More than 1,500 kilometres separate Macao from Shandong Province on the Mainland. But when the time came for Qi Xiaotong to choose where to study for his bachelor’s degree, he was clear: the Shandong local travelled south to IFTM. Four years on, as he prepares to graduate from the English-language stream of the Institute’s Hotel Management Bachelor’s Degree Programme, Qi has no doubts: the Institute has provided him with golden opportunities for personal development.
“My original plan was to join a tourism-related bachelor’s degree programme in either Hong Kong or Macao,” Qi recalls. “As the development of tourism and gaming kept fuelling Macao’s economy and IFTM was the best option for studying tourism in the city, I decided to enrol on the Institute’s Hotel Management programme.”
At IFTM, Qi has combined an impressive academic performance with active involvement in extracurricular activities. He has achieved a grade point average (GPA) above 3.5 points in a scale of 0 to 4.0 points, while also joining the student drama club as well as the Institute’s national flag raising team, and taking part in an overseas exchange programme.
“Though the Institute is not very big, there is a huge variety of opportunities offered to students,” Qi says. “There are many resources available, and we have enough support to try different things.”
The Mainland student says he has created lasting memories at IFTM. He was honoured to be part of the student ambassador group that welcomed to the Mong-Há Campus Professor Peng Liyuan, the First Lady of the People’s Republic of China, during the celebrations of the 20th anniversary of the establishment of the Macao SAR.
Qi also represented IFTM at international hospitality-related competitions organised for higher education students. He placed second at the main challenge of the 2021 Young Hoteliers Summit, as part of a team with members drawn from across the world. The Young Hoteliers Summit is the largest student-run hospitality summit in the world.
IFTM offers a wide array of opportunities for students, including semester-long exchanges, summer school programmes and theme-based educational experiences. In addition, the Institute’s management encourages undergraduates to engage in extracurricular activities. The hope is that they expand the horizons of students, introduce them to new people, and build up their self-confidence, so enriching their experience of academic life at the Institute.
High-quality education
Qi gives high praise to the education provided by IFTM. He highlights the quality of the scholars at the Institute, and IFTM’s focus on hands-on experience.
Students are required to participate in several practical projects promoting engagement with real-world challenges, he explains. In addition, there is a “close connection” between the Institute and the tourism industry, which helps undergraduates to lay the groundwork for their career path and develop a professional network.
One of the highlights of the IFTM bachelor’s degree programmes is a requirement for students to complete a curricular 6-month internship. Qi did his internship in the second half of 2019 at the 5-star hotel Grand Hyatt Macao, part of one of the world’s most prestigious multinational hospitality groups.
“It was really busy,” he recalls, adding the internship was a period of intense discovery for him. “I really learned a lot, in terms of handling crisis and conflicts with customers. I think these are essential skills for me once I engage in the industry after graduation.”
Soon after finishing his internship, Qi flew to the other side of the world, to join a student exchange programme at Haaga-Helia University of Applied Science, in Helsinki, Finland. It gave him a privileged glimpse of the differences between Europe and China.
Qi says his exchange experience helped him to realise how internationalised IFTM is, while also keeping close connections with the country, including the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area.
Looking back at his 4 years at IFTM, Qi is greatly satisfied by all that he was able to experience through the Institute. “As long as they are motivated and brave enough to take on the opportunities available, any student can definitely benefit” from all that the Institute has to offer, he says.
