University Halls or Private renting in Milan?
Hi all, I'm flying out to the Università di Milano in September and I'm really struggling to decide between university accommodation or finding a shared flat. I tink I'm more comfortable with the idea of university accommodation, but I've spoken to my Italian teach (originally from Turin) who said that the majority of Italian students tend not to stay with the university. I'd just like some advice from anyone who has lived/studied in Milan or Italy in general as it's coming to the time I have to start looking and making decisions. If you do think private/shared rental is best, how did you go about finding your accommodation? Thanks, Megan :)
This question was asked by Megan Cadwaladr from The University of Leicester , asked on 15th March 2015 and has been read 3037 times.
Answers (2)
Hello!
I did an internship in Milan this time last year. I went with my wife and young child so we decided to rent privately and we needed to sort something out before we arrived.
We decided to use AirBNB which is usually used for holidays or short city breaks. However there are hosts that look for long-term guests.
We found a place in Milan (zone 3) which is a bit of a walk from the main university building but well-connected by metro, tram or the bike-sharing scheme. However my internship was a 10 minute walk away.
Milan is very expensive and we probably paid a bit more than average (due to there being 3 of us and the apartment was very high-quality with all bills included) but it suited us fine! Here is the link. The landlady is lovely and speaks English fluently for those times where you really don't understand how the dishwasher works...
Whilst looking for the link for you I found that there is an apartment in the same block which is way cheaper than the one we stayed in. You can see it here.
If you have any further questions, just let me know!
I hope this answer isn't coming a little too late for you! I studied in Italy last year, and I was so worried because my university didn't offer residences or seem to offer them. However, I found a facebook page for student rents, where there were hundreds of apartments being advertised. Luckily, one lady got in touch with me so I rented privately. If you really want to get into Italian life, sharing a flat is also the best way to go about it.
To be honest, it couldn't have been any better for me. Although I was terrified to begin with, and it took some settling in (but that will happen anywhere) I ended up living with 3 other Italian girls, who I have been back to visit since. They became like my little family.
When searching for accommodation you've got two choices. You can either find somewhere before you arrive (you risk not seeing the actual room in person) or you can arrive in Milan, stay in a hostel for a week and see if you can find somewhere. I know people who have done this, and they found accommodation really easily too. (:
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