Originally from western Nepal in a place called Pokhara, Sandip came to New Zealand in 2014 to begin studying a Diploma in Hotel and Tourism Management at Southern Institute of Technology’s Queenstown campus. Feeling geographically at home in Queenstown as it is very similar to his home in Nepal, which is also a city on a lake and gateway to the Annapurna Circuit, a popular trail in the Himalayas, Sandip enjoyed the beauty of his adopted city and settled well into his studies, despite being the first and at the time, only, Nepalese student at SIT in Queenstown.
Having studied Hotel Management back in Nepal, Sandip did have some experience with the industry and while studying in Queenstown he also garnered experience working at the Rees Hotel and Luxury Apartments as a room attendee, as well as working in the front office as a porter/concierge.
A little later down the track, Sandip acquired a new position at the Crown Plaza Hotel and on graduating is still working there, now as Hotel Auditor.
With his background in hospitality, Sandip explains that “from a young age, I have always been surrounded by the hospitality industry and my interest was always in guest services. I wanted to study hospitality and I heard about Queenstown and the emerging hospitality businesses which attracted me to come to New Zealand. I also did a lot of research on different tertiary institutes and discovered that SIT was the best place to study due to being very well recognised in New Zealand and I wanted to start my career with a qualification from SIT”.
Sandip had expected a high standard of teaching and says his expectations were matched.
“My course was really interesting, tutors were helpful and caring and facilities were fantastic, exactly what a tertiary institute should be providing for its students. The course was a mix of practical and theory but I enjoyed the field trips and demonstrations of what we had learned best”.
Reflecting on skills he has acquired through his studies, Sandip explains that the tutors taught useful information such as how to deal with guests and daily hospitality issues, as well as how to present yourself and tips and tricks to make every day smooth running in the world of hospitality.
Within his current work as Hotel Auditor at the Crowne Plaza Hotel, Sandip’s role includes guest service, hotel auditing and many other tasks which are required in the day to day running of a hotel.
“I would highly recommend SIT to any newcomers and to those who are looking at studying in the field of hospitality. I would also like to thank SIT for accepting me into the programme and giving me the skills to get my start in the business of hospitality”.