Sponsored by the School of Hotel and Tourism Management at The Hong Kong Polytechnic University

Hospitality is the largest employment sector in the world, according to a report from last year by Ernst & Young, but it doesn’t take in-depth analysis to look around and see it’s a booming and highly profitable sector. With stable growth predicted for the next few decades and many highly lucrative specializations, ranging from food and beverages to sustainable hotels and adventure tourism, this is a highly attractive area to build a career in.

If you’re hoping to break into the hospitality industry - whether it’s because you’re passionate about high-end hotels or possess unparalleled people skills - you probably already know that there are two sides to the industry: front-line operations, which include things like food and guest service, and business management. There are many opportunities on the corporate side too, in areas like market analysis, press relations, human resources or digital marketing.

To help you figure out your next career steps, we spoke to the experts running The Hong Kong Polytechnic University’s renowned School of Hotel and Tourism Management to give you the very best advice on how to get ahead in the industry. 

1. Find your niche specialization and master it 

The hospitality and tourism industry is very broad, with many different subsets and niche  specializations with their own very unique skillsets. Narrowing these down to a niche interest could save you a great deal of time. If, for example, your ambition is to manage a five-star hotel chain or a luxury resort, why not email one to enquire about any internships or apprenticeships they offer?

Of course, doing a bachelor’s degree in a specialist field, such as hotel management, would give you a head-start. Other specializations may include things like tourism management, convention and event management, global hospitality or even wine management. Discover other amazing specializations here. 

2. A simple change of scenery could transform your life

When it comes to hospitality, being a small fish in a big pond can definitely be an asset, so don’t hesitate to jump at any opportunity to move abroad or to a bigger city where you might be likely to have more impact.

Moving abroad could also be a way to tap into an emerging market. China will have surpassed the US hospitality industry in absolute industry growth as early as 2019, according to the Deloitte’s Hospitality 2015 report. To tap into this business opportunity, why not research the needs of Asian consumers at a university in the region, like The Hong Kong Polytechnic University’s acclaimed School of Hotel and Tourism Management? Having an international edge would certainly give you an enormous advantage over other job applicants, especially in a global industry like hospitality.

3. Teach yourself social media skills 

From mobile check-ins to digital concierges, mobile technologies have already revolutionized the hospitality and tourism industry. Industry leaders are incorporating social media and apps into their marketing toolkit, with most businesses trying to find new ways to deliver value to customers. So, it might be a good idea to teach yourself new online skills like social media content curation, data analytics or even how to manage customer feedback online, as most roles in the industry are as likely to require expertise in these areas as they are to call for traditional service skills.

Experiment with different social media tools like Hootsuite, TweetDeck or Buffer and get comfortable with analyzing how audiences are interacting with content posted on social media. Also, familiarize yourself with other aspects of the digital world, such as media auditing and blogging. You don’t need to have thousands of followers to get a job in hospitality, but hospitality is very much affected by social trends which affect consumer behavior. Stay ahead of the curve, and understand how to leverage different platforms to reach out to consumers.

4. Your college bartending experience won’t get you a job

Don’t assume that a part-time job you had in high school or university is sufficient work experience to break into the hospitality sector. Look into getting hotel or tourism managerial experience and demand to be shown all the different areas of the business. Enthusiasm is often the one key attributes in the sector. If you can demonstrate enough interest in doing a particular role, you're likely to be given the freedom to develop yourself in that area.

5. Consider enrolling in further study

There are many routes into hospitality management and education is one of them. Many graduates choose further study as a way to get their foot in the door and specialize in a particular area of hospitality. If that sounds like something you might be interested in, you can search for the best bachelor’s, MScs, D.HTM and PhDs in hospitality here.  

The Hong Kong Polytechnic University’s online program, their MicroMasters in International Hospitality Management, is often seen as a fast track to their on-campus MSc in International Hospitality Management.

Sponsored by IULM

Originally from Turkey, I’ve always been drawn to Europe, especially Italy. Having picked up a bit of Spanish and English in high school, I moved to Milan four years ago, my International Baccalaureate in hand. I set myself the totally insane goal of learning to speak, understand and write Italian like a native Milanese in less than a year, and, believe it or not, I succeeded! I learned to read, write and carry out a conversation in Italian almost like a native speaker.  

