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Spotlight
What is lacking in hospitality education?
Nisheeth Srivastava
 The
subject itself suggests that something is not right in our hospitality education.
It may be the system of delivery or may be course content. It is very interesting
to mention here that whomsoever I spoke to on the matter whether an educationist
or hotel manager, they all agreed that the final product coming out of hotel
institutes cannot be absorbed without further training. Academic institutions
spend three years to churn out right kind of potential employees but still miss
the mark. Why does this happen? I tried to analyse this problem and found that
quality standards are often found missing from hospitality institutes. These
academic institutions are normally controlled by businessmen who are more interested
in churning out numbers than ensuring quality.
In India, hospitality education and the industry are not equal partners as their
international counterparts are. Rarely does the industry representative interact
with faculty. If at all there is any interaction, then it is between the HR
department of the hotel and the placement section of institute. Industry representatives
often miss the point that they are the end users of the product churned out
by these institutions. They can tie-up with few institutes and set high standards
of education. This will change the present scenario of indifference between
academia and industry, and thus ensure an overall improvement in the quality
of delivery in hospitality education. At present, the lack of quality and dedication
from the faculty is a major shortcoming. Government policies too are not fulfilling
industry requirements. Aspiring for white collar jobs and a lack of passion
for entry level jobs among students are also factors responsible. Educators
providing hospitality education think that their job is over the moment a student
passes his/her examinations. And the moment a student joins the industry he
thinks the job he is performing is irrelevant. This gap between aspirations
and reality is the key point affecting today's hospitality education. Few other
points which are responsible for poor standards in hospitality education are
highlighted below:
Lack of use of latest technology in institutes - Hotels
are updating themselves everyday and the latest technologies are being added
to the guest facilities list. In management operations too the use of the latest
technologies and management theories are put into practice by professionals.
On one side leading hotels are hiring the best management brains and changing
the traditional system of management, on the other side institutes don't even
have proper, updated computer labs! The software cost is too high to be affordable
to hospitality institutions. On top of it, many educational institutes prefer
not to invest in software as it gets outdated quickly, causing an increase in
expenses when an upgrade is due. As a result, institutes produce a breed of
students that are not suitable for immediate placements in the industry.
Lack of industry participation - Industry participation
in institutes is debatable. Once in operations, managers are faced with a time
crunch. Thus to expect hotel managers to devote time to students to motivate
them and share practical experiences with them is unrealistic, owing to their
busy schedules. On the other hand, academic institutions work in a time frame:
a unique routine-bound working environment. With evenings free, the academic
atmosphere is such that students never feel stressed while studying. But the
moment they are employed in hotels, the atmosphere changes. They are not able
to cope with the sudden change in demands and thus leave the industry very soon,
creating differences between hoteliers and education institutions. This problem
needs to be dealt if we wish for long term benefits.
Inappropriate curriculum - Curriculums are rarely
updated. Institutes only add or remove content from the curriculum and feel
that they have done a great job as an educator. But that content is generally
not as per the requirement of the hoteliers who need students who possess common
sense, tact and are quick to act. This, as opposed to a student with good theoretical
knowledge. The industry looks for an employee who is sound in theory and practice.
Lack of qualified faculty - Finding the right faculty
is the most tedious job facing academic institutions. The reason is low wages.
This lack of motivation bundled up with lack of passion amongst the present
breed of teachers exacerbates the situation.
Lack of proper counselling for students - Academic
institutions need to prepare students right from the beginning to perform against
all odds. A trying work atmosphere includes battling fatigue, irregular duty
hours, handling stressed out guests and constant management pressure to maintain
quality. Since student life is very different, they feel that the job too will
be very easy. In reality, they find it very difficult to give their best as
they are not used to such work pressures. And when the job becomes demanding,
they tend to lose interest and drift to other service sectors.
High course fee in comparison to low pay packages
- Due to the practical costs involved in training and education, institutes
are bound to charge higher fees. On the flip side, the packages offered to students
are not in proportion to what they have spent on their studies. This is very
discouraging. That's why surveys show that hotel management is not the most
popular course for students. All findings show that manpower required by the
industry is very high. These vacancies are at the entry level and do not interest
students. Hotel professionals depict the greener picture to students that plenty
of jobs are available in the market. But because of low packages and the nature
of jobs available, there are very few takers.
Wrong perception in the mind of new entrants - When
a student joins a hotel management program he/she thinks that he/she will become
the general manager (GM) of the hotel from day one. Once exposed to reality
it will take at least ten years to become a GM, they try to find other courses
or streams that can give them better career options.
Solutions
1) Practical projects should be implemented irrespective of whether they are
related to a specific course or not. The main motivation should be learning
and self-improvement, rather than just grades and money.
2) The market can also play a vital role by being open to collaborate. Hotels
can send their needs to schools and curriculum can be modified accordingly.
3) There are resources available to improve our educational system that will
in turn meet local and global market standards. But integration of academic
and practical life through proper communication is required.
4) Online education will be convenient, since it is personal, accessible, and
compatible with work routine.
5) A virtual campus will enable 'real time' access to the experts. Scarce facilities
will be made available and specialist centres of excellence will eventually
emerge
6) Enhancement (not replace) of the traditional approach, also giving the faculty
a chance to enhance their skills.
(The writer is executive director of Aura Institutions
Education Foundation)
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