Hotel & Restaurant Management

DOT taps universities for HRM apprentice training

Tourism undersecretary Eduardo Jarque announced that DOT will initially tap 22 universities in Metro Manila to expose their students to the major tourism hotspots around the country such as Cebu, Palawan, Bohol, and Davao. "The students will stay in top hotels and visit the attractions of the places. They will be treated like tourists because we want them to feel how tourists should feel," Jarque said.

These HRM (hotel and restaurant management) students will be toured to the best destinations in the country, "to let them feel how to be a 'real' tourist. They have to know what tourists should feel. People do come [back] if they have good experience," he said.

"We want to emphasize that when tourists come here they want to have a good time," he emphasized.

After the students from the 22 universities in Metro Manila complete their tourism immersion tour, universities in Cebu and Davao offering HRM courses will be likewise tapped to participate in the same program, Jarque said. For this year, DOT planned to partner with a total of 40 schools nationwide. This program will also put HRM students into full appreciation in working in the tourism related businesses.

"The students will be at the front of the house and they will also see the operations at the back of the house," Jarque said. The students will be selected by a special selection board before they can be included in the program.