For Alessandro, New York existed in his imagination long before it became somewhere he could actually live. 

It was the city he knew through films, fashion, media and culture. Familiar from a distance, but still seemingly out of reach. 

Then, during International Days at Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, Alessandro discovered the exchange opportunities available in the United States and New York was among them. 

For a Linguistic Sciences student interested in media and the professional world behind them, the city brought many of his interests together. 

So he prepared, took the IELTS (International English Language Testing System) test and applied.

When the imagined city becomes real 

Arriving in New York was not immediately cinematic. First came the immigration queue. Then came the moment when Alessandro stepped into a city filled with places he felt he already knew from films, videos and photographs. Except now they were no longer on a screen. They were part of his everyday life. 

That feeling stayed with him throughout the exchange. On his final evening, standing in Times Square, Alessandro found it almost surreal to think that somewhere he had seen countless times had become somewhere he had actually lived. 

But the New York he brought back with him was about much more than its famous landmarks. 

A different university experience 

Studying at Fordham University in the United States introduced Alessandro to a different academic environment. 

His classes were often small, with around twenty or thirty students, and he found the relationship with professors more direct. Lecturers wanted to get to know their students, creating opportunities for conversation beyond simply preparing for an exam. 

For Alessandro, that personal contact became one of the most meaningful parts of studying abroad. 

University also brought him closer to the professional world. 

Through talks and panels, he met people working in marketing and related fields. Hearing directly from professionals helped him connect what he was studying with possible directions for his own future. 

New York was no longer simply a city associated with communication, media and business. He was beginning to see how people actually built careers within those worlds.

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Learning to work things out 

Living on the other side of the Atlantic also came with practical lessons. 

There were moments when Alessandro would have liked help from home. But distance changed the way he responded to everyday problems. 

He could ask for advice, but ultimately he was the person who had to find a solution. 

Managing situations for himself helped him realise that many things seem difficult simply because you have never had to deal with them before. 

That independence also affected his confidence with people. 

Being in a completely new environment encouraged Alessandro to introduce himself, ask questions and become more comfortable in situations where he did not already know everyone around him. 

The more he did it, the more natural it became.

Three friends, three countries 

Alessandro was not the only one in his group of friends studying abroad. 

At the same time, Federico and Tommaso were having their own international experiences in France and Spain. 

Suddenly, three friends who were used to seeing one another in Italy were living in three different countries. 

Staying connected required more effort. Different schedules and time zones made spontaneous calls harder, but they found another way to share what was happening. 

Together, they created an Instagram page where they documented moments from their lives abroad and kept friends in Italy involved. 

What began as a way to stay connected became a project they could build together from different parts of the world. 

Later, it also helped connect some of the people they had met during their separate experiences abroad. 

Their friendship did not stop while they were away. It simply had to work differently. 

From imagining New York to living it 

Alessandro had wanted to see New York for years. 

What he found there was inevitably more complicated and more interesting than the version he had imagined from afar. 

There were the places he recognised immediately, but also classrooms where professors knew their students. There were professional conversations that opened possible directions for the future and everyday situations he had to learn to manage himself. 

And while going abroad created physical distance from his friends, it also gave them something new to share. 

Alessandro returned with greater independence and confidence, particularly in social situations. He had become more willing to meet people, ask questions and put himself forward. 

New York began as somewhere he wanted to reach. 

By the end of the exchange, what mattered just as much was everything he had learned once he got there.