Weekly quiz

The 2011-12 SAIS Bologna class has emerged almost fully from the lengthy admissions process. We can now say that students with passports from 51 countries have enrolled. This map shows the countries:


View SAIS Bologna 2011-12 class in a larger map

The countries include 5 newcomers to the Bologna Center, which in its 56 years has graduated students from 110 countries. The new countries are the Bahamas, Madagascar, Mongolia, Qatar and Zimbabwe. Congratulations to the trailblazers from those nations.

We plan to start cutting back on the frequency of our blog posts starting next week. Initially we will be posting three days a week -- Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays. As the summer deepens, we will cut back further as our readers leave their computers and hand-held devices behind for a few weeks. We'll pick up again in the autumn when a new batch of potential applicants start looking into graduate programs. We'll be counting on the incoming class to help us convey what SAIS Bologna is all about.

Soon we will be circulating a brief survey asking for feedback on this blog, which will be 6 months old in mid-June. If you would like to participate in the survey, please send an email to us.

Next week we will provide a short video capturing some of this year's students talking about what they will be doing this summer. We'll also have a post on a student project that was presented to an international renewable energy competition. During the following week, we plan to run a slideshow of photographs from the Bologna Center graduation, set for May 28.

Now, on to the quiz question.

But first, we've decided to wait until Monday mornings to reveal the answer to the Friday weekly quizzes. That gives all time zones a chance to participate. Now there is no excuse for not participating.

In what region, other than North America, did the greatest number of SAIS students from the most recent graduating class go to work after finishing their studies?

Prize: a SAIS Bologna tee shirt

Nelson Graves

Think about your future career -- now

SAIS is first and foremost an academic experience. And career choices are never far from students' minds.

Those of you coming to pre-term in Bologna will have a chance to get on track academically, find an apartment and start bonding with classmates. You will also get a dose of career guidance.

All first-year students are required to attend a professional development mini-course that sets the foundation for any search for internships or jobs. Those coming to pre-term are encouraged to take the course before Fall classes start; others take it early in the first semester.

The course has 5 modules that last a total of about 8 hours. It covers a lot of ground: career research; self-assessment; writing résumés, CVs and cover letters; networking, and interviewing.

The professional development course is run by Career Services and is required of students in both Bologna and Washington.

Career Services provides students with career management skills. The office conducts skills workshops; organizes career discussion panels; plans trips, and provides information on professions, internships and jobs. Some readers may remember earlier posts on internships and jobs, career trips and the types of careers that our graduates choose.

Career Services maintains an online database called SAISWorks that helps put students who are looking for internships or jobs in touch with prospective employers. It lists jobs and internships, allows students to upload CVs and other documents, provides employer profiles and maintains an event calendar. For many students, it is the go-to job site.

Here are some of the internships that SAIS Bologna students, leveraging SAISWorks, have landed for this coming summer:

• Kaiser Associates, South Africa
• Belgian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Brussels
• International Trade Centre, Geneva
• Istituto Affari Internazionali, Rome
• Stimson Center, Washington, DC
• AJ Kearney (USA), Washington, DC
• UNDP, Fiji
• US China Energy Cooperation Program (ECP), Beijing
• Control Risks, Bombay/New Delhi
• Fundacion ETHOS, Mexico City
• Millennium Challenge Corporation, Mongolia
• JP Morgan, London

Next week we hope to offer a video capturing some students telling us what they will be doing this summer. The variety of experiences is as diverse as the student body.

Nelson Graves

Incoming students: Ignore this at your peril

Now that we have your attention....

Two important points are worth our emphasizing as you prepare to start you studies at SAIS Bologna in the autumn.

1. Every student has to have passed both basic microeconomics and basic macroeconomics BEFORE they can start any course work at SAIS. Many students have already met this requirement. But some have not.

SAIS offers an online course over the summer which allows students to satisfy this requirement if they have not already. However, registration for this course, which starts on May 25, is now closed, so it is no longer an option if you have not already registered.

If you need to take either basic micro or basic macro this summer, you should look for a similar university-level course elsewhere. There are such courses offered online and at universities around the world. If this is the tack you need to take, please be sure to clear the curriculum with Amina Abdiuahab before committing to the course.

Remember: if you have not satisfied this economics requirement by the time classes begin, you will not be able to commence your studies. This is no joke: in the past students have been sent back home at the outset of the academic year for failing to meet this requirement.

The same holds true for pre-term: if you want to take part in pre-term, either in Washington or Bologna, you have to meet the micro/macro requirement beforehand.

One thing that continues to flummox some students: the micro and macro courses that are offered during pre-term are at the intermediary level. In order to take them, a student has to have already satisfied the basic micro and macro requirement.

2. Every student has to show proof of an undergraduate degree before starting any course work.

As hard as it is to believe, this is another requirement that has tripped up some incoming students.

The way to show such proof is to obtain from your undergraduate institution either an official final transcript that confirms you received your degree, or bring your original diploma from that institution.

Please keep in  mind that we do not accept copies of a transcript or of a diploma for this requirement. Please obtain the original.

We hope this nuts-and-bolts blog post will prevent awkward scenes come the autumn. Forewarned is forearmed. (Now who said that?...)

