DUBLIN - A new semester has begun at Ireland's Shannon College of Hotel Management with 32 Chinese students enrolled this year at the world-renowned school.

The college offers a bachelor of business in international hotel management and also a certificate in English language studies for its international students.

The high standards in the college have made it one of the top hotel management schools in the world and students travel from around the globe to Shannon for their training.

Director of the college, Phillip J. Smyth, said the high level of education and practical experience offered to students prepared them for working life after their degree.

"I think we offer a package. First of all, we have an honors level education up to level 8 and we combine that with practical work here in the college and also two-year long industry placements where students experience the real work of hotels under the college's supervision, organized by the college at an operative level and then at a trainee management level," said Smyth.

"We're in our 60th year and we can actually say that for the last 60 years we've always succeeded in having all our students who have passed their examinations in positions, a lot of them in supervisory or junior management positions when they graduate," Smyth added.

There are few colleges in Ireland and indeed in Europe that can boast 100 percent employment after graduation and the Shannon College of Hotel Management is well known in China for its success in hospitality education.

Hotel management lecturer Sean T. Ruane said China's economic growth meant opportunities in hotel management in the country would be increasing rapidly in the next few years.

"Most of the major companies around the world would look to China as a growing market and a growing middle class market," he said.

"They're going to have disposable income to spend so the Chinese students that would come to us would be aware of that and would be positioning themselves to go back and manage hotels like that in the future. That would be one of our key strengths here, we actually were one of the first people on the ground in China recruiting students to come and do hospitality management courses in Ireland," Ruane said.

One Chinese student, Jia Liu, who is in her third year at the college and has just finished a year long hotel placement, said the combination of classroom education and practical experience was an excellent way to learn the skills necessary for hotel management.

"For Asian students I think, we don't have experience at all before we come to this college because we get money from our parents and we focus on our study so we don't know what is hotel management. I know it in the past year's workplacement. At first we have no experience, but after twelve months I can do accommodation supervisor so it's a fairly big step for me and I think for other students as well," she said.

The business and tourism sectors in the west coast of Ireland have always been an attraction for visitors and investors and Phillip J. Smyth said the mutual cooperation between China and Ireland has been a factor in the success of the college.

"I think trade relations between Ireland and China are developing all the time," said Smyth. "There has been a huge increase in the Chinese hotel industry, there are lots and lots of top quality hotels being built and have been built in China following the Olympics and the World Expo and we can help China by giving some of its students the benefit of Ireland's expertise in hotel management."

Smyth said the college always welcomed Chinese students as they were focused and had strong business minds.

"They're very well suited for hospitality; they're very courteous, very welcoming, and very calm. I think the combination of our education and the ability and talents of Chinese students work very well together."

The students arriving from China each year are faced with a significant culture gap but Smyth said the safety of the country as well as the typical Irish friendliness helped students to integrate quickly.

Mucong Niu, like Jia Liu, has just finished a year long workplacement in County Cork in the southwest of the country and has developed a distinctive Irish accent and an admiration for the country's sights and traditions.

"Ireland is an absolutely lovely place, it's just like a big garden, there are plants everywhere and the air is absolutely fresh. You can get everything you want, enjoy your life, have a cup of tea and sit and enjoy the sunset as well," he said.

The Shannon College of Hotel Management's strong educational program continues to attract increasing numbers of Chinese students each year and as Irish-Chinese relations continue to grow, this is just another link to develop between the two countries.

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