Pre-Term SAIS Bologna - Workload

In addition to the time spent in the classroom, students who are considering taking multiple pre-term courses should estimate that an equal amount of time will be spent studying outside of class as in the classroom. Survival Italian is designed to be taken with one of the economics courses, but combining Intensive Italian or English with Micro or Macro or combining both Micro and Macro courses, is extremely demanding and strongly discouraged. Those who take both Micro- and Macroeconomics will not be able to attend review sessions for both courses as they will overlap.

The pre-term program in Bologna also includes an obligatory Professional Development course (PDC) which is run by the SAIS Bologna Career Services Office. Students should also consider this time commitment when choosing their pre-term courses.

Career Services Professional Development Course (PDC)
First-year SAIS students are required to complete the Career Services Professional Development Course (PDC) in order to use the Office of Career Services. The PDC commences with an Orientation session, which provides campus-specific information about Career Services procedures and provides an opportunity for students to ask questions of the staff. Students are given full access to SAISWorks, the SAIS professional development database and job posting system, only after attending the Orientation session. In subsequent modules of the PDC, students are presented with information to help them make the most of the individualized career counseling and other programming offered at SAIS. Course content includes self-assessment, employer research resources, targeted resume building and cover letters, networking and interviewing skills. The PDC is designed jointly by staff in the SAIS Washington and Bologna Offices of Career Services and is presented in similar format on both campuses. In Bologna, special sessions of the PDC are scheduled during pre-term to allow students to complete the majority of the PDC before the start of the academic year. Career Services assigns students to PDC class sections that do not conflict with their pre-term class schedules so there is no need for students to register separately. The course involves a total commitment of about 15 hours between classroom time and outside assignments. By completing required PDC deliverables, students create the foundation of their own individual professional development during and after SAIS.