Three undergraduate students at the Shenzhen Polytechnic University share how they benefitted from UTM’s support, showcasing UTM’s effort to propelling tourism and hospitality education in the Guangdong‑Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area
UTM is committed to contributing to Macao’s advantageous resources in tourism education, and educating talents in the Greater Bay Area, so as to build a world-class tourism destination.
Recently, UTM and Shenzhen Polytechnic University (SPU) have collaborated to establish the Shenzhen Macao Tourism Education Collaboration Centre in Shenzhen, in Guangdong Province. The two institutions will work together to enhance the innovation of tourism education content, aiming to foster the thriving development of the tourism education industry.
On the inauguration ceremony, UTM had the chance to come across three familiar young faces – Li Kaite, Lin Jiahao, and Cai Yihui, who had remarkable stories with UTM.
Nuturing young talents in GBA
Li, Lin, and Cai are just three of the many young people benefitting from UTM’s support for skill development within the Greater Bay Area. The trio graduated from Zhuhai First Vocational School, and are currently studying hotel management at Shenzhen Polytechnic University. The two institutions are both long-standing partners of UTM in the Greater Bay Area.
Turning back the clock, they took top prizes in the National Competition for Skills of Vocational Education, after coaching from the UTM Coordinator for Hospitality Courses, Mr. Kurma Mac Seac Kuong, using the Macao Occupational Skills Recognition System (MORS) as a reference.
Li and Lin took part in the national competition’s 2022 edition via the hotel service portion, in the category of vocational training for secondary school students. The duo clinched first place. Cai was part of the winning team in 2023 under the same category.
The awards not only served as a recognition of their efforts and talent but also have had a positive impact on their educational journey and professional development. Their outstanding achievements in the national competition led them to enrol in SPU exempt from needing to complete Gaokao and written admission exams.
Looking back, the students point out they have no actual work experience yet. The training and support provided by UTM therefore played a key role in their success in the national competition, they say.
“Mr. Mac taught us as if we were really working in the industry,” Li says. “That made a big difference, and we learned a lot in terms of detailed industry practice.”
Fellow student Lin agrees. “Mr. Mac gave us detailed instructions on matters concerning front desk service, using industry standards. It was not just like normal training for students,” he adds.
Cai, the 2023 winner, says UTM’s training covered hands-on situations. This allowed her to gain “a comprehensive understanding of how to perform well”, i.e., to industry professional standards. It complemented Zhuhai First Vocational School training for the competition, where the emphasis had been on the academic knowledge aspect, she says.
Building strong bonds in tourism education
Since 2019, UTM has been authorised by the Ministry of Culture and Tourism of the People’s Republic of China to be the relying unit of the Tourism Education and Training Base for the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area. This means the University is a coordinating entity for the Base, collaborating with partners inside and outside the Greater Bay Area, in order to advance tourism education in the city cluster.
UTM and SPU have recently collaborated to establish the Shenzhen Macao Tourism Education Collaboration Centre in Shenzhen. The inauguration ceremony took place on 29 April. The two institutions will work together to enhance the innovation of tourism education content, aiming to foster the thriving development of the tourism education industry.
Both sides agreed to take the Macao Occupational Skills Recognition System as the first project of the Centre, and to launch teacher training, industry training, exchange visits and qualification certification.
In a milestone collaboration, UTM, along with Macao’s Labour Affairs Bureau (DSAL), signed an agreement in November 2021 with the Guangdong Occupational Skill Service and Instruction Centre of the Human Resources and Social Security Department of Guangdong Province. This paved the way for a “One Examination, Multiple Certificates” initiative on vocational training.
Cai, as one of the inaugural cohort of trainees benefitting from this scheme, received the respective certificate in August 2022.
Editor: UTM Public Relations Team






