ITC students share their feedback from the recent Armageddon Expo

ITC students volunteering at the AJ Hackett attraction at the recent Armageddon Expo.

The annual Armageddon Expo is massive science fiction and fantasy fair, with highlights from comics, movies, TV, animation, and gaming.

Recently, Sales Manager for AJ Hackett Leo emailed the team at ITC asking if any students would be interested in volunteering to help out at an activation he was planning to host at the event. And we had more than a couple of volunteers!

“Stacey and Brooklyn came all the way from our campus in Whangarei to volunteer on the Sunday, Charelle and her friend Syderra snapped up Saturday even though they were supposed to be celebrating Charelles birthday that day and Xavier (an ITC graduate) and Carlos had never met before but had the best time together on the Friday. The students all had a great time and learnt so much from Leo and Sam at A J Hackett. A win win all round!” explained Employment Consultant Sarndra.

We also asked the students about their experiences, so here’s what they had to say!

(more…)

Meet the graduate who is working the job of his dreams at AJ Hackett!

Cyrus Morris-Webb went from struggling high school student to AJ Hackett star! Find out how in our latest graduate interview.

There’s nothing that makes the team at ITC happier than seeing a student graduate and land the job of their dreams. That’s why we’re so excited for Cyrus Morris-Webb, an Auckland City Campus graduate who is now working an incredible job at AJ Hackett.

We asked Cyrus a few questions about how he came to join the ITC family, and how that decision lead him to his new career.  (more…)

Go With Tourism Expo a hit with ITC students

ITC students shined at the recent Go With Tourism Expo.

Every year, the Go With Tourism Expo offers New Zealand tourism operators a chance to showcase their brand and services to young tourism students and graduates in this huge networking event. And every year, ITC encourages students to attend and make invaluable connections to local businesses.

This year, a number of our students volunteered at the expo, helping out on several stands and deeply impressing industry insiders.

Here’s a little more about what went down!

(more…)

Meet the graduate who ‘jumped’ into a job with AJ Hackett!

Fleur recently landed an incredible role in Queenstown.

If you spent some of your summer exploring New Zealand’s fantastic attractions, hiring rental cars, flying up and down the country, or staying in hotels, there’s a real chance you came across an ITC graduate at some stage.

Many of our wonderful graduates work in travel and tourism all over Aotearoa, including Fleur, who recently started an exciting role with AJ Hackett in Queenstown after studying at our Whangarei Campus. It was all thanks to her time at ITC, the work experience she did as part of her course, and her genuine hard work and passion for the industry.

We had a quick chat with Fleur to ask her for all the details about her time at ITC and her new job.

(more…)

ITC Industry News Bulletin #53

This week’s airline, travel and tourism news includes a fallout over budget cuts, changes to regional flight routes, funding for new attractions, and more.

TOP STORIES

TIA ‘dismayed’ by funding cuts

The latest New Zealand budget has just been announced, and it includes a cut to the funding for the Department of Conservation (DOC). In the last budget, just over $378 million was set aside for DOC expenditures, while the 2016/17 plan has dropped to almost $345 million.

The TIA is ‘dismayed’ by this move, which sees funding drop by almost 10 per cent. Chief Executive Chris Roberts is concerned about how these cuts might impact the tourism sector.

“DOC has two core functions. The first is protecting our natural heritage – our indigenous species and the habitats and ecosystems that support them. The second is facilitating recreation and tourism, so that New Zealanders and our visitors are enriched by outdoor experiences,” he explained.

(more…)

We took our intern bungy jumping and this is what happened

Pictured: ITC intern Vaheana bungy jumps off Auckland Harbour Bridge. Thanks for the great day AJ Hackett Bungy!

Vaheana, our intern from French Polynesia, has been helping out the ITC marketing team over the past several weeks. She recently joined ITC tutor Mel on a short course and was given the opportunity to bungy jump off the Harbour Bridge – a true New Zealand tourism experience! Vaheana shares what happened on this exhilarating day out.

Thanks to Lesley and Mel, who kindly offered to take me on an ITC Adventure Tourism short course, I had the amazing opportunity to jump off the Harbour Bridge.

As soon as we arrived at AJ Hackett Bungy the friendly staff started to get us ready for the attraction. We had to wear a suit, a harness and of course a helmet. Once everyone was ready Sophie – our tour guide for the day – gave us a little bit of history about the Auckland Harbour Bridge. The Bridge was originally built in the 50s to link the North Shore to the Auckland CBD. Before that, people had to take a ferry to go to the North Shore.

(more…)