Academic Resources

At the Tuscany Campus, you’ll have access to a wide variety of resources to help you in your studies, both online and on-site.

We are committed to ensuring you have the tools you need to excel in your classes while making the most of your time abroad. The same level of support that is available to you on the University's main campus will be provided to you during your time in Italy.

Tuscany Campus Resources

Academic Office and Student Success Assistants

At the Tuscany Campus, students can access resources and services to help them achieve academic success. The Prato Academic Office assists with class registration, information on academic programs, tips on study and time-management, and other academic success strategies. The Prato Academic Office supervises the Student Success Assistants, who are available to meet with students individually to help solve academic problems and stay on top of their studies.

Internships

Students who need to complete an internship can do so while studying abroad. The Prato Police Department, migration centers, sports facilities, architectural studios, and public health centers are some areas in which students can gain practical experience interning in Italy. The Tuscany campus will help to facilitate the process of acquiring an internship in Prato relevant to your major.

Library

Tuscany Campus Library
The Tuscany Campus maintains a library of books pertinent to many of the courses offered in Prato. If you cannot find what you need, you can also access to the online resources offered through the University of New Haven’s library system, including an extensive collection of databases and e-books.

Biblioteca Lazzerini, (Lazzerini Library)
The Lazzerini library, the biggest in Prato, is located five minutes from the campus, behind the Textile Museum, and is also a meeting place for many young people in Prato. Inside, there are reading rooms, an internet point, Wi-Fi, and many foreign magazines. There is a café and a courtyard in front of the library where events are held.

Bibloteca delle Oblate, (Oblate Library)
The Oblate library in Florence is set in a former convent just a few blocks from the city’s cathedral (Duomo), and a few-minute walk from the main railway station. It offers books available for borrowing in Italian and other languages, including English; periodicals; CDs and DVDs; reading rooms; Wi-Fi access; cultural events; and a highly popular terrace café on its top floor with fabulous views of the cathedral dome. The library is a great place to study or learn a bit of Italian from the local students you’ll often meet there.

Bibloteca Roncioniana, (Roncioniana Library)
The Roncioniana Library is the oldest library in Prato, and was built between 1751 and 1766. It is conveniently located in Piazza San Francesco, right next to the campus buildings and dormitories. Students will find the Roncioniana provides the perfect environment for quiet study. The library is also worth a visit if only to admire the art and architecture of the interior. It houses a famous majolica sculpture by the fifteenth-century sculptor Andrea della Robbia, a beautiful reading room adorned with an eighteenth-century fresco by Luigi Catani, and two rare 16th-century Mercator globes.

Service Learning

While studying abroad, you can gain a fresh perspective on cultural differences and make a positive impact engaging with the local community. Here’s some of the opportunities available for you.

Special Team Prato
Funded in December 1995, the Special Team Prato is a nonprofit association that works with local individuals with disabilities. By conducting your service learning with Special Team Prato, you will contribute to raising awareness and challenging stereotypes through sportsmanship and friendship.

Fondazione Opere Santa Rita
This private Foundation is promoted by the Diocese of Prato. The Santa Rita Foundation is highly active on the territory and carries out initiatives to provide social and medical assistance to the vulnerable population, from minors and disadvantaged people to and migrants.

Migration Centers
These centers fall under the Santa Rita Foundation’s operative centers. Students can conduct their service learning by helping staff during Italian classes, serving food at the cafeteria, and engaging with the migrant community while sharing experiences. This activity will offer a unique opportunity to better understand the dynamics of migration in Italy and to develop global and cultural awareness of the world around you.

Women's Shelter
The ‘Il Soccorso’ women’s shelter is another of Santa Rita Foundation’s centers. The opportunity to give back to the vulnerable population through empowerment and education can be an extremely valuable experience. Present your own projects to describe how you would like to engage with the center and contribute to keep its community lively and the environment a safe space for the women and their children living there.

"Pubblica Assistenza" Ambulance Corps
This local group is Prato’s chief voluntary association focused on health services, ambulatory care, and much more. Students with previous experience as paramedics or within the medical field will have the opportunity to gain a firsthand experience within an international setting by observing physicians and professionals at work, as well as riding on the ambulances.

Success Coaches

Success coaches are an amazing tool to keep students on track in their studies, strengthen organizational skills, and learn about other resources on campus. First-year students will be able to attend a series of workshops to develop study and learning skills run by Prato Success Coaches. Upper-class students can get in touch with a success coach through the Prato Academic Office and Student Success Assistants.

Tutoring

To create a seamless network of support services, as well as to provide students in Prato with all the necessary resources you would normally have available during a regular semester on main campus, you can also access tutoring either in person or online. The Prato Academic Office and Student Success Assistants collaborate with the Center for Student Success (CSS) on main campus and are able to locate online or on-site tutors for most subjects.

Writing Hub

The Writing Hub provides an opportunity for students to meet individually or in a small group with an English professor or a writing tutor who has been formally trained at the main campus Writing Center. You can make appointments to tackle specific issues related to your written assignments or attend workshops focused on common writing mistakes.

West Haven Campus Resources

Academic Advisers

Students can also email their assigned academic adviser for their degree program with any questions regarding their major and classes. Advisers are listed on the student's Degree Audit.
Accessibility Resource Center

If you have learning accommodations, they should be registered with the Accessibility Resource Center. You will be able keep in touch with Accessibility Resource Center to ensure your accommodations while abroad.

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Center for Learning Resources

If you are struggling in class, you can reach out to the Center for Learning Resources (CLR) on main campus in addition to your faculty on campus. You can contact the CLR via email to request online meetings with tutors who specialize in topics ranging from math and science to languages.

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