tourism

Under the supervision of Sujatha Thayan from the School of Marketing & Media (SOMM), students from intakes UCDF1506 BIT and BSA successfully organized a Team Building and Education Tour to Langkawi as part of their In-course assignment for Managing Services module. This tour also meant to provide students out-of-classroom exposure with regards to organizing and planning services products within the services and tourism industry. 

This education tour was aimed to enhance the students’ knowledge on the operation of service organizations such as hotels and tourist attractions. As part of the team building activities, the students also organized team kayaking and Frisbee, to strengthen the relationship and bonding among the participants.

Kudos to the students for putting their skills into practice; we are glad to see them enjoying themselves and gaining new experiences at the same time.

As part of their initiatives to expand the students’ knowledge in the practices of the tourism industry, the School of Marketing and Media (SOMM) recently organised a trip to attend the 4th Edition of the prestigious UN World Tourism Conference, held in Eastern & Oriental Hotel in Georgetown, Penang from Monday, 17 October to Wednesday, 19 October 2016.

The theme of the event was “Tourism Delights: Delivering the Unexpected”, in which it focused on ideas and strategies implemented by leading tourism policy makers to enhance the current tourism industry. The conference brought pioneering tourism leaders, policy – makers and experts from various sectors of the tourism industry to convey their knowledge and experiences with 750 participants who represented many countries around the globe.  The conference was graced by  Minister of Tourism & Culture, Dato' Seri Mohamed Nazri bin Abdul Aziz and a total of 12 of the industry’s top leaders attended including PEMANDU CEO Datuk Seri Idris Jala and Secretary General of MOTAC, YBhg. Tan Sri Dr. Ong Hong Peng.

12 students and 6 lecturers from the school were also delighted to attend the welcome dinner hosted by Dato' Seri Mohamed Nazri bin Abdul Aziz, Minister of Tourism & Culture, Malaysia.  The conference ended with a heritage tour that showcased Georgetown’s intricate heritage, in which the students had the opportunities to have the first-hand experience in tour groups at Penang.

It was an enriching experience for the staff & students who attended, these industrial trips will certainly enhance our students’ knowledge, and will prepare them for the underlying challenges ahead, as they graduate as a Tourism Professional. Below are some student testimonials after attending the programme:

“I truly thank Mr. Naban for giving me the amazing opportunity of letting me know about this conference. It was very motivating and I have learnt so many things, obtained so many memories and received a lot of educational knowledge I would have otherwise never received.” – Lay Shar Hlaing, BA (Hons) Tourism Management student from Myanmar

“I really appreciate all the lecturers for their encouragement in letting us attend this event. One of the most memorable and educational trips I have ever taken. I loved every second of it and cannot wait for another conference like this!” -   Nor Syazyiana Rosli, BA (Hons) Tourism Management student from Malaysia

On 25th August 2016, the tourism students of UC3F1606TRM organized a talk by Mr. Eric Lau, the owner of Travel Smart Sdn. Bhd. The session was attended by Tourism students and academicians. Mr. Eric shared his experience of running his company, how he got into the tourism business and what Travel Smart has done to expand its business from a startup to include MICE for more than 10 years.  

Sathiya, a tourism student doing his internship at Travel Smart also shared his experience and how the company helped him grow his ideas and to give him a better understanding about being in a tourism field.
Overall, it was an invaluable experience and exposure to the how the tourism industry operates.

“It gives me a clear understanding of being in the tourism field is not about travelling purposes. I join this field because of the mindset that I will be travelling a lot but through this talk, I thank him for changing my point of view ” – Nor Syazyiana Rosli, Level 3 Tourism Student of APU

A group of 28 students and lecturers from the APU Media, Tourism and Services Cluster of the Faculty of Business and Management (FBM) embarked on a learning journey outside the classroom on the 19th of August 2015 (Wednesday), as they explored the majestic caves of Batu Caves and admired the Malaysian history of the tin industry at the Royal Selangor Pewter Visitor Centre. This educational trip was held to educate the students on the concepts and execution methods required to operate a tourist attraction, as well as the tips and techniques required to conduct an efficient and effective guided tour at renowned tourism attractions.

The caves expedition was an eye opening experience for the students; as it was not only an adventure into the unknown, but also a combined history, biology and geology lesson about the formation of Malaysia as a landmass and how the elements worked together to create a wonderful specimen of a time warp, with a living fossil (the Trapdoor Spider, Liphistius batuensis) being preserved for research and future generations. The heart and soul of the experience was the amazing dedication and knowledge of the guides who were truly dedicated and passionate towards preserving a living ecosystem. 

The next stage of the trip was a glimpse of another part of the history of Malaysia. A guided tour of the Royal Selangor Visitor Centre did not only showcase the history of tin mining and its subsequent flourishing enterprise, but also the artistry and processes that enabled high quality, handmade products to be produced with minimum waste and maximum efficiency. 

The overall trip was an AWESOME experience for the students as they enjoyed learning outside the classroom in the truest sense. Hopefully more trips like these can be organised in the future, to benefit our students as they are able to attain knowledge in a more interesting and creative way.