Life at Bocconi University

Already one month into my semester at Bocconi University, I have to admit, the academic experience is much different than the one that I anticipated.  It was apparent to me on the first day of school that I would not find the transition to be an easy one. Though American college is considered to be a student’s first time experiencing complete freedom from their previous life, I would say that Bocconi grants even more freedom than University of Maryland. For the most part, the final grade of Bocconi classes is comprised of one final exam taken at the end of the semester.  In every class, students are given the option to take a course as an attending or a non-attending student.  For a few of my classes, attending students participate in a group project that is only worth about 30% of the grade and then still take the final exam for the rest of their grade. After weighing the costs and benefits for each class, I have chosen to take one course as a nonattending student which means that in late May, I will take an exam without ever having attended a single class. Instead, I am charged with reading a 600-page textbook in which all of the material is fair game for the exam. Attending students will take a similar exam, but they read just 4 fewer chapters of the textbook.  I have never had a class in which I was entirely responsible for learning all of the material by a set date.  Bocconi does not even provide a recommended timetable for students to pace themselves through the huge required textbook.  Though I feel very much on my own for this course, I am trying to rise to this challenge to find success.