Staff Spotlight: Roseanne DiFlorio

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A. Sue Weisler

Roseanne DiFlorio

Traveling abroad is like taking a journey into yourself—and no one knows the experience better than RIT Study Abroad Adviser Roseanne DiFlorio.

“The college study-abroad program is the first international experience for many young people and it can be life changing,” said DiFlorio ’11 (MBA), who has been working full time at RIT Global since March 2008. “It’s a way to push outside of your comfort zone and helps build self-confidence and independent thinking while studying and immersing yourself in other cultures.”

A native of Rochester who attended Greece Athena High School, DiFlorio has always had a sense of travel wanderlust—resulting in global treks to England, Ireland, Italy, Kosovo, Turkey, Germany, Spain and France. Highlights include traveling with family to visit relatives in the Abruzzo region of Pescara, Italy, spending seven weeks studying in London while pursuing her BS degree in commerce from Niagara University, and visiting RIT Kosovo for work-related global initiatives.

DiFlorio said there are many study- abroad opportunities available at RIT—including global campuses (Croatia, Dubai, Kosovo, China), faculty-led programs available in each college, exchange programs and affiliate programs which are available through partner universities and organizations.

“I meet with approximately 25 undergraduate and graduate students per week—both individually and through group sessions,” she said. “We talk about careers and degree goals, the cost of studying abroad, personal development through multicultural exchanges and the benefits of learning a new language and making friends from different backgrounds and cultures.”

A majority of students who meet with DiFlorio decide to take advantage of studying abroad. Popular overseas destinations include Croatia, Japan, Denmark, Australia and New Zealand.

“Italy is huge and many opt to go there to study,” said DiFlorio. “While I was pursuing my MBA at RIT, I took a six-week summer immersion course in Italy which was led by Dr. Elisabetta D’Amanda from the College of Liberal Arts. That’s where I learned to speak fluent Italian.”

In her spare time, DiFlorio practices yoga but also confesses to an unusual hobby—improv comedy. “It’s about team building, teamwork and developing trust among one another on stage. I try to push myself out of my comfort zone, very much like students do in study abroad programs. The experience increases your self confidence in being able to take care of yourself and trusting your own decisions.”

Roseanne DiFlorio

Job title: Study Abroad Adviser

Years at RIT: 9

What I like best about working at RIT: Encouraging students to go beyond their comfort zone and immerse themselves in a global experience.

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