One of the main employers in the services sector

Flexibility, adaptability and a wide breadth of knowledge and experience are the key requirements of the modern hospitality and tourism industry.

The hospitality industry is one of the main employers in the services sector and encompasses a huge variety of organisations and operations. The choice of careers is also therefore very wide and includes hotel management, events management, hospitality assistance and tourism planning and promotion, to name but a few.

Among small and large tourism business there is a growing need for people with experience in more than one area. People are needed who have front-office skills, language capabilities, cookery experience, management and marketing abilities and the willingness and depth of knowledge to move around from department to department.

The varied requirements of the industry have led to the development of courses in hospitality skills and hospitality management.

"Hospitality is a broad, people-orientated, inter-disciplinary industry," Fiona Whelan-Ryan, course leader of the BA in hospitality management in Waterford IT, says.

"Hospitality managers must be focused on customer care. They must have an understanding of the importance of the product, deal with business customers, pricing, traditional marketing, food production and human resources."

Waterford IT admitted students to the four-year BA for the first time in 1999, so it has yet to produce any graduates. However their employment opportunities are likely to be numerous, Whelan-Ryan says. "The BA equips students with a knowledge of the entire hospitality sector, but it also allows them to specialise in specific areas such as food and beverage management or conference management. There are lots of opportunities."

The college has developed links with employers and industrial placement is a major component of the course. Possible employers are brought in to give talks to the students and apprise them of their opportunities in the industry.

"Gobalisation has opened great opportunities. Within a large hotel group, once students have completed a certain length of placement they will have opportunities to travel across Europe and the US," Whelan-Ryan says.

The nature of the industry demands dynamic, flexible graduates, but they must also be aware of the importance of detail, she says. "Hospitality managers must have a good eye - attention to detail is what makes the difference in terms of levels of hygiene and customer care. They need to be energetic because the industry still requires quite long hours, but most people are happy to gain the experience."

Hands-on practical skill are a big asset to the industry and are emphasised by the national craft certificate in hospitality skills run by CERT.

As with the Waterford BA, the CERT course offers students a broad qualification. "Students are trained in cookery, event management, communication skills, IT and office skills, food safety, book keeping and languages," CERT communication officer Simon Fullam says.

Holders of a hospitality qualification should have no problem getting a job, he says. "The employment opportunities are massive. The biggest problem the hospitality industry has is the sparse availability of trained staff."

The industry used to have a bad reputation in terms of how it treated its employees, but, Fullam says, this is changing rapidly. "People can't afford to treat their staff badly. The hours are better and we recommend that no one works anywhere that's not offering at least the minimum wage, and most places will offer more."

It is still a tough and physically demanding, but it's also rewarding. "You're working while other people are playing, but there are fantastic opportunities for career progression."