College Choice/Brian Mooney:Tourism employs almost 250,000 people. Hotels, restaurants and bars are the major employers within the Irish hospitality sector.
Hotels in particular offer many career opportunities in operations, line management, marketing, human resources and in ancillary activities such as spas and leisure centres.
Tourism also includes visitor centres, corporate and event catering, clubs, sports arenas, airlines, internet cafes, adventure centres and reservation centres. Some 6,000 new employees are needed every year to service the expanding hospitality and tourism industry, according to Fáilte Ireland, the national tourism development authority.
Hotel management
There are two specific level 8 honours bachelor's degrees in hotel management. Business studies in international hotel management at Shannon (SN001), requiring 460 points, and at Tralee IT (TL180), 270 points. Both programmes prepare students for the role of general manager in major international hotels.
Tourism
These programmes focus on applied management subjects such as finance, information technology, human resource management, sales and marketing, and communications.
These subjects are complemented by the more specific ones such as tourism, transport studies, heritage studies and tourism business studies. Students will often study one European language. Courses in tourism are offered by institutes of technology in Dublin, Cork, Limerick, Tralee, Castlebar and Sligo.
Hospitality management
Hospitality management is a broader training than hotel management. On completion, graduates have a rounded education and are equipped to pursue careers in hospitality management, hotel management, restaurant management, the broad tourism field as well as the retail and services sectors. This programme is offered by institutes of technology in Dublin, Dundalk, Cork and Waterford.
Culinary arts
This can be defined as the study of food and wine and their impact on our society. Practitioners of the culinary arts include restaurateurs, chefs, food critics, gourmets and educationalists. There is a strong focus on the culinary artist as a "practitioner", with high-level technical skills, creativity and flair. Programmes are offered at institutes of technology in Dublin, Cork, Tralee and Galway-Mayo.
Event management
The growth of event management has been fuelled by the increase in the number, size and sophistication of events being organised.
Event management is the process by which an event is planned, prepared and produced and the event manager's job is to oversee and arrange every aspect of this, including the finance and sponsorship, marketing, organising and controlling all components, implementing and evaluating the design, staging and all other activities. A programme is offered by institutes of technology in Dublin, Dundalk, Limerick and Sligo.
Bar/front office/marketing and heritage studies
Bar management is offered at DIT, with wine and beverage studies at IT Tallaght.
Hotel front office studies are provided by both Athlone and Limerick ITs. Heritage studies which focuses on the study of archaeology, folklore, genealogy, geography, geology, history, literature, music and natural history, is offered by Galway-Mayo IT.
Finally, the marketing side of the tourism industry is covered in programmes offered by level 8 degree programmes at DIT and Waterford IT.
Direct application through Fáilte Ireland
Fáilte Ireland programmes include work experience modules, so that students are employable from the very beginning of the course.
Most craft and skills training programmes are also grant-assisted without any means testing, so students are paid a training allowance while attending college.
Skills training courses are held in Fáilte Ireland training centres throughout the country. They take place over 13 weeks and lead to a national skills certificate.
On completion of the course, trainees can go directly into employment or can apply for further full-time, college-based training. They can also opt for on-the-job training through the industry qualification scheme or apply for the national apprenticeship scheme.
Craft certificate courses
These one- and two-year full-time Craft certificate courses are held in ITs, are supported by Fáilte Ireland, and lead to an advanced certificate. Graduates go into employment, take short professional development courses or apply to take a higher certificate degree course.
Successful chefs now working in Ireland and abroad have completed the three-year national apprenticeship programme, combining one day a week at college with learning their craft in a hotel or restaurant kitchen.
Similarly, a growing number of young managers are participating in the trainee manager development programme, which takes three years and is based on distance learning. Entrants are trainee managers with industry experience, aged 17 and over, who have passed the Leaving Cert (including English and maths). Graduates are awarded the higher certificate in business studies (hotel management).
Certification
All Fáilte Ireland courses in skills training, craft certificate, advanced and higher certificate and degree lead to qualifications awarded by the Further Education and Training Awards Council or the Higher Education Training Awards Council, which are recognised internationally. For details log onto www.failteireland.ie
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