Making a career in hotel management

The hospitality industry is among the largest sectors for employment within the nation, and with globalization, the prospects of growth and profitability in this field are only growing. With market researches predicting a stable growth and promising specializations across the industry, this area has become highly attractive for building a career in the recent years.
Hotel Management has been a cardinal part of the hospitality industry, and has wide range of employment opportunities for those interested. As hotel chain owners expand their business within as well as outside the nation, the need for well-trained hotel management employees is growing too.

How to make a career in hotel management?

Hotel management is an expansive field with various job profiles available based on an individual’s education, qualification/work experience, station and so on. Nevertheless, in order to attain mid-level to top-level jobs, candidates are required to have a degree from a reputed hotel management school.
While certain hotel organizations select graduates right from universities, there are others that seek graduates alongwith some professional training or work experience.

Starting early

The path towards making a career in hotel management begins right after high school, or after a student has completed their 10+2. One can find degrees, diplomas as well as certificate hotel management courses in Gurgaon, Delhi, Mumbai and other parts of the country.
As a hotel management professional, one is expected to have good communication skills, reasoning abilities, numerical aptitude and an agreeable personality. Starting one’s preparation early can be of big help towards making a career in hotel management.
Generally, the minimum selection criteria as maintained by some of the best hotel management colleges in Delhi and other states is 50% marks in 10+2. However, attaining 50% marks may still not guarantee students an admission in these institutes. Many hotel management schools also set entrance tests that students need to pass to get selected to a particular course. An undergraduate degree in hotel management can be of 3 or 4 years in India, whereas the diploma and certificate courses in this field are short-term.
Besides a Bachelor’s and Master’s degree in hotel management, some of the best hotel management colleges in Delhi NCR also offer MBA courses in this discipline.

Employment opportunities

The employment opportunities for hotel management professionals are many, some of which come in the form of –
• Fast food joint management
• Restaurant management
• Club management
• Health center catering and recreation
• Hospital administration and catering
• Cruise ship hotel management
• Institutional and industrial catering
• Hotel and catering institutes
• Airline catering and cabin services
• Hotel and tourism association
• Public-owned catering departments (railway, armed forces etc.)
• Catering departments in banks and insurance houses

Tips to follow for a successful career in hotel management

• Find your niche – The hospitality industry is a broad field and there are many subsets and niche specializations that require their own skill-sets. Find out as to which of those you like best and want to pursue will help shape your career better in this area.
• Aim at a good degree – There are various paths to making a career in hospitality management, and education is one of the steady ones. You can begin with a graduate degree and go on to specialize in a particular area of hospitality later on.
• Grab opportunities – Gaining work experience can also help you get a good break into the hospitality sector. This will also help demonstrate your interest and passion in this field, which will help fetch further opportunities to develop yourself in this area.
• Gain some additional skills – The more skills you have, the more useful you render yourself. In this competitive world, having diverse or unique skill sets will also help you get an edge over others. As the world market continues to transform into a digital landscape, having sound knowledge of digital media and toolkits will also add value to your resume.

It is also important to remember that although hotel management is a glamorous career, the professionals in this field require more than just technical knowledge to sustain and grow. Keeping one’s cool even in the most challenging of situations, for instance, is something that is expected of such a professional.