On Saturday, 15 April, future hospitality leaders from around the world came together at Avani+ Riverside Bangkok Hotel, where the AIHM campus is located, for a momentous occasion: the first big steps in their educational journey. AIHM’s Induction Weekend welcomed new and returning students with an array of activities and special