The year in review: Highlights from 2018

ITC staff and students have had plenty to smile about in 2018.

Can you believe that 2018 is nearly over?!

It’s been a massive, wonderful year for ITC, with many student successes to celebrate. Here are some of our top stories from 2018.

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Work experience leads to tourism jobs for many ITC students

ITC arranges work experience opportunities for students at tourism businesses such as SkyJump (pictured).

When an ITC student goes on work experience, they could be meeting their future employer for the first time.

Many students who participate in work experience end up working for that employer later down the track – sometimes as soon as one week later.

For example, Brookglenn Olsen recently started a job at InterCity after doing work experience there in late November. She got a call one week after her work experience offering her a job. She’s now working part-time in the afternoons and will go full-time in January once she’s finished her qualification.

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Meet Nicky: She could help you find a tourism job

ITC’s new Employment Consultant, Nicola McCutcheon.

Nicola (Nicky) McCutcheon is the newest Employment Consultant at ITC. Her role is to help students find employment in the airline, travel and tourism industry.

She shares this role with Sarndra Stephens, a long-serving ITC employee. Together, they help students with their job search through initiatives such as:

• On-campus CV workshops
• Interview preparation
• Work experience and volunteer opportunities
• General support, encouragement, and advice

Past and present students can use the Employment Consultants in their job search. Whether you’re currently studying or you’ve already graduated, you can reach out to Nicky or Sarndra for support. (more…)

Tourism Summit Aotearoa 2018: Key talking points

Te Papa, Wellington: the venue for the Tourism Summit Aotearoa 2018.

Earlier this month (Nov 8), the Tourism Summit Aotearoa 2018 was held in Wellington.

Hundreds of tourism delegates met at Te Papa to discuss the future of tourism and exchange ideas, opportunities, and challenges.

Here are some of the key announcements and talking points from the day.

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Three inspiring speeches to watch at all stages of your tourism career

Listening to inspiring speeches is a great motivator.

Tourism is a fun, rewarding industry, but like any sector, it takes hard work, commitment, and a positive attitude to climb the career ladder.

Whether you’re a high school student, a recent graduate, or 20 years into your career, watching inspiring speeches is a great way to stay motivated (and an opportunity to learn from some of the world’s wisest people).

Here are three of our favourite inspiring speeches to watch (and rewatch) at all stages of your tourism career.

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Five tips for fast-tracking your tourism career

A great way to fast-track your tourism career is to treat every job like it’s your dream job.

If you’ve been reading the news lately, you’ll know it’s never been a better time to enter the tourism industry.

There are more job vacancies than applicants, tourism businesses are expanding, and international visitor numbers continue to rise.

Tourism is thriving, and that creates the perfect conditions for you to fast-track your tourism career and take advantage of opportunities that come your way.

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Words to live by: “Effort always leads to something good”

Putting in effort often leads to opportunities you didn’t even know existed.

Studying is hard work sometimes (although it’s also a lot of fun). Sometimes it requires effort, commitment, and sacrifice. But you know what is great about putting in effort? It almost always leads to a reward of some kind.

We were reminded of this recently thanks to wisdom in the For The Interested newsletter. The writer, Josh Spector, included this sage piece of advice:

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Why ITC students strive to never miss class

At ITC, students are encouraged to treat studying like their first job – and that means no skipping class.

Skipping class is a normal part of being a student… or is it? Not at the International Travel College (ITC). At ITC, students strive to never miss class because they have their eye on a bigger prize: a 100% attendance record.

Achieving 100% attendance is one of the highest honours an ITC student can graduate with, as it immediately makes a good impression with tourism employers. If a student achieves 100% attendance, it shows employers they are dedicated, committed, reliable, and professional — all attractive traits when it comes to working in the industry.

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Five ways ITC teaches cultural awareness

A performance during Global Wednesday, a student event that teaches about cultural awareness.

To thrive in the tourism industry, it’s essential to cultivate a deep and genuine appreciation of different cultures. Cultural awareness is one of the best skills a tourism professional can possess — which is why ITC teaches it in several ways.

One ITC graduate — Madison Ryan — is now working in customer service for Explore. When asked to name a skill she learned at ITC that she uses every day in her career, she said cultural awareness. So did Gerrit Faalogo (who is in Aviation Security Service), Mikaela Rivers (who is working for a hotel), and Jasmine Tua (who is working for Menzies Aviation), as well as many more ITC graduates.

Jasmine Tua says studying at ITC helped her “gain confidence when speaking to new people travelling from the other side of the world”.

So how does ITC foster a sense of cultural awareness in its students? Here are five innovative ways ITC teaches cultural awareness to tourism students.

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ITC Graduation is in 10 days – have you got tickets?

ITC Graduation is an unmissable opportunity to celebrate your achievements with friends and family.

There are only 10 days until the “highlight of the year” – ITC Graduation. Have you got your tickets?

The Graduation Ceremony is on Thursday 2 August at the Waipuna Hotel & Conference Centre. There are still tickets available – just ask at reception or email college@itc.co.nz for more information.

Graduation 2018 will be an amazing evening. It’s an opportunity to celebrate your achievements alongside your friends, family, ITC tutors, and tourism industry professionals.

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