Survey Finds Hospitality Students Eager for Global Career Opportunities

Hospitality students around the world are eager for international career opportunities, and many are considering working in China after graduation, according to a survey jointly conducted by Hilton Worldwide and Les Roches Jin Jiang International Hotel Management College (LRJJ), one of China’s top international hospitality management schools.

The survey, which aimed to better understand young people’s thinking around careers in the industry, was conducted as part of the two-day ‘Generation Y Conference’ in Shanghai. A total of 473 students from leading hospitality schools across five countries – China, Switzerland, Australia, Spain and the United States – took part in the survey.

“China is witnessing an unprecedented growth in the hospitality sector, which presents huge opportunities for young people who have a passion for working in the industry. Hilton Worldwide is committed to nurturing young talent to support our expansion needs, help young professionals realize their career ambitions and also contribute to the overall development of the industry,” said David Osborne, senior vice president, Human Resource Operations and Development, Hilton Worldwide.

Hilton has an ambitious goal to extend and deepen its presence in China by expanding from the current 28 to over 100 hotels in the market by 2015.

In the survey, international career opportunities were cited as the top factor for choosing to study hospitality, with over half of respondents (51%) citing it as one of their top five reasons. In addition, 65% of students are considering working in China after graduation.

Other key survey findings include:

• Hospitality education an asset, management and leadership courses valuable: 40% of students surveyed ranked hospitality education as one of the top three factors that will help them achieve their vision of a successful career. Management / entrepreneurial / leadership courses were most frequently cited (59%) as one of the most valuable classes for preparing for their careers. This could be because nearly three out of four students (74%) expected to start their careers in a supervisor / team leader position and above.

• Career ambitious, but also value work-life balance over the long term: Career progression within the company was named by close to half of the students (47%) as the most important factor when applying for the first permanent job. However in ‘defining success 10 years after graduation’, ‘having a family, a job I like, friends and living a happy and balanced life’ was most important, with 71% of respondents choosing it as one of their top three criteria, ahead of even ‘owning my own business’ (48%) and ‘holding a senior management role in the hospitality industry’ (42%).

• Relationships most critical factor in staff retention: To ensure a long-term relationship with employers, students most value excellent relationships with colleagues and superiors, with over half of them (52%) choosing it as one of their top four criteria. This was followed by good balance between professional and private life (43%) and having the freedom to decide and manage (39%).

In line with the insights, Hilton Worldwide has in place a range of initiatives to support young talent in their learning and career development. It has forged partnerships with LRJJ and other leading hospitality colleges in China to offer top students internship opportunities to complement their classroom learning. Under the program, the company will also organize guest lectures, on-site visits and e-learning programs specially designed to prepare students for the workplace.

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