PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT COURSE
The specialist award is made up of three modules and a work place project
The three modules are
Hotel Management
This course has 9 lessons:
1. Introduction: Scope and Nature of Hotel Management
2. Organisation of the Hotel Workplace
3. Staff Management in Hotels
4. Control Systems
5. Front Desk Management (Reception)
6. Servicing Rooms & General Cleaning
7. Building & Facility Maintenance
8. Activities Management: tour desk, gymnasium, events (weddings, balls etc)
9. Food Service
Food and Beverage Management
This subject has 9 lessons:
1. Human Nutrition
2. Cooking
3. Kitchen & Food Management
4. Planning A Menu
5. Alcoholic Beverages
6. Tea, Coffee and Non-Alcoholic Beverages
7. Scope & Nature Of Catering Services
8. Personnel Management (waiting skills, staffing a restaurant, kitchen etc)
9. Management Of Catering Services
Ecotour Management
The course is divided into nine lessons as follows:
1. Nature and Scope of Ecotourism - Definition of ecotourism; negative ecotourism; principles of ecotourism.
2. Management Issues - Recreation and the environment; recreational impacts on the environment; ethical and legal concerns; code of practice for ecotourism operators; incorporating ecotourism principles into activities; interpretation; visitor guidelines; planning for minimal impact; quality control.
3. Industry Destinations - The ecotourism market; what do ecotourists want?; trends in international tourism; understanding the needs of the consumer; consumer expectations.
4. The Tour Desk/Office - Office procedures; providing information; employment prospects in ecotourism; bookings, business letters; telephone manner.
5. Accommodation Facilities - Types of accommodation facilities; layout of facilities.
6. Catering Facilities - Introduction to catering; accepted practice for service facilities; storing and preserving food.
7. Legal Considerations - National Parks; land use/planning restrictions; code of practice.
8. Safety- The safety strategy; hazards; first aid.
9. Planning an Ecotourism Activity - A special project where the student plans out an ecotourism activity including budget, accommodation, licenses, meals and the destination.
INDUSTRY PROJECT OR WORK EXPERIENCE
This is the final requirement that you must satisfy before receiving your award.
There are two options available to you to satisfy this requirement:
Alternative 1.
If you work in the industry that you have been studying; you may submit a reference from your employer, in an effort to satisfy this industry (ie. workplace project) requirement; on the basis of RPL (ie. recognition for prior learning), achieved through your current and past work experience.
The reference must indicate that you have skills and an awareness of your industry, which is sufficient for you to work in a position of responsibility.
Alternative 2.
If you do not work in the relevant industry, you need to undertake a project as follows.
Procedure for a Workplace Project
This project is a major part of the course involving the number of hours relevant to the course (see above). Although the course does not contain mandatory work requirements, work experience is seen as highly desirable.
This project is based on applications in the work place and specifically aims to provide the student with the opportunity to apply and integrate skills and knowledge developed through various areas of formal study.
Students will design this project in consultation with a tutor to involve industry based activities in the area of specialized study which they select to follow in the course. The project outcomes may take the form of a written report, folio, visuals or a mixture of forms. Participants with relevant, current or past work experience will be given exemption from this project if they can provide suitable references from employers that show they have already fulfilled the requirements of this project.
For courses that involve more than 100 hours, more than one workplace project topic may be selected. For example, 200 hours may be split into two projects each of 100 hours. This will offer the student better scope to fulfill the needs of their course and to meet the number of hours required. Alternatively, the student may wish to do one large project with a duration of 200 hours.
Students will be assessed on how well they achieve the goals and outcomes they originally set as part of their negotiations with their tutor. During each 100 hours of the project, the students will present three short progress reports. These progress reports will be taken into account when evaluating the final submission. The tutor must be satisfied that the work submitted is original.
If the student wishes to do one large 200 hour report, then only three progressive reports will be needed (however the length of each report will be longer).
Tips for Larger Scale Catering
Know as far in advance as possible where and when your event will take place. Remember that it will take longer to prepare for a large number of guests than a small dinner party- menus will need to be developed, food must be delivered and additional staffing may also need to be arranged. This does not mean that you cannot take on late notice events but remember that you need to be realistic about what can be delivered.
Find out as soon as possible how many people will be attending the event and whether any of the guests have food allergies, food requirements related to their religion or other special requirements. This will allow you to adapt recipes in good time to ensure there are suitable options for everyone. Foods provided at your event will then need to be clearly labeled so that all guests understand what is in it.
Establish a budget as it is essential to know how much money can be allocated to catering- food / staffing etc. If you are catering for event for profit you are likely to provide quotes per person based on different menus. Quotes should be realistic but must also make you a worthwhile profit.
Check out the location of the event making sure there is adequate cooking/ storage facilities available at the event. Some equipment can be hired for events but this will have cost implications
Decide on how food will be served e.g. will the event involve a formal seated meat or buffet service. There will clearly be staffing issues depending on which type of service is used.
When catering for large group/ functions it is essential that the food you prepare is safe as well as being wholesome and tasty. Food poisoning must always be a central consideration as it can be a miserable and potentially fatal illness for those who are affected, while a food poisoning outbreak can also cause a catering business to be closed down. Here are a few considerations to take into account but remember there are likely to be legal regulations that you will need to adhere to so further research into local regulations will be required.
- Ensure you have adequate storage facilities
- Cook foods to the correct temperature
- Check the temperature of refrigerators and freezers at regular intervals
- Avoid cross contamination for example by bacteria, chemicals and foreign bodies
ENROL or Use our FREE Course Advice Service to Connect with a Tutor