The University of Newcastle has announced plans to open an international hotel school to address job shortages in the tourism and hospitality industries.
Vice Chancellor Alex Zelinsky and Pro Vice Chancellor of the College of Human and Social Futures John Fischetti made the announcement at Crystalbrook Kingsley on Monday.
The university will partner with industry and vocational education providers to operate the school, which Professor Zelinsky said was something that had been in the works for a while.
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"We've done an analysis of the economy and one of the things that was really a huge opportunity and where there's opportunity for the university to assist with the skills gap is in hospitality and tourism," he said. "Particularly with the Newcastle Airport that is going to be upgraded to a full international airport and we can expect to see more visitation."
Professor Fischetti said there was a national shortage in tourism, hospitality and events of more than 400,000 jobs.
"That's everything from running a whale watch to running a hotel like this, to running your own cafe," he said. "You might have noticed if you go out for breakfast on the weekend, they don't have the staff to actually run a full shift, all the way to people who are running the large organisations.
"The talent shortage means that as we grow from here in the Hunter, we are 30 per cent short of the people needed to run every part, from soup to nuts, literally and figuratively, of the industry."
The first step is the university's new Bachelor of Tourism, Hospitality and Events which begins next month.
"It allows someone who's doing an advanced diploma at TAFE to co-mingle and partner that degree with us," Professor Fischetti said. "So in three years, you can do an Advanced Diploma in Hospitality Management, and a bachelor's degree in Hospitality, Tourism and Events.
"The International Hotel School itself is a concept. It allows our students to understand that every semester they'll actually do a partnership in events, tourism, or hospitality, which is unique for our university that every semester you will have a real world experience and it leads to a culminating job in industry, which is virtually guaranteed given that shortage."
Professor Fischetti said there were about 30 students enrolled in the new degree, but the vision was to grow to 150-200 and potentially establish a physical hotel.
The university is hoping to attract international students to the school, and Professor Fischetti said it would also appeal to people who thought higher education wasn't an option for them.
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