College of Design-Rome Program

The College of Design Rome Program offers an optional course of study for qualified students in various disciplines within the college.

The college's flagship international program has given more than 1000 students the opportunity to study in Rome since its inception in 1991. It is the only fully licensed study-abroad program in the Iowa Regents' system.

Full-semester study options are available for graphic design and interior design (fall) and architecture (spring) students. Each summer studio arts students can study in Rome, and in alternate summers programs for landscape architecture (2009) and community and regional planning (2010) students are offered. Qualified students from other colleges at ISU or from other institutions of higher education are also welcome to enroll in the summer session. Iowa State University faculty members and European lecturers teach students in English.

Students attend classes at our studio facilities in the historic center of Rome. In January 2005, the program moved to its new home at Palazzo Cenci-Bolognetti, a sixteenth-century edifice located in the Piazza delle Cinque Scole near the Tiber River. In addition to developing first-hand knowledge of numerous contemporary and historic sites, buildings and works of art, students gain a familiarity with the contemporary design culture of Europe through guided field trips and complete major studio projects in their design area.