Marriott Launches Hotel School in China

Marriott International has launched a new hotel school in China, following the signing of a partnership with the Anhui Zhong-Ao Institute of Technology.

(Photo - Regan Taikitsadaporn, Marriott's Chief Human Resources Officer for Asia, (centre left) and Wang Yuan Hao, President of Anhui Zhongao Institute of Technology (third right), with Marriott and Anhui government executives at launch event of Marriott Institute of Hospitality Education)

The Marriott Institute of Hospitality Education will form part of the Anhui college, with the first students enrolling for its three-year diploma programme this year. An estimated 300 students are expected to join in 2013.

Initially, the curriculum will focus on hotel management, but plans are in place to expand it to include areas of food & beverage and tourism management. Marriott executives will be involved in teaching students, while the company will also offer field day and internship opportunities at its hotels. In the final year of study, students will have work placements at Marriott’s Chinese properties to gain practical hotel industry experience.

“Marriott International is proud of the fact that it is consistently recognised as a top employer in China and around the world. We have been providing career development opportunities to ambitious talents worldwide for more than eight decades. The launch of the Marriott Institute of Hospitality Education not only upholds our core values, but also serves as a timely move to fuel our tremendous portfolio growth in China,” Marriott’s Chief Human Resources Officer for Asia, Regan Taikitsadaporn, said at the inauguration ceremony.

Marriott has already launched ‘co-operation programmes’ with 15 colleges in China, and has relations with 112 others, but Taikitsadaporn called the tie-up with the Anhui Zhong-Ao Institute of Technology “unprecedented”.

“The hospitality industry of China has been growing rapidly and this trend is expected to continue in coming years. Therefore it is essential that our education will keep pace with and meet the human resources demand of the industry. We are delighted to have the support of Marriott International to this programme as the company brings a wealth of experience and heritage in developing hospitality talent around the world,” said Wang Yuan Hao, Dean of Marriott Institute of Hospitality Education.

Marriott expects to open on average one hotel every month in China for the five years, adding an estimated 40,000 new staff members by 2016. In 2012, Marriott recruited more than 2,500 interns in China.