In order to assist prospective students in their decision to study tourism and hospitality management at the University of Johannesburg (UJ), the School of Tourism and Hospitality (STH) in the Faculty of Management held an open day on Saturday 25 July 2015. This year’s open day was an open day with a difference. The STH partnered with the tourism and hospitality sector and other UJ support departments to create a tourism experience for prospective and existing students.
In 2015 everything about a traditional open day, changed forever. Marketing manager Farieda Miller focused on an innovative approach, with the support of the STH team, internal UJ stakeholders and partners, created a day that was hugely experiential to convince learners and prospective students that the industry was great!
The aim was to show potential students what they could do with an STH qualification. The career day was run as a tourism and hospitality village, comprising of knowledge booths and many industry representatives on hand to explain and demonstrate possible career paths. The venue was the conference facilities of the Sol Kerzner building donated by this renowned hotelier years ago and it became abuzz with excitement as various players in the hospitality industry engaged the curious youngsters and their families.
A media campaign done jointly with tourism partners beforehand ensured that the open day was well advertised and promoted. More than 450 students registered on the mobi site set-up and these students moved through the tourism and hospitality village set up in the STH’s Kerzner Building from 9:00 until 15:00.
Partners such as Sun International, Marriott International, Protea Hotels, Tsogo Sun, Hilton International, Holiday Inn, Crowne Plaza, AHA hotels and the Housekeepers Association of South Africa (HASA) provided students with information and insights into the exciting opportunities in food and beverage operations and hospitality management.
Sun International’s team from The Maslow Hotel showcased some of the opportunities available to the students by having their stand manned by Tebogo Rikhotso, who joined The Maslow Hotel as a public areas cleaner and is now a butler and Veronica Plaatjies, who works as a waitron at the hotel and shared her successes as an award-winning sommelier in the making. Award-winning bartender and Food & Beverage manager at The Maslow Hotel, Steven Saunders, made virgin cocktails for the students as he talked them through his career path. They were also treated to the hotel group’s signature cupcakes.
“The day was enjoyable for the whole team. We left excited about the future of hospitality and our potential colleagues-to-be. The field of gastronomy is creating synergy between design and food production taught by STH and this was physically demonstrated – the design tool chocolate and who can resist chocolate,” says Sun International’s PR manager Claudia Henkel.