Nelson Graves

Where the SAIS Bologna class of 2012 comes from

Candidates with passports from 51 countries have accepted offers to attend SAIS Bologna in 2011-12. We have plotted place-marks on the countries in the map below.

The geographical sweep underscores the diversity of the Bologna Center, which is committed to exposing students to an educational experience that stretches their horizons.


View SAIS Bologna 2011-12 class in a larger map

Nelson Graves

Visa & health issues

Below is a post that we published on May 12 before it was wiped from our blog by a mysterious gremlin. We are repeating it today as we know many incoming students have questions about visas and health issues.

Today is the deadline for admitted candidates to accept. We already have a very good idea of next year's class, and it looks to be very bright and very diverse. Later this week we hope to post a map indicating where incoming students come from.

It feels like yesterday that we started receiving applications, and now the process is all but over. The admissions cycle has been fun for us. It has been great to meet you in person or via email. We now look forward to having you as part of the Bologna Center's Class of 2012.

Now some Q&A. (Keep in mind that U.S. citizens should direct any visa questions to the SAIS DC Admissions Office. Others can address questions to SAIS Bologna Admissions.)

Q: I have matriculated as a non-U.S. citizen, but I have not yet received my visa request letter. What should I do? ("Matriculation" means to accept an admissions offer.)
A: If you have matriculated and you are a non-U.S. citizen, you will receive a visa request letter. Please allow us a couple of days after you have submitted the matriculation form.

Q: I have been told I need the original copy of both my letter of admission and the visa request letter.
A: Many Italian embassies and consulates accept the PDF documents we have been sending you via email. However, if that's not the case, please get in touch and provide the mailing address at which you would like to receive the letters. You will receive the letters shortly after your request.

Q: The embassy I applied to has told me that I must provide proof of accommodation.
A: Some Italian embassies or consulates require you to have accommodation before coming to Bologna. If you have been asked to indicate where you will be living whilst in Bologna, please contact us. We will make sure the authorities understand we won't let you live under a bridge.

Q: My embassy asked me to provide a dichiarazione di valore.
A: As a U.S. institution we do not require you to provide a dichiarazione di valore. If Italian authorities have requested it, let us know and we will inform them that we do not need such a document.

Q: I am not a European Union citizen. Do I need health insurance?
A: Yes. All non-EU nationals are required to come to Italy with health insurance. Although you might feel as fit as a fiddle, you will still need health coverage in case you need assistance.

Q: I am not a European Union citizen and I have health insurance. Do I still need to purchase Italian insurance?
A: You are not required to buy the Italian emergency health insurance. However, we strongly recommend you do. This type of insurance is helpful in case of emergencies. While we are sure you will have a good health plan, in case of an emergency you will be required to pay expenses out of your own pocket before being reimbursed by your insurance company. The Italian insurance covers those kinds of  emergency.

Q: So, what is the difference between my health insurance and the Italian one? And why would I need both?
A: Italian health insurance will cover you in case of an emergency and will save you having to spend money if you are hospitalized. Your own insurance should cover all other situations. It is better to be safe than sorry!

Q: How much is Italian health insurance?
A: It costs €98 for the academic year. The emergency health insurance is inexpensive but keep in mind that it only covers emergencies. Therefore, it will not help if you need to go to the dentist or the optician, even if it's an emergency.

Q: I am a European Union citizen. Do I need health insurance?
A: No. However, you will need an international health card which will give you the same rights to assistance as Italians.

Amina Abdiuahab

Weekly quiz

A reminder to those candidates who were admitted that the deadline for accepting the offer is Monday, May 16. To accept (or in the academic parlance, "matriculate"), please consult your acceptance letter. The class of 2011-12 is shaping up nicely -- more on that when the dust has settled.

We're going to be cutting back on the pace of our blog posts after May 16. We haven't yet decided how regularly we will post -- this is a work in progress, as most of you know. One thing we intend to do is to poll our readers for feedback to help guide us in coming months.

On to the quiz.

Why was the SAIS Bologna Alumni Weekend unable to take place as scheduled in 2010?


The prize: a SAIS Bologna tee shirt. (If you want to win, we'll need your shirt size -- via a comment or email.)

Nelson Graves

SAIS "in situ"

You've heard us say it before: learning at SAIS takes place in and outside the classroom.

In a typical year, students organize trips to points around the globe to deepen their understanding of cultures and international relations. The trips are generally organized in conjunction with academic concentrations or with Career Services. Often, the students take the lead.

This year, some SAIS Bologna students traveled to Israel and the Palestinian Territories. There were also trips to Morocco and Spain. Some students traveled to London and Brussels under the aegis of Career Services. We have already written a post about a study trip, organized with the Center for Constitutional Studies and Democratic Development, to Sarajevo -- the 10th such trip SAIS Bologna students have taken with CCSDD to the Bosnian capital.

If you have a few minutes, take a look at this video that captures some moments of a recent trip by Latin American Studies Program students from SAIS Washington to Costa Rica. If you are as weak in Spanish as I am, you can skip lightly over some of the interviews in the middle of the video to view the rest.

Disfruten el video!



Nelson Graves