All 2026 summer participants will receive a guaranteed $3000 IAP scholarship towards the program fee.
Italy, Florence
This program is part of UW-Madison Study Abroad's Summer Launch!
Join your fellow incoming first-year Badgers on this exciting summer program to Florence, Italy! Led by UW Professor Ernesto Livorni, UW Summer Launch in Italy: Da Vinci, Man & Myth is a unique, engaging experience designed especially for incoming UW-Madison first-year students.
Through classroom learning, guided site visits around Florence, and an overnight excursion to Milan, you’ll look at Leonardo da Vinci's life, legacy, and how his artistic talents and scientific curiosity connected, showing his influence on modern times and the interpretation of his work by later thinkers and artists.
Students accepted to this program will participate as a cohort in a two-day pre-departure session then travel together to Italy and back to Madison. You'll start fall semester having built strong relationships with your internationally-minded peers and faculty mentor, and having completed 3 UW credits. There are no language prerequisites for this program.
This program is offered by UW-Madison in cooperation with the Council on International Educational Exchange (CIEE).
This program takes place in a hot and crowded environment. Getting to class and daily field trips will involve navigating urban streets and a lot of walking. If you need any physical accommodations to navigate these terrains, we encourage you to meet with the Study Abroad Advisor for this program at the time of application to discuss any needs. The Study Abroad Advisor contact information is located in the Contacts tab below.
To explore all UW Study Abroad Launch program options:
- UW Global Launch: Year-long study abroad your freshman year
- UW Study Abroad Summer Launch: 3-week study abroad the summer before your freshman year
Note: You may only apply to and participate in one UW Study Abroad Launch program.
Learning Objectives
We have overall Goals and Expectations for Study Abroad Participants, covering the personal, academic and professional aspects of study abroad. Additionally on this program, you can:
- Reflect on major themes and issues of the Renaissance at Leonardo’s time in the arts, the sciences and the history of the period
- Identify art works by Leonardo, his contemporary artists and subsequent artists who referred to Leonardo’s works
Diversity & Inclusion
We are committed to providing quality study abroad and domestic study away programs for every UW-Madison student. We work strategically to identify, address, and remove barriers that may prevent participation and to provide a welcoming and inclusive environment for students. Our staff actively engages with students, faculty, and staff from diverse backgrounds and prioritizes the continuous development of our knowledge and cultural competence. We also recognize the importance of increasing access to study abroad for historically underrepresented student populations. We are committed to diversity and inclusion so that every student can engage with and understand their identity through a new lens and continue to develop and make progress on their personal, professional, and academic goals.
Sustainability
We recognize that the future of study abroad, domestic study away, and international internship programming requires a Commitment to Sustainability. We are devoted to examining, developing, and improving sustainability in all our endeavors, aligning with campus priorities and following through with UW-Madison's climate action and Resilience Commitment. Join our efforts and learn more about how to study abroad sustainably.
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Eligibility
- International students are not eligible to apply to this program.
- This program is for incoming First-Year students only. The program would take place prior to your first semester of study on campus.
- Incoming Freshman
- Open to UW-Madison degree-seeking students only
- Good academic and disciplinary standing
- At the time of application and the semester prior to participation, UW-Madison students must be currently enrolled. Transfer Students to UW-Madison need to be currently enrolled at their home institution
Advising Location
Program Structure
UW Signature
Subjects
Italian StudiesClassroom Language
English
Housing
Hotels
Program Duration
Summer: late July - early August
Anticipated 2026 Dates: July 22 - August 7
SOAR attendance: student's choice; schedule any time before the program start
Program Orientation on campus: July 20-21
Departure: July 21
Italy: July 22 - August 7
Return to campus: August 7
Application Deadline(s)
| Summer 2026 | 4/15/2026 | Cost Details |
Future durations will be posted at a later date.
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“My program helped me enhance my confidence and increased my preparedness before I start my journey at UW-Madison. Because of this program I took part in, I now am less worried about starting university.”
– Summer 2025 participant
Leonardo da Vinci: The Symbiosis of Art and Science (3 credits)
Leonardo is the last great figure who was both an artist and a scientist: the embodiment of the Renaissance Man. What do we mean by that definition? How did Leonardo manage to reconcile his artistic talent with his scientific curiosity? Considering this achievement, the course will discuss the artistic and scientific endeavors of Leonardo and the impact he had on the shaping of modernity all the way to twentieth-century avant-gardes and Pop Art.
This course aims to explore the relationship between arts and science in light of the last great thinker who elaborated art from his scientific experiments and discoveries and who cultivated science within his artistic creations. Both Leonardo's endeavors in painting and in the study of anatomy and physics will be studied vis-à-vis the impact they had in the centuries to come: the interpretations of many thinkers and artists will be discussed regarding specific aspects of Leonardo's work.
Professor Ernesto Livorni will be the primary instructor for the course.
A note on daily life: For the duration of the program, expect to spend three hours in class most days followed or proceeded by local visits or excursions to support classroom learning. You will also have limited free time integrated to catch up on homework/daily readings and explore the city.
Upon successful completion of the program, you will earn 3 credits and be able to choose from the approved equivalents linked below.
Course Equivalents
Use the links below to see a list of courses that past students have taken on this program and the UW equivalents. Note: This list only includes pre-approved courses for your program and may not be an exhaustive list of courses, departments or equivalents. Courses may not be available the semester you are abroad. You will receive instructions on the course equivalent process after acceptance. View Course Equivalents
Program Leader
Ernesto Livorni
Professor of Italian Language and Literature, Comparative Literature and Religious Studies , French & Italian
Dr. Ernesto Livorni, Professor of Italian Language and Literature and Religious Studies, has taught undergraduate (FIG and Honors) and graduate courses at UW-Madison since 2000, after 12 years of teaching at Yale University. His courses currently focus on modern and contemporary Italian literature, Medieval Studies, and Religious Studies. This course on Leonardo intersects with his research interests that frequently take him to Italy. Livorni has previously led the UW in Florence program and a summer study abroad program in Perugia, Italy.