Hello, my name is Lauren Melcer and I am currently a junior in the College of Business Administration at the University of Pittsburgh. I am currently double majoring in Supply Chain Management and Business Information Systems with a minor in Economics and I am from New Jersey. Last summer I was a logistics intern at Wakefern Food Corp. and this upcoming summer I look forward to being a buying intern at Burlington Stores Inc. 

I am taking part in the Global Business Institute (GBI) Florence program. I chose this particular program because of the amazing opportunities to become immersed in Italian culture through the curriculum. I have always been interested in Italian art and history, and this program gave me the perfect opportunity to learn all about that. One of my goals for this semester is to become fully immersed in the culture of the city and push myself to do things I normally wouldn’t. Taking the steps to become immersed into another culture, with a new language, is pushing myself out of my comfort zone, which is one of my main goals.

One major difference between the host institution and Pitt is all of the classes are throughout the city instead of on a campus. I enjoy this because I have classes in four different buildings, which allows me to explore different areas of the city throughout the day. One of my favorite parts of my new neighborhood is the accessibility to everything! Being only three minutes from the Duomo, everything you would need is within walking distance and we are able to explore lots of different neighborhoods within the greater city. There are also many students studying abroad here in Florence, which created the opportunity to not only learn from locals, but my peers as well. 

I am currently living in a four person apartment which has been amazing! All of us are from different home universities, which has been great to meet new people. There are also many locals in the building which teaches me further about how to live like a local. Adapting to the new living situation was not as difficult as I expected. Being around many of my peers from Pitt in my classes as well as meeting a ton of new people has made the experience easier, as everyone is in the same position. I am beyond excited for the rest of the semester and to grow from this once in a lifetime experience!