A year later, I was enrolled at the Milanese university IULM to study a bachelor’s degree in Communications, Advertising and Media, all in Italian. And while my life in Milan so far couldn’t have been more exciting and rewarding, knowing a few things earlier definitely would have made my life a lot easier.

Learning Italian is a lot easier once you’re here

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Now, you might not need to learn Italian to study in Italy because some universities, including IULM, offer master’s programs instructed in English. However, knowing the language makes your experience a lot more enjoyable, and it’s an easy language to learn.  

Thanks to a fairly intense year of language training, my classmates and I learned Italian fairly rapidly. My course at Scuola Leonardo da Vinci started in October 2014, and by June 2015, most of us mastered C1 Italian. Of course, what made it a lot easier for us is the immersion aspect. You’re constantly hearing and speaking Italian in shops, on the bus, in the street and when with friends, which trains your ear without almost any effort from your part.

Brace. Yourself. For. The. Paperwork

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Like most expats living in Italy, the bureaucracy is my least favourite thing about living in Milan, but it’s nothing that can’t be defeated if you come prepared and ask for help. When you apply for a stay permit, fiscal code and health insurance, you have to make sure you bring all of the documents with you. In my experience, clerks tend to be very helpful, and I’ve had people from one department help me with administrative procedures in a completely different one.  

Don’t worry too much about applying for health insurance and a stay permit on your own though because your university’s International Students Guidance Office should be able to help you tackle bureaucratic issues. 

Carry an Italian language pocketbook on your person until you are fluent

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While most people in big cities such as Milan will speak English, you  may find yourself in difficulty if you can’t speak the language and want to travel in the countryside (which you definitely should do by the way, it’s absolutely gorgeous). I once found myself stranded on the outskirts of Milan and no one could help me because they didn’t speak a word of English. Obviously this is a fairly extraordinary circumstance, so you’re unlikely to have exactly the same issue, but it’s worth remembering before going on any day trips.

Milan’s a buzzing cosmopolis with new stuff to do everyday

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I love fashion, so much so that my claim to fame is that I once had lunch with a former designer for Prada. So, obviously I already suspected before moving here that Milan was going to be a fashionable place. What I didn’t expect was the broad range of things to do in the city every day, from art and culture to nights out, as well as the sheer number of work opportunities you can access through IULM.

Getting around Milan and the country will be easier than you think

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One of my friends is interested in art, and she often visits different museums in Milan and other parts of the country on the weekend. Transportation in Italy is very convenient and affordable, so if you’re desperate to see a bit more of Italy than your university campus, I would definitely recommend that you get on a train and explore because your course will be over before you know it.

You won’t be left to fend for yourself in Milan 

Obviously, this will largely depend on the university itself. At IULM, I’ve found that I always had a safety net I could rely on, thanks in part to their international office open Monday to Friday, their big notice board with messages for international students, their internships and placement department, their bookshop, printing center, and their multimedia and audiovisuals room. In addition, all teachers have office hours so you can visit them outside of class if you have any personal issues you’d like to discuss with them privately.

Melis spoke to a member of the TopUniversities team for this sponsored article.

James Cook University has received the highest satisfaction rating from employers, in a new survey of Australian universities.

The study, which was conducted as part of the Department of Education and Training’s 2017 Employer Satisfaction Survey, found employers valued graduates from smaller institutions higher than those from the “Group of Eight”, Australia’s biggest and oldest universities.

More than 4,300 workplace supervisors of recent graduates were surveyed for the study, with 90.6 percent saying they were satisfied overall with graduates from James Cook University. This was followed in second place by the University of Notre Dame Australia, which scored 89.1 percent, and the University of the Sunshine Coast (88.8 percent).

At the other end of the scale, only 82.4 percent of employers gave a favorable rating to graduates from the University of Sydney, while the lowest-ranked institution was the University of Southern Queensland. Only 77.4 percent of employers were satisfied with graduates from this institution.

The results provide an interesting contrast with the QS Graduate Employability Rankings 2018, published late last year. These rankings, which measure the employability of graduates rather than how satisfied employers are with the graduates they hire, placed the University of Sydney as the fourth-best institution in the world.

When looking at the employer reputation metric alone (the ranking is compiled using five different metrics, more information can be found here), there are four Australian universities in the global top 50: the University of Melbourne, the University of New South Wales, the University of Sydney and Monash University.

