moving to another country?

Here are just a few random thoughts as they come to me:

Do you already have a job offer to be an au pair in Italy, or is it just something you thought of as a possible job?

Do you speak the language at all?

Do you have enough money for airfare, and some extra in case you need it over there?

Could you stay at the community college, study for a year, then apply to a university, and enroll in their study abroad program?

Why do you want to go to Italy before the UK(why not just straight to the UK if that's where you want to end up)?

If you have a parent or grandparent who was originally from the UK, I believe you can obtain citizenship via that link(but don't quote me on that).

What will you do in the UK, live, travel, study, work?

 

Community colleges usually have study abroad programs, and if not, you can usually go through another college. In order to get a visa you must first be accepted into the program, and after that you have to go to the Italian consulate nearest to you to apply. For au pairs there are agencies online that can connect you to families, and they will guide you through the visa process.

As far as moving to the U.K, that is going to be tough. In order to be able to live there you need a job offer first, and then the company will sponsor your visa. However, it's unlikely to happen unless you have a master's degree in a field that is in demand in the U.K. European Union doesn't give out work visas unless the company can prove that there is no one in the U.K capable of doing the job that they are offering you. Unfortunately it is very difficult.

However you can study in the U.K by applying directly to a university there, and if accepted you can get a student visa that you can renew until your studies are finished. Sometimes graduates are given the chance to look for jobs while they are there, but that usually only happens if you're a grad student.

I'd also like to add that you won't be able to transfer your community college credits over to a European university. You would have to begin again as a freshmen.

I've done a lot of research on this.

Probably not what you wanted to hear but, I hope it clears some things ups.

 

That would be a good first step, try to get it on paper, signed by them. Explain them your situation and what you need the paper for. I'm not sure about it, but I guess it would be like a job contract, or at least it should be much better than having nothing... I'm not sure about it, just my 2 cents here... You need to speak to the italian consulate first to know for sure.

Try to find a school online first and call them directly, again explaining your situation. It would help if you email them the scanned document I mentioned from the family.

Hope this works/helps you a bit...
About moving to the UK, I'm not quite sure... I guess your best option is to spend a while in Italy, learn the language, and just try and see if living in Europe is really for you. Keep in mind that you'll be an inmigrant, even if you are from the US. It can be quite an experience, but it's sure worth a try!

Good luck!