Ciao everyone! My name is Nicholas Monetti, and I’m a Junior here at the University of Pittsburgh. I am from Buffalo, New York, so I love chicken wings and the Buffalo Bills (tough loss recently). I’m a huge sports fan and enjoy watching movies with my friends in my free time. I also like to work out frequently, but I am currently training to run the half marathon this May in Pittsburgh!
Here at Pitt, I’m double majoring in Accounting and Finance (with a focus in Accounting) and minoring in Economics. I’m currently the President of the University of Pittsburgh Accounting Association and have an audit internship lined up with Deloitte for the summer of 2026. I chose Pitt because I love the city of Pittsburgh, and it’s not too far from home — just a three-hour drive from Buffalo. Pitt Business specifically intrigued me because they excel at connecting students to the city and the companies located downtown. After college, I plan on staying in the city and becoming an accountant for one of the Big Four accounting firms.
This spring, I’m participating in the Global Business Institute Florence Program! I am super, super excited about it. I chose to participate in this program because it allows me to complete specific elective credits that will help me stay on track to earn 150 credits so I can sit for the CPA exam. I specifically chose Florence because, as you can tell by my last name, I’m Italian! Being also half German, I was fortunate enough to participate in Plus3 Germany when I was a freshman. Now, my two dream global experiences will be complete.
This semester in Florence will further enhance my goal of exploring the world, as Plus3 Germany was the only other time I’ve been outside the country. I’m the extrovert in my family, so I’m excited to be the first one in my family to travel to more than three countries! Academically, this program will allow me to dive deeper into Italian culture and appreciate my family roots. Two elective courses I’m taking are Beginning Figurative Sculpting and Museology, where I’ll learn how to sculpt like Michelangelo and visit the many museums Florence has to offer. In addition, I’m taking Italian 1, allowing me to learn another foreign language for the first time since German class in high school. Professionally, this program will allow me to dive deeper into foreign markets, as I’m also taking International Finance. It’s important to understand not only our economy but also foreign economies.
After being in Florence for a little over two weeks and settling in, I can say there are some similarities but also many differences in my living situation and learning environment. Here, I’m living in a four-person apartment with three other guys from Pitt Business, which is a more relaxing environment compared to my eight-person apartment at Pitt. Two of my seven roommates from Pitt are also studying abroad here in Florence, but I decided to meet more people by going random, and I’m really glad I did. I’m enjoying my new roommates and have some amazing trips planned for the semester. As for the apartment, it’s fairly small, unlike my apartment at school, but it’s still very cozy. Similar to freshman year in the dorms, I have a roommate, which is a big adjustment from the past three semesters, where I had my own room. Overall, our apartment is located in a big building, so there’s a mix of other study abroad students and locals. It’s a familiar but also different environment, as we have to respect the locals’ work schedules. One thing that’s definitely a huge adjustment is that there are no washing machines in my apartment, so we have to use drying racks to dry our clothes.
Similar to South Oakland’s location in relation to Pitt’s campus, my walk to the academic buildings ranges from fifteen to twenty minutes. I enjoy taking different routes to class each week to find new restaurants or cafes to stop at after class. The program I’m studying through is CEA CAPA, which strives to keep our classes small (with a maximum of twenty students) to keep us fully engaged during the week. Like Pitt, we have no class on Fridays, so we have plenty of time to explore Florence and Europe. CEA CAPA also organizes trips and activities for us, ensuring that we always have something to do. In conclusion, I’m in good hands and have had a great time adjusting to this new environment.
I’m forever grateful for this experience, and I can’t wait to share the next four months with you all! I hope you enjoy following my journey!
Nicholas Monetti
