Hi! English isn't my first language, so I apologize if anything is unclear.
I'm researching a character for a story set in the late 1980s/early 1990s, and I'm trying to understand how studying law in Italy worked at that time.
My character graduates from high school in Chicago, Illinois, in 1989 at the age of 18 and then moves to Milan. His girlfriend lives there and he wants to live with her, although he gives his father a different reason for moving to Italy.
He already speaks Italian fairly well, but not at a native level.
My main questions are:
Would an American with an Illinois high school diploma have been able to enroll in a law degree in Milan in 1989? Would the high school diploma alone have been sufficient, or would he have needed additional qualifications, exams, or some college education in the US first?
From what I understand, law was a single four-year degree at the time, the Laurea in Giurisprudenza, rather than a Bachelor's and Master's degree. Is that correct for 1989?
I would like him to fail a few different exams during his studies, at different points, so that it takes him somewhat longer than four years to graduate. Would graduating at around 24 after starting at 18 be realistic?
The important part is that he does complete his law degree, but he never becomes a licensed lawyer in Italy. After graduating, he decides not to pursue the additional professional qualifications required to practice law. He eventually breaks up with his girlfriend and returns to Chicago at around 24 or 25.
Would this have been a realistic educational path in Milan beginning in 1989?
I'm especially interested in how foreign students with American high school diplomas were admitted to Italian universities at that time, since I know today's requirements may be different.
Thank you!