Career prospects for tourism students is one of the many issues Tourism Studies Association (TSA) pays heed to. It is for this reason that the organisation put together a conference, which was held today, the 30th of April 2014, at the Phoenicia Hotel in Valletta.
The conference commenced with a welcome address delivered by Gilbert Amato Gauci, TSA president. Amongst the various topics he touched upon, Gilbert spoke of student activism, and encouraged active students on campus to keep striving to work for their organisations. He said that the reward for such activism is ultimately satisfaction.
This was followed by a speech delivered by the Minister of Tourism, Dr Edward Zammit Lewis. An interesting point that he spoke about was that tourism does not refer solely to the physical elements, such as hotel buildings and the rooms themselves, but is rather a synergy of physical elements together with experience and services rendered. Mr Paul Bugeja, President of Malta Hotels and Restaurants Association, also contributed his thoughts through a speech before moving on to a panel discussion.
The discussion, held by the panel invited to this event, was a multifaceted one as the members came from different backgrounds and fields of work. The panel was composed of the following individuals:
- Dr Nadia Theuma — Director, Institute for Tourism, Travel & Culture (moderator)
- Dr Ernest Azzopardi — Chairman, Institute of Tourism Studies
- Mr John Magri — Manager Quality and Industry HR Development
- Ms Annika Galea — HR Director, Hilton Malta
- Mr Colin Baldacchino — Tourism Student
During this discussion the panel provided plentiful advice for students and prospective employees. Dr Galea advised students to be at their best whatever they are doing; be it at university, when working within organisations or during work. She commented on how easily employers gather information due to the small size of Malta. Being a tourism student, Colin Baldacchino suggested that the amount of varied study-units making up the course should be reduced and that the focus should be on equipping students with expert knowledge.
Following a coffee break, Mr Geroge Micallef, tourism product development consultant, and Warren Sammut, B.A. (Hons.) Tourism Studies and M.A. Tourism graduate, each delivered a presentation.
Dr Nadia brought the event to its end by rightly saying that is was a fruitful one. Finally the Vice President of TSA, Matthew Sargent, concluded the event with a lighthearted message.
On behalf of The Third Eye I would like to thank TSA for inviting us to such an informative and well organised event.
