Tourism-Hospitality-Events Careers Day
30 March, Surrey - On 24 March 2010, the inaugural Tourism-Hospitality-Events Careers Day took place at the University of Surrey. Organised primarily by students, for students, THE Careers Day was realised through the joint efforts of the Division of Hospitality and Tourism Management, the University of Surrey Careers Service, The Tourism Society, and the Surrey Tourism and Events Society (STES). From the beginning, the goal was to “strengthen the connections and develop different types of cooperation between the University and the industry”, says Sammy Li, STES Director of Industry Relations.
Comprised of careers talks, a careers fair, and a networking reception, we welcomed over 300 undergraduate and postgraduate students from Surrey and at least nine other institutions, four industry guest speakers, and fourteen exhibiting organisations.
THE Careers Talks included tips on creating an excellent CV for the travel industry and how students can differentiate themselves in an increasingly competitive market. Students also heard from industry experts on travel training and volunteer opportunities in the industry.
THE Careers Fair welcomed exhibitors from a wide range of backgrounds. Exhibiting hospitality organisations included Asperion Hotel, Four Seasons Hotel Hampshire, Runnymede-on-Thames Hotel & Spa, Brown’s Hotel, Jumeirah Lowndes, and The Cavendish. Other industry exhibitors included Virgin Atlantic Airways, TUI, Projects Abroad, Ventura Travel Management, BUNAC, The GuildfordEye, GoSkills, Planet Planit, and The Tourism Society. Additionally, Bruce Martin, Operations Director of Online Travel Training / New Frontiers conducted ‘CV Health Checks’, which proved to be extremely popular with students.
THE Networking Reception offered an opportunity for faculty members to engage with industry representative and student organisers.
The event highlighted the importance of students and industry working together. Mark Miller, Executive Director of The Tourism Society, couldn’t agree more: “Students need to connect with the industry. With increased competition from their peers, it is more important than ever to try and distinguish yourself from the crowd.” Industry members were pleased with the students, and were “delighted to support the future talent of our industry”, says Geraldine McDonald, Director Human Resources for Brown’s Hotel.
Not only were the industry members impressed with the student attendees, they also gave high praises for the event organisation. It is a testament to the student organisers’ drive and passion towards improving industry connections that the event was so well executed. Manny Sawhney, Managing Director of Asperion Hotel thought it was a “fantastic event with equally successful results”.
With both student and exhibitor spaces fully booked well in advance of the day, STES anticipates an annually returning and growing event. We look forward to welcoming more students and exhibitors to 2011’e event, and are confident it will be a continued success.
For further enquiries, including information about THE Careers Day 2011, please contact the Surrey Tourism and Events Society at .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) .