A month in Rome, in numbers
| Item | Monthly | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Room in a shared flat | EUR 400-600 | Cheaper outside the ring |
| Hall or student housing | EUR 280-450 | DiSCo places are limited |
| Food | EUR 200-260 | |
| Transport | EUR 10-20 | Annual student pass, spread monthly |
| Phone and internet | EUR 15-25 | |
| Personal and other | EUR 80-150 | |
| Total | EUR 700-1,050 |
Where students actually live
San Lorenzo is the classic student district, right beside Sapienza. Pigneto and Marconi/Ostiense are popular; Tor Vergata has its own campus and cheaper rents; Tiburtina and Rebibbia are the budget end. Living near metro line A or B matters more than the postcode — Rome is large and bus journeys are unpredictable.
The universities
- Sapienza Università di Roma — one of the largest universities in Europe, with a wide English-taught catalogue
- Università di Roma Tor Vergata — engineering, economics, medicine
- Roma Tre — humanities, law, engineering
- LUISS — private, business and politics, much higher fees
Work and internships
Rome is a tourism economy, so there is seasonal restaurant and hotel work — but competition is heavy and Italian is effectively required. The real advantage here is different: several UN agencies are headquartered in Rome (FAO, WFP, IFAD among them), and they run internships in English. For a master's student that is a realistic target in a way that a waiting job is not.
What is hard about Rome
- 1Finding a room. The September market is brutal and full of fake listings.
- 2Bureaucracy. Residence permit appointments take time and patience.
- 3Distance. The city is huge; a cheap rent often means 90 minutes of commuting a day.
Before you fly
- 1Check DiSCo Lazio's scholarship and housing deadlines before your offer even arrives.
- 2Budget EUR 1,500 or so for rent, deposit and first-month costs.
- 3Get a codice fiscale, then register your rental contract — residency stalls without it.
Official sources — check for yourself
- Sapienza Università di Roma
- DiSCo Lazio — regional scholarships and housing
- Study in Italy — Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Rules and figures change. We review these articles periodically and show the date above, but always confirm the current requirement with the official source before you act on it.
Common questions
Is Rome cheaper than Milan?+
Yes, usually EUR 100-200 a month less, and almost all of it is rent. But Rome is a much larger city, so a cheap area can cost you 90 minutes of commuting a day.
When should I start looking for a room in Rome?+
July or August. In September every arriving student searches at once and short-let tourist pricing pushes rents up; it is also when fake listings peak.
Are there internships in Rome for international students?+
At master's level, yes — several UN agencies including FAO and WFP are headquartered in Rome and run English-language internships. Ordinary part-time work still requires Italian.
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