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Hospitality Internships
Having relevant work experience is a critical factor in finding the best possible role after graduation. That’s why many hospitality degrees incorporate professional internships.
Quick facts
→ Hospitality internhsips provide relevant and invaluable hands-on industry experience
→ Hospitality internships can expose you to hiring networks and pen the door to employment
→ Hospitality internships offer exciting travel opportunities and are a great vehicle for personal growth
→ Hospitality internships will help you build the required skills for a successful career
Hospitality management internships
In an academic context, an internship is defined as a temporary period of work usually attached to a degree program, which is designed to give a student some relevant experience in the field they’ve chosen to study.
For hospitality business students, this usually involves time spent working in a hotel, restaurant or similar premises.
Where your hospitality degree offers more than one internship, it can be an opportunity to try out other sectors that may be of interest, such as travel and tourism, luxury management, finance, event management, sports, or sustainability.
Ultimately, this experience can play a major part in determining your career path after graduation.
Why intern in hospitality?: benefits of hospitality internships
There are many benefits to a hospitality internship program, but the most important is the work experience itself – no matter how hands-on and business focused your education, there is simply nothing to match having the opportunity to put what you’ve learned into practice in a real-world professional setting.
And not just any setting. Study with a highly regarded and well-connected hospitality school and you will have privileged access to internship opportunities at prestigious brands. These are rarely advertised to the general public; instead, brands come direct to the top schools, because they trust the knowledge, professional polish and work ethic of the students they’ll encounter.
It doesn’t mean securing your dream job posting is easy – you still have to shine at your interview – but don’t underestimate the value of a ‘foot in the door’.
Let’s take a look at some of the main ways that internships for hospitality students can help set you up for a successful career in the industry.
Practical experience
Theoretical knowledge only gets you so far—practical experience is the true game-changer. Internships offer a hands-on immersion into the industry of hotels, restaurants, and events, where every task becomes a lesson and every challenge an opportunity for growth. Through practical experience, you not only get to practice your classroom learning but you can also develop invaluable skills that set you apart in the job market.
From mastering guest interactions to understanding operational intricacies, each day of your internship is a step closer to career readiness. On top of this, practical experience doesn’t just end with skills—it builds confidence, adaptability, and a deeper understanding of industry nuances. Plus, it can help you find which area within hospitality you most want to work in.
Employability
In today’s competitive job market, securing a fulfilling career after earning a hospitality business degree is not just about academic achievement. It’s also about demonstrating practical skills and industry readiness.
An internship plays a big role in this as it adds a valuable endorsement to your resume – one that is certain to get you noticed by potential employers seeking recruits who can hit the ground running.
On top of this, the relationships and networks you cultivate during your internship are equally instrumental in shaping your career trajectory. The mentors, supervisors, and colleagues you connect with become invaluable resources, offering guidance, support, and professional insights. These relationships often extend beyond the internship period and can serve as the gateway to your first job after graduation. Whether it’s through direct employment offers or valuable referrals, the connections forged during your internship can significantly enhance your prospects in the job market.
Networking
Beyond the practical skills and industry insights gained, hospitality internships offer a unique platform for expanding professional networks—a crucial asset in today’s interconnected job market. Whether you’re working alongside seasoned industry veterans or collaborating with fellow interns, each interaction presents an opportunity to forge meaningful connections.
These relationships extend far beyond the confines of your internship period. The mentors and supervisors you engage with can provide invaluable guidance, career advice, and mentorship long after your internship concludes. Their insights and recommendations can open doors to new opportunities and pave the way for career advancement.
Networking isn’t just about collecting business cards or LinkedIn connections—it’s about cultivating genuine relationships based on mutual respect and shared interests. By actively engaging with colleagues, attending industry events, and participating in professional development activities during your internship, you’re laying the groundwork for a robust professional network that can support your career growth for years to come.
Personal growth
One of the most enticing aspects of hospitality internships is the potential for travel. Whether you’re interning at a luxury resort in a tropical paradise or gaining experience at a bustling city hotel, these opportunities allow you to immerse yourself in diverse cultures, cuisines, and traditions. From front-of-house interactions with international guests to behind-the-scenes insights into local customs, each day presents a new adventure and a chance to broaden your horizons.
This benefit extends beyond just seeing the world. Internships in the hospitality sector foster personal growth in a lot of ways. You’ll develop resilience as you navigate challenging situations, adaptability as you acclimate to new environments, and empathy as you interact with guests from all walks of life.
