Postcards from NYU Florence: A Presidential Honors Scholar Abroad

When you apply to CAS you’re automatically considered for the Presidential Honors Scholars Program. This program recognizes top students at CAS, supporting them with mentorship, research, leadership, and global learning opportunities. For example, the program hosts biweekly faculty-led seminars to spark exploration and connection. Each year builds on the next, from developing research fundamentals and engaging with New York’s cultural landscape to studying abroad at NYU global sites and completing an independent senior project.

If you didn’t get into the program your first year, no worries! You can apply for the program during your spring semester to be considered for sophomore year!

Before heading to NYU Florence, I was surprised when one of our classes met over dinner and not in a classroom. Instead of slides and research notes, we met at an authentic Italian restaurant tucked away in Greenwich Village. The air smelled of truffle oil and fresh basil, and the “lesson” was about taste not theory. Between bites of pasta and the professor’s stories about Italian food culture, I realized that learning here wasn’t limited to books or technology.

During J Term three months later, we were on our way to the source. After arriving on campus, I chose two sample classes from six options. I picked the ones that felt distinctly Florentine— Elementary Italian for Survival and Medieval Renaissance in the Dark Arts.

The morning of my Italian class, the local professor’s energy filled the room. With every ciao and grazie, I felt myself getting a little closer to Italian heritage and the heart of Florence.

In the afternoon I had my other course, which was unlike anything at my home campus in New York City. We explored witchcraft, philosophy, and the dark corners of the Italian Renaissance, a strange but weird combination of history and imagination straight from a Dan Brown novel.

The beauty of the Presidential Honors Scholars Program is that it values curiosity as much as knowledge. It pushes us to ask deeper questions, connect across disciplines, and see how the local becomes part of the global. Every corner of the campus became a dialogue between new and old, past and present.

One of my favorite memories was learning from our faculty. Among them was an NYU PhD student in Art History who led us through Florence’s Renaissance masterpieces. Standing before Botticelli’s Primavera in the Uffizi Gallery, she spoke about symbolism, politics, and art as storytelling. It was a rare chance to see how history breathes through paint and color. To stand face-to-face with the artwork that makes Florence “The Jewel of the Renaissance.”

Florence taught me humility and humor. I learned that blending into another culture means embracing the small, awkward moments, too, like the mispronounced words, the wrong train stop, or the sudden awe of a hidden courtyard.

The Presidential Honors Scholars Program often talks about perspective. That is, true understanding isn’t only found in books but in how we live, observe, and connect. In Florence those little discoveries made me realize that learning doesn’t always look like studying, but rather it can look like slowing down, listening, and being present.

Somewhere along the way, Florence changed me. It taught me independence, how to navigate a new city, plan a trip, and challenge uncertainty with confidence. It ultimately taught me the essence of patience: to walk slower, think deeper, and not see culture as something to consume but to understand.

As we spent our last nights in Florence, a few friends and I went on short day trips to Pisa, Siena, and Rome. Each city had its own vibe. Pisa was calm and simple, Siena felt timeless, and Rome was just pure chaos in the best way. Those trips made me realize that independent and collaborative learning often intersect whether you’re lost in a train station, attempting to figure out where to go next, or sitting with your friends in a cafe just watching life go by.

As a Presidential Honors Scholar, I came to see that the program’s goal isn’t just to develop strong students, but also empathetic global citizens. Studying away at NYU Florence during J Term made me realize how connected learning really is, how economics is tied to culture, how curiosity leads to understanding, and how every experience adds a new layer to who we are.

Being abroad reminded me that being a scholar isn’t just about grades or goals, but more about how you move through the world. For me, it means looking at things with open eyes and trying  every day to keep an open heart.

As my time in Florence came to an end, I returned one last evening to the Arno. The sun was setting, turning the Ponte Vecchio into a silhouette of gold and shadow. Notebook in hand, I thought about how this journey had unfolded like a series of postcards, each one a new memory and a new piece of myself.

Learning isn’t a destination but a lifelong journey. The Presidential Honors Scholars Program gave me the tools–curiosity, connection, and courage—to see that path clearly. And though my postcards from Florence end here, the story continues across continents, classrooms, and an endless horizon of curiosity.