Meet graduate Aishwarya Rangarajan: A sparkling career in travel and tourism
ITC graduate Aishwarya Rangarajan is living a dream career in travel and tourism.
We’re welcoming in a bright new year and a fresh group of students at ITC, and what better way to do that than with an interview with a past graduate?
Aishwarya Rangarajan graduated back in 2008, and has since found a sparkling career in travel and tourism. We love hearing about our incredible graduates and keeping in touch as they make waves in the industry in in New Zealand and around the world.
Here’s a little more about Aish’s time at ITC, what she’s doing now, and her advice for current students.
What is your current role and how is it going?
I am currently working as a New Zealand Sales Executive for Qatar Airways. In a nutshell, it’s an account manager role which is extremely exciting as I deal with New Zealand travel agents from all brands and all walks of life, helping them promote and sell Qatar Airways as a number one choice of airline for all customers travelling to predominantly Europe and Africa. It’s a very rewarding role and I love it. Through work, I have travelled to many exciting destinations which I probably wouldn’t have otherwise such as Qatar, Hungary, Austria, Melbourne, Germany, Netherlands, Wales, Ireland just to name a few.. and in Business Class!
What made you decide to attend ITC?
I was always very interested in Tourism since high school and was openly looking for options where I can further that interest but didn’t want to get stuck being amongst 300 students. I came across ITC, thoroughly researched everything they offered and felt they stood out from the rest, so I decided to give it a go and attend. I never liked being one in a crowd. ITC allowed small classrooms which enabled the students to be noticed by the tutors, openly answer without shying away (even if it was the wrong answer), and provided an opportunity to be open and ask questions. ITC provided the support the students needed to excel and I really feel they genuinely care.
How did ITC prepare you for your career?
ITC was a great stepping stone into Travel and Tourism that gave an outlook on what to expect in many aspects of the tourism industry in New Zealand and abroad. It provided me with basic skills which high school didn’t teach at the time which was customer service, team work, presentation skills and boosts confidence level as you learn to work with people from all cultures.
Do you have any advice for current students?
Find a job as soon as possible (within the industry if you can) while you study – even if it is temporary, voluntary or an internship!!! I cannot emphasise on this enough. No job is big or small as all of them with entail some skills you will use once you graduate and will stand you out from the rest when employers begin to look for ideal candidates to join them. Often students will expect to come out of a college or a university and wonder why it’s taking them so long to find a job in the industry.
When I started with ITC, I found a job as a customer service agent for InterCity Coachlines (now called the Entrada Group) selling domestic tours, and transfer tickets. The employer explained to me that she hired me because not only was I studying at ITC but I was already working at Hells Pizza and McDonalds prior to that which showed that I had transferrable skills such as Customer Service, Multi-tasking ability, Cash Handling and will soon have the tourism knowledge through the course I was studying. It stood me out from someone who was applying with no work experience at all. So please, find a job (trust me on this).
What is your favourite memory from your time at ITC?
My favourite memory from ITC was quiz time that we use to have every week. We used to all look forward to it. The quiz was done as part of a course where the tutor gave us some clues about destinations, and we had to sit on the computer and find out which destination the clues were referring to. It was the best fun we had as we all enjoyed researching and at the same time we learnt about some whacky and cool destinations in NZ and around the world.
How do you think the industry will recover in the coming months/years?
NZ is working on some travel bubbles in the next couple of months. Everyone is making an effort to make the travel bubble open soon as possible. Airlines have started flying back to New Zealand and domestic tourism is now stronger than it’s ever been with more Kiwis exploring their own backyards than ever before. Although a long recovery journey – there is definitely a glimmer of hope and light at the end of the tunnel.
What are your future career plans/goals?
My career plan is to continue working and growing in this industry – and when opportunity arises, I would like to eventually become a mentor / tutor at a travel college so I can share my experience, knowledge in order to help more students prepare, grow and have an exciting career as I have in the travel industry.
If you can see yourself following in Aishwarya’s footsteps and entering the world of travel and tourism, consider enrolling with ITC. Get in touch with us today to find out more.
Campus Study – college@itc.co.nz 0800 TOURISM (0800 868747) or https://www.itc.co.nz/contact-us/
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