Italy was a lot more expensive than a normal semester, especially since I wanted to travel and experience a lot of things.

For food, at least it is normally possible to take advantage of a communal kitchen and fresh produce is generally a lot cheaper in Italy than in the US. This can help put down your general food costs.

Hostels are pretty cheap, you can stay for a night for $15-$30 in most cities. Trains can be quite expensive depending where you are going. Make sure to check different rates because they can vary quite a bit.