With the ongoing crisis we are all facing now, many hotels are reducing their workforce to stay in business and sustain in the hospitality industry. If you are a Hospitality and Tourism student, your opportunity to apply for an internship is knocking now. As the workforce in hotels is now reduced, many hotels are looking at recruiting interns as an alternative in replacement of hiring new employees. If you are in a position to apply for an internship, this is the best time for you to do it now.
With business not at its optimal now, leaders or department heads will have more time to coach and develop the interns. As the number of employees is much reduced, interns will have the opportunity to function as full-time employees, shift departments, and multitask. Interns will be very much equipped and prepared when they enter a full-time job moving forward. “Every student should come prepared with a mindset to learn before entering an organization,” says Chief Executive Officer, Adrian Praveen. “The culture of internships have changed the mindset of the younger generation due to many bad exposures students have experienced in the past,” he adds. To elaborate Adrian’s statement, a few common bad experiences include cutting news clippings, compiling database, writing reports and other unwanted job tasks managed by full time employees. As a result to this, many students joined a company with an expectation of not learning anything and that the internship programme is just a mandatory assignment to complete their final semester.
Choosing the right company is no easy feat. Hence, it is important that you do some research before sending in your applications. Ask former employees of the hotel or pay a visit to observe the working environment and culture there. Try to understand a bit more about the company such as the working culture, believes and what the brand stands for.
Big and well-known companies are definitely on the top of your list when applying for an internship to obtain a good portfolio on your resume. However, smaller companies are as good when it comes to training interns. Small companies tend to multitask a lot due to the smaller number of employees which allows the interns to learn more and quicker. This is a golden opportunity for you to grab! You will be able to gain more experience and exposure as well as to prepare yourself for the future.
During your internship period, you will be able to sharpen your skills, confidence, and work ethics all at the same time. Bear in mind that an internship is all about learning and adapt to a new stage of life. So, do not be shy to ask questions as it is part of your learning process
In the nutshell, choose the right company, come with the right mindset, learn as much as possible, and give your very best during your internship.
Good luck!