So, despite a dip in satisfaction among employers compared to smaller institutions such as James Cook University, the likes of Melbourne and Sydney can still pride themselves on coming out on top when it comes to overall reputation.

Thinking of applying to study in Australia and wondering what this means for you? Well, truth be told not a lot. One thing to take away from it though is that even smaller universities which maybe receive less international recognition are capable of giving you a top education and preparing you well for the world of work.

Want more information on studying in Australia? Click here.

Getting a university degree is never meant to be easy. Three or more years aren’t spent working all night in the library or slogging through a dissertation because it’s fun – you do it because the prize waiting at the end is worth the hassle.

But what if it was possible to get a degree without working so hard? A recent Freedom of Information request has found that 11 UK universities awarded a degree to every single student last year.

With not a single person failing their course, the UK’s former education minister Lord Adonis has criticized institutions for going soft on their students. He’s quoted in The Times as saying: “It is not credible that none, or virtually none, will fail to make the grade. This yet again raises the issue of standards and universities’ obsession with milking revenue out of students without requiring enough in return.”

While some grumble, the news that so many students can leave university with a degree (even if it’s only a third-class honors) is fantastic for anyone more interested in gaining a qualification than actually working hard on their studies. Here are the 11 UK universities where every student was awarded a degree this year, and some suggestions about what you could study there.

University of Oxford

QS World University Rankings® 2018 Rank: 6^th

One of the best universities in the world, the University of Oxford surprisingly didn’t fail a single student in 2017. Is it just because they’re all naturally geniuses anyway? Maybe. At rival institution the University of Cambridge, student performances were similarly impressive, with less than one percent failing.

What to study: The University of Oxford is ranked number one in the world for four subjects in the QS World University Rankings by Subject 2017: anatomy & physiology, archaeology, English language and literature, and geography.

University of Edinburgh

QS World University Rankings® 2018 Rank: =23^rd

The best university in Scotland also boasts a perfect pass rate, something which will be particularly good news for any of the Scottish students at the University of Edinburgh who also don’t have to pay tuition fees.

What to study: The University of Edinburgh is considered to be among the world’s best institutions for three different subjects: linguistics, veterinary science, and English language and literature.

Durham University

QS World University Rankings® 2018 Rank: =78^th

Durham University likes to consider itself a third alternative to Oxford and Cambridge, so it’s perhaps no surprise that, like Oxford, all of its students received a degree last year.

What to study: Durham University is ranked in the world’s top five for two different subjects: theology, divinity & religious studies, and archaeology. It’s also in the world’s top 10 for geography.

University of Bath

QS World University Rankings® 2018 Rank: 160^th

The University of Bath is the first institution on this list to fall outside of the world’s top 100, and subsequently it’s from here onwards that critics may suggest the explanation for the perfect pass rate can’t be purely put down to all the students being exceptionally bright.

What to study: It’s unsurprising that the University of Bath is ranked 22^nd in the world for sports-related subjects, given the university’s reputation as an incubator for top UK sporting talent.

University of Liverpool

QS World University Rankings® 2018 Rank: =173^rd

The University of Liverpool is another Russell Group institution to make this list, and is also the largest provider of 100 percent online postgraduate degrees in Europe.

What to study: The University of Liverpool is ranked fifth in the world for veterinary science, with its next best performance coming for mineral & mining engineering (ranked joint 47^th).

University of Surrey

QS World University Rankings® 2018 Rank: =264^th

Dropping out of the top 200, the University of Surrey is our next institution with a perfect pass rate for its students. Although this rank is perhaps less remarkable than other universities, Surrey is well-regarded for particular degree programs (see below).

What to study: You won’t find many places in the world which can offer a better hospitality & leisure management degree program. The University of Surrey’s is ranked fifth in the world.

University of East London

QS World University Rankings® 2018 Rank: 801-1000

Squeezing into the top 1000, the University of East London isn’t likely to be the first institution based in the capital city to come to mind when it’s time to apply to universities. The fact every student last year left with a degree might help change your mind though.

What to study: The university doesn’t feature in the QS World University Rankings by Subject 2017. However, it’s particularly notable for its Royal Docks School of Business and Law.

Also on the list…

Four more universities passed all of their students last year, none of which are ranked in the most recent world university rankings. These institutions are: Abertay University, University of Sunderland, Arts University College at Bournemouth and University of Worcester.

Lead image: Ninara (Flickr)