Practical Education for an Active Hospitality Industry
Humans have an innate desire to explore which in the earliest days led them to explore different countries and continents far away from their native land. Now it’s transformed into a habit of travelling around whether for business or leisure. The very same desire of exploration gave birth to one of the most dynamic industry: The Hospitality Industry. The hotel and catering industry has been one of the fastest growing industries in the world in the past 50 years. For the Indian hospitality industry it has been estimated that the employment opportunities will increase to 15 million by 2010. “It is estimated that between now and the year 2013, the hotel industry will generate 250 million jobs which will consist of approximately 10% of total world employment." The World Travel and Tourism Council One of the fastest growing industries in the world will continue to expand in the same breath for years to come. Though that opens up a huge lot of career opportunities, the industry in itself is demanding of talent, time and soft skills. Work experience receives outmost importance in this profession. So along with a degree in hospitality management students must look for institutes that provide them the option to work as well. Also institutes that put more importance on practical training of soft skills should be given preference while taking up the course. One institute that comes to the mind which provides all the necessary choices in this profession is the Sikkim Manipal University-Distance Education (SMU-DE). The curriculum at SMU-DE has been designed by professionals and in-house faculty who have more than a decade of experience in the hospitality industry. Most importantly the basic structure of the course relies on imparting the exact skills as required by the industry. Keeping current market trends in mind regular interactions and seminars are conducted with mentors from the industry and other leading hospitality firms. SMU-DE offers a variety of hospitality courses at different levels of specialization. Starting with Diploma in Hospitality & Catering Management to Advanced Diploma in Hospitality & Catering Management, BSc in Hospitality & Catering and PGD in Travel & Tourism Management. Pursuing a course in SMU-DE provides you with the luxury to study at your own pace and time. This is made possible by EduNxt, the virtual learning platform that supports video chatting with lecturers and industry mentors, counseling, online library and much more. This in turn provides you with ample time to work as well as study thereby increasing your educational qualification while adding on crucial work experience at the same time. India’s foreign exchange earnings from travel and tourism industry in 2005 were US $ 5731 million. According to a survey conducted across 134 countries by the world’s travelers, India is rated as the fifth most preferred destination. These statistics indicate the importance and the demand for trained and skilled individuals in the hospitality industry is all set to grow by many folds in the coming years. The industry increasingly prefers employees on whom they don’t have to spend much time for training or induction. Instead it is always profitable when the individual can be on the job from first day itself. We at Sikkim Manipal University believe in creating individuals who are ready to take on such a future and face any challenge thrown in the way. For more information visit www.smude.edu.in/BScHCM or call on 1800 266 7979 (Toll free).
