With a goal to become independent and create her own networks, Christine Madrid faced her fears and applied for the A J Hackett Bungy work experience programme.
A NZ Diploma in Travel and Tourism student at the Southern Institute of Technology, Christine also wanted to improve on her customer services skill set, learn about staff culture and how A J Hackett Bungy operates.
The internship lasted for five days, during which she got to experience working in different roles on different sites.
“Day one, I was at the Nevis site, where I got to shadow their front line and photo and video staff,” Christine says.
“I was able to learn how their booking system works.”
She was also very fortunate to try the products they offer on the Nevis site. These include the Catapult, Swing and Bungy.
Day’s two to four were spent at the Kawarau Bridge where Christine again shadowed front line, photo and video staff.
“I wasn’t able to do the more safety-sensitive procedures, because I wasn’t trained,” says Christine.
On her last day, Christine spent half the day at the Queenstown Bungy Centre working at frontline again and helping to check people in, then the rest of the day up at the Skyline to their Ledge Bungy and Swing site.
Whilst there, she spent time with the photo and video team helping them make printed photos and goodie bags for the customers to take away.
Christine says a normal day at AJ Hackett would involve her meeting customers, checking them in for their booking and talking to them about where they're from and how their holiday is going.
“My experience was great,” she says.
“I got to meet their amazing and friendly staff and meet people that are so excited to bungy jump.”
“What I enjoyed the most during the internship was being a part of people’s experience as they bungy. Most people go there to face their fears and to be a part of their journey was amazing.”
Throughout her studies, Christine has found that the tourism industry is very vast with plenty of job opportunities. She has enjoyed the small class sizes at SIT and the fact that relationships can easily be built with both the tutors and classmates.
“I hope my study will be able to take me to different places around the world,” Christine says.