers and students. We offer our students the possibility of enrolling in a series of more traditional, lecture-based courses or of experiencing Community-Based Learning in our Internship Program in Art and/or Social Work. Students involved in our Sustainability Track have opportunities to partecipate in internship working on in local Farm, Restaurant or in journalism related to Sustainability.

Our Service Learning component aims to engage our students further with the community in Siena. We are involved in many English enrichment programs with elementary students, a local soupkitchen and foodbank, and a local nursing home. We encourage our students to be as independent as possible and we are very open to students own interests. If there is anything that our students wish we will do our best in finding new and available opportunities.

Through the Siena School you will go beyond merely observing the life of this beautiful city; you will be drawn into dialogue with the environment that surrounds you. Our classes provide the instruments and insight you need to make a connection and leave a mark, be it through what you say, write, create or perform. In this way you are not a mere visitor, but a real contributor to the life of the city. Studying at the Siena School means listening to all that Italy has to offer and giving back to our city as you become a contributing part of it.

 

Academics

Through a unique combination of classroom study, intensive programs, fieldwork, service-learning, workshops and weekend activities, the Siena School fosters a hands-on engagement with aspects of Italian life usually inaccessible to the visitor.

The Siena School is organized into 5 Academic Tracks: Deaf Studies, Italian Studies, Liberal Arts (including Studio Art), Museum Studies, and Sustainability.

Students choose a track when applying for our programs. Each track includes Italian language and different core courses. Each track offers 4-month semester courses, ranging from 45 to 60 contact hrs. The school is active throughout the year, offering a Spring and Fall semester and a Summer term. We’re also pleased to arrange customized programs and to organize programs in joint venture with other institutions.

The Siena School is a Study Abroad provider which collaborates with many North American partner institutions. Credit transfer is processed in agreement with our partner colleges in the US. For those cases in which an agreement with a college/university is not yet in place, it is always possible to go through our School of Record.

Liberal Arts
Choose the lens through which you wish to discover our beautiful country! Whether you’re a sign linguist, an art historian, a writer, an environmentalist or an artist our Liberal Arts Track can provide you with the academic route that will take you to the heart of Italy’s culture. Research projects will range from installation work to keeping a journal while interning on a biodynamic farm or writing the initial paragraphs of your first book.

Sustainability
Understanding the transnational nature of environmental problems, the Siena School Sustainability Track encourages cross-cultural exchange to compliment our academic coursework. Through internships and workshops, students will have the opportunity to meet local food and agricultural producers, share in their work, and discover alternative approaches to food production in the interest of our common future.

Museum Studies
What is the role of museums in today’s society? How does curatorship vary from culture to culture? How should a museum interact with the territory that surrounds it? Our Museum Studies Track addresses these fundamental questions, providing a European and Italian perspective on the notion of museum curatorship while also focusing upon the anthropological value of the museum itself.

Italian Studies
If you’re curious about Italian culture or are currently studying it, Siena is the best place where to start your academic and personal explorations. Here past and present come together within a framework of magnificent architecture, retaining the genuiness of a small but lively city. Whatever the student’s level of Italian, our Italian Studies Track offers an interactive immersion not just with the language but with the actual life of the city.

Deaf Studies
Since 2005, the Deaf Studies Department has ambitiously worked with Italian and American Deaf and signing communities to provide exciting and unique opportunities for students and professionals alike. If you are a signer – whether deaf, hard of hearing or hearing - wanting to learn more about other signing communities, you will find not other school in Europe that offers the same combination of immersion in Deaf Culture and Sign language. 

Continuing Education
The Siena School for Liberal Arts offers a calendar of week-long continuing-education courses exploring the culture, history, and art of the Tuscan territory through four different programs: Discovering the Etruscans; Castles and Ruins; Convents and Abbeys; Tuscan Hill Towns. All programs are open to participants of all ages.

Request more info or apply today!