Education

Tourism and hospitality studies very popular with Sri Lankan students

Hathoon Sheriffdeen

The Principal of The City College, Sandy Lloyd has been in Sri Lanka this week talking to many students about studying in the United Kingdom. His seminars and presentations are some of the best attended by any UK visiting academic institution - many are packed with waiting students left outside venues - what is the attraction of The City College? I had the opportunity to meet him at his hotel.

Q: Why are you here in Sri Lanka?

A: As Principal of The City College I have been coming to Sri Lanka, at least two or three times a year for the past ten years - although representatives of The City College have been coming to this island for the past thirty years.

The aim of my visit is many fold - naturally I am here to explain the ethos of our college - a secondary aim is to meet the parents of our students and give them an update on the progress of their sons and daughters, sometimes I meet the sponsors and let them know how things are going. Whilst I am here I also meet many academics to discuss the methodology we use in teaching at The City College, we have formed many partnerships with schools and colleges over the years.

Q: What is the attraction of studying in the United Kingdom? Is it better than studying here in Sri Lanka?

A: Studying in the UK is neither better nor worse than in Sri Lanka - to suggest that, implies that everything is constant - it is not. There are good schools and bad schools, in the UK and in Sri Lanka; there are good students and bad students, like there are good teachers and bad teachers.

For those fortunate enough to study in the United Kingdom they will have the opportunity to broaden their knowledge in many fields. With the intense competition between the many thousands of universities and colleges that we have in the United Kingdom they can be assured of choice.

Just because you have a piece of paper does not mean you are entitled to a privileged position - an academic primadonna - you still have to prove your worth - this applies in the UK where graduate employment is a problem because it is not a God given right.

There are some obvious positive points such as the changing socio-economic status of Sri Lanka that is affecting education.

It is no good relying solely on the course text books that were written many years ago, when the state of the business world is changing by the day - students must be aware of what is happening in the world around them - not just here in Sri Lanka but everywhere; globalisation means that business in one part of the World can have a major impact on business life here - for example the benefits of the growing tea exports to China, the problems caused by not having a fully functional container terminal at the main port and the importance of ensuring that Mihin Airlines survives and expands are just a few areas of thought.

I am proud to say that our faculty at The City College have much career experience and are all well travelled to ensure that they can add much personal experience to their lessons and lectures.

Q: I have heard that Tourism and Hospitality studies are very popular with Sri Lankan students.

A: Well as tourism is the third largest area for GDP on this island you would expect that. I am a Fellow of the Institute of Travel and Tourism, the UK's leading tourism body, and I consider that a successful Tourism industry is vital for Sri Lanka. In the future, within ten years, it will be the #1 source of GDP, I am convinced about that.

I am pleased to read in the Daily News of Feb19 that SriLankan Airlines will take on an active role in promoting solutions for the meetings industry through the reorganisation of its meetings, incentives, conferences and events division.

We teach 'Event Management' to all our Hospitality and Tourism students - we were one of the first academic institutions to bring this management discipline into our curriculum nearly ten years ago.

I would like to see Sri Lanka divert some of the European conference market away the USA and into the tourist areas - do you know it is cheaper to hold a three day conference in Sri Lanka than it is to host it in London? And that includes flights and hotel costs.... something worth thinking about.

Q: We have talked about many things but back to square one and the difficulty in obtaining a student visa. The City College has had a very good reputation for their students obtaining visas - is there a secret?

A: Well - a big question. First of all it is very easy - let me repeat that - it is very easy to obtain a student visa.

The catch is that you must be a true student. If your aims are anything except being a true student - we will either catch you out on interview or the High Commission will catch you out. There are, as I see it, two key factors; you must have a good command of the English language and you must be able to pay the fees and living costs in the UK.

Q: What happens to students when they finish their studies?

A: Well, most will take advantage of recent changes in legislation allowing graduates to remain in the UK for two years under the International Graduate Scheme - the majority of our Sri Lankan students obtain UK work permits that allow them to take advantage of their new found knowledge and enter careers to repay some of the financial outlay from their sponsors.

Q: Why doesn't The City College give any scholarships or fee reductions?

A: We strongly believe that everyone should pay the same fees. Our fees are some of the lowest in the country because we have kept the same fee levels for over five years - we do not raise fees just to suggest we give a scholarship and lower them again.

We do not have inexperienced faculty - our faculty are mature, professional, well-qualified and mainly native English teachers. For most courses we supply the text books at no extra charge!

Q: What problems do Sri Lankan students face when arriving in the United Kingdom?.

A: I suppose the initial problem of culture change. However the multi-cultural nature of London is a great leveller and they all soon find their feet in the city.

American Express partners ACCA Sri Lanka

ACCA Sri Lanka, partnered Nations Trust Bank, the franchise holder for American Express cards in Sri Lanka with a comprehensive settlement plan for ACCA students and members.

The American Express Extended Settlement Plan enables students to pay fees in six equal monthly instalments for examinations, registration and annual subscriptions as well as giving ACCA members the option of paying their membership fees under this plan.

Having signed the MOU with CEO of Nations Trust Bank Zulfiqar Zavahir, Country Manager for Sri Lanka and the Maldives ACCA Sri Lanka, Aruni Rajakarier states that this is yet another value addition ACCA Sri Lanka is offering existing and prospective students who are gearing for a globally accepted qualification.

"The settlement plan also eases the financial burden to a great extent as the cost of examinations and registrations et al is spread over a manageable period of time. It's also fitting that we, as a globally renowned professional accountancy body, partner one of the most respected and recognised branded card companies in the world to leverage on the synergies each of us has and extend those to our students and members."

Apart from the ESP benefits, ACCA students can avail themselves of the privileges and benefits enjoyed by 75,000 American Express card members in Sri Lanka including free overseas travel insurance, savings at Keells Super, no surcharge on gas & fuel, convenient utility payments, and dining specials.

A 5% of the total will be charged as a handling fee.