These soft skills are invaluable not only in hospitality but also in any future career path you choose to pursue, making you more confident and capable when you look for a full-time role. Plus, your internships will help you get a deeper understanding of your career aspirations, whether that’s working in a remote resort or a high-end restaurant.
Skill development
One of the most significant advantages of internships is the opportunity to hone skills specific to hospitality operations. Whether it’s mastering point-of-sale systems, perfecting the art of mixology, or fine-tuning culinary techniques, interns gain hands-on experience in the tools and practices that form the backbone of hospitality establishments.
Beyond technical proficiency, you’ll also cultivate essential soft skills crucial for professional success. Interns navigate a wide range of challenges, sharpening their abilities to thrive in fast-paced, customer-centric environments. This means that you’ll be able to work on skills such as customer service, event management, communication, and problem-solving. These skills are transferable and valuable across various roles within the hospitality sector
Unlock Global Opportunities with Glion’s International Hospitality Business Degree
What do hospitality interns do?
The answer to this question largely depends on the number of internship programs that are built into the degree course. At Glion, our hospitality degree at Bachelor’s level involves two separate internships, in semesters two and five.
This creates a natural progression: for the first internship, you will be placed within an operational environment, giving you a fully grounded, everyday context in which to deploy the skills and competencies you learned in your first, operations-focused semester of study.
When it comes to your second internship, with a year of academic study behind you, it’s an opportunity (and a requirement) to take on a more senior position in the hotel management chain of command; or in the industry sector which you are targeting for your future career.
Examples of internships recently taken by our students include:
First internships:
→ F&B Intern, Four Seasons
→ Rooms Division Intern, Rosewood
→ Front Office Intern, Jumeirah
→ Housekeeping Intern, Accor
→ Banquet Service Intern, IHG
→ Spa & Wellness Intern, Shangri-La
→ Restaurant Intern, Kempinski
Second internships:
→ Guest Relations Intern, Marriott
→ Customer Experience Intern, LVMH
→ Client Advisor, Richemont Group
→ PR and Events Assistant, MCI
→ Event Coordinator, BMF Media
→ Credit Management Intern, UBS
→ Business Management Intern, KPMG
Are hospitality internships paid?
The answer to this question will depend on the country you are working in as well as the nature of the internship contract you sign.
Some countries, including France and Switzerland, stipulate a fixed amount that all employers have to at least match (some will pay more, but none can pay less). Other national authorities do not oblige wages to be paid to interns, so in these countries it is up to the employer how much, if any, they will pay.
It’s a complicated picture, and this is why it pays to look for a hospitality business school which has a well-resourced and highly professional career services team, which can guide you through the process of finding the right internship destination and then signing the right contract for your employment.
Skills learned on hospitality internships
Internships for hospitality students offer plenty of skill-building opportunities. Working on your professional skills is vital to help you succeed in the industry and to help you advance your career. Here’s a look at some of the key skills that this on-the-job training can help you build:
Communication skills
Internships in the hotel industry serve as immersive environments where you’ll refine both verbal and written communication skills through interactions with guests, colleagues, and supervisors. Effective communication lies at the heart of seamless guest experiences and collaborative teamwork, making it a cornerstone skill in hospitality.
Critical thinking skills
The fast-paced nature of hospitality presents a range of challenges that demand sharp analytical thinking and problem-solving abilities. Through your hotel management internship, you’ll develop a knack for evaluating situations, assessing options, and making informed decisions in real-time, bolstering your critical thinking prowess.
Interpersonal skills
Hospitality thrives on positive relationships and cohesive teamwork. Internships in the hospitality industry provide solid ground for honing interpersonal skills like empathy, active listening, and conflict resolution, building harmonious interactions with individuals across all levels of the company.
Adaptability
Flexibility is key in an industry characterized by ever-changing demands and environments. Internships for hospitality students offer firsthand experiences that nurture adaptability, enabling you to seamlessly adjust to evolving circumstances, roles, and responsibilities, and thrive amidst dynamic challenges
Cultural sensitivity
With a global clientele and multicultural workforce, cultural sensitivity is paramount in hospitality. Internships afford opportunities to engage with individuals from varied cultural backgrounds, fostering an appreciation for different customs, traditions, and perspectives, and enhancing your ability to provide inclusive and culturally competent service.
Time management
Juggling multiple tasks and priorities is a hallmark of hospitality internships. You’ll refine your time management skills as you learn to prioritize tasks, allocate resources efficiently, and meet deadlines, ensuring smooth operations and exceptional guest experiences.
Attention to detail
Meticulous attention to detail is essential in delivering impeccable service across all facets of hospitality. Internships instill a keen eye for detail, ensuring that every aspect of the guest experience, from room preparations to food presentation, is executed flawlessly to exceed expectations.
Leadership skills
As you grow in confidence and competence, internships may present opportunities to step into leadership roles. You’ll learn to inspire and motivate team members, delegate responsibilities effectively, and make strategic decisions that contribute to the overall success and growth of the hospitality establishment.
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Hotel internships
If you’ve been fortunate enough to stay in a luxury hotel, one of the things you will surely have noticed is how things are just so. The bed is perfectly made; the bathroom is spotless and every complimentary amenity is neatly arranged; you are greeted warmly on arrival, perhaps even using your name.
None of this happens by accident. These hotels are finely-tuned machines, and if you want to be in control of the machine you have to understand exactly how it works – from the ground up. That’s why degree courses will give you skills training as well as a great hospitality management internship.
For Bachelor students, most hospitality degrees – including Glion’s – kick-off this learning process with a first semester devoted to the practical skills (housekeeping, front desk, F&B service, etc.) that add up to a top quality guest experience.
It’s the internship in hotel management where that process goes up a gear. As an intern you are out in the real world of hospitality; facing actual customers and experiencing real-life situations where your actions (or inactions) can influence guest loyalty and ultimately the reputation of the hotel!
What can you learn from a hotel internship?
For many hospitality degree students, a hotel internship represents their first actual work experience in the hospitality industry – that makes it an incredibly important rite of passage, as well as an excellent addition to your resume when the time comes to forge your hospitality career.
What you learn in terms of operational skills depends on your choice of role. An internship in a restaurant within a hotel will teach you more about food service, while a general internship for hospitality management will have you oversee staff from a wider range of roles. But in all situations you will enhance your soft skills, such as communication, teamworking and problem solving.
Hospitality internships are also a chance to experience life in different countries. We encourage – where possible – our students to choose internships away from their home country and campus location, because we believe that experiencing different environments is the best way to gain the intercultural fluency and language skills which are highly prized within the global hospitality business.
“My first internship was as a sommelier in a gastronomic restaurant. The position was challenging and helped me grow. I learnt many skills I could not live without and that help me today in my new internship, such as patience and flexibility. I believe this first practical arts internship is a necessary step to create a ladder that helps you reach the top.”
By Orsola Tringali
How do I get an internship at a hotel?
If you are not too choosy about your brand or location, it’s possible to secure an internship in a hotel by simply approaching the hotel or resort directly.
However, there are plenty of good reasons to intern as part of a hospitality degree at a leading school. These include:
★ Boosting your options – the top hospitality schools have dedicated internship teams that can deliver multiple opportunities for students to pick from. For example, Glion Bachelor students have an average of 5.7 internship offers each, meaning that you can pick the best hospitality management internship to suit your career goals.
★ Access to the most prestigious brands – high end hotel operators live or die by the quality of service they offer, so naturally they target the best schools when searching for suitable interns. These hospitality companies will often only accept interns from the top schools because they know they can get interns who can hit the ground running.
★ Being better prepared – the world of work is tough and challenging, especially for a young person fresh from high school. With a typical hospitality degree curriculum, you are given a strong grounding in operational processes before you begin your internship. This can help you make the most of the hospitality industry experience when you start as an intern.
Our Hospitality internship programs
At Glion, we have close ties to a lot of the top hospitality employers in the world. This helps us ensure that we get the best internships in the hospitality industry for our students. We have designed each course so that the internships help to reinforce the skills and knowledge you have gained in the theoretical portions of the course. Our two bachelor’s degrees both offer three internships spaced throughout the course.
Bachelor’s in international hospitality business:
Semester 2: Hospitality operations practice
Semester 5: Management practice
Semester 8: On-the-job experience & research project.
Bachelor’s in luxury business:
Semester 2: Professional immersion
Semester 5: management practice
Semester 8: On-the-job experience & research project
Our master’s degrees all offer you a six-month-long internship in hospitality at the end of your course. This will help you learn how to apply your skills and know-how. Some of our MSc courses also offer an optional hospitality immersion program at the start of the course to help you find your feet ready for study.
We have over 350 recruiters visit our campus every year, meaning that we have access to a wide range of great hotel management internships open to us.
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