Internship, Field Experience, and Practicum
The RHIM department focuses on students’ learning in the classroom, and emphasizes practical applications. Through close industry-academia cooperation, students have opportunities to do their multistage internships in domestic and international star-rated hotels and tourism corporations, in order to transform their learned theoretical knowledge into practice. The RHIM department is also dedicated to collaborations with several well-known universities worldwide to promote students’ international perspectives, and increase their opportunities for cross-culture learning. The project of Employment Upon Graduation (EUG) perfectly connects our job-search graduates and hospitality recruiters. The RHIM department is highly recognized in the hospitality industry, and was awarded the “2016 The Most Satisfactory Hospitality/ Leisure/Service Department among Cooperation Employer”, as announced by the 1111 Job Bank in Feb., 2016.
The RHIM department has established various collaborations worldwide with hospitality-related institutions and high-level managerial personnel by inviting professionals to teach, implementing cooperative education, arranging internship opportunities and field trips, and frequently interacting with enterprises in the hospitality industry. The cooperative enterprises include (a) international tourist hotels, (b) Chinese and foreign cuisine restaurants, (c) fast food chain restaurants, (d) enterprises in the leisure industry, and (e) airline and tourism related enterprises. The internship institutions include those in North and South America, Europe, Asia, New Zealand, and Australia. Every year from their sophomore year, the undergraduates of the department plan the compulsory courses of the Internship in Hospitality. Throughout the three-stage specialized internship, the mentors would make on-site observations, gather the opinions of students and enterprises, answer questions raised by students, and give students advice at an appropriate time. The arrangement of the three specialized internships is, as follows:
Internship in HospitalityⅠ
The objectives of Internship in Hospitality I are, as follows: hospitality freshmen become acquainted with the operational modes of hotels; all students take turns in internships at 4 or 5 hotels with different operational modes, in order to familiarize themselves with the operations and management of the hotels, thus, the course will greatly benefit the students who want to engage in the hospitality industry. In addition to taking the hospitality courses at school on weekdays, students must apply their knowledge to practice in the partner hotels, while the hotels are required to offer at least 8 hours of pre-career training to students. Each student must practice for at least 240 hours in the banquet halls of the hotels, according to the arrangement by the teaching assistants. Additionally, all students must complete a 60-hour internship at the university’s Life Tea Café, and pass the evaluation, in order to obtain the credits of Internship in Hospitality I.
Internship in HospitalityⅡ
The Internship in Hospitality II offers the juniors of the department the opportunity to take an internship in the St. Sacred Teaching Hostel on campus, which is a place where students can integrate their knowledge of customer and room management through practice. Meanwhile, the St. Sacred Teaching Hostel also provides accommodation services for the distinguished guests of the university. During their internship, students are able to market rooms, confirm orders, greet customers, offer room services, and clean rooms. Each student of the department must practice for at least 75 hours in the teaching-oriented hotel, and will not be granted the credits of Internship in Hospitality II until they pass the assessment.
Internship in HospitalityⅢ
The Internship in Hospitality III offers the students of the department the opportunity to take an internship outside the university, and even go abroad to learn the hospitality practices of foreign enterprises. According to the course requirements, students can choose to take an internship in domestic or overseas institutions, as provided by the department, or in a hospitality enterprise they find by themselves, from the summer vacation of the sophomore year to the beginning of the fourth academic year. The cumulative time for the internship of Internship in Hospitality III should not be less than 240 hours. After the internship, students should complete the relevant forms. After being marked and sealed by the mentors of the internship institutions, the forms will be sent to the person in charge of the department. Moreover, students in the class of Internship in Hospitality III must submit a written internship report in the first semester of the fourth academic year, and give an oral report during their presentation. Students will not obtain the credits of Internship in Hospitality III until they pass the assessment by the instructor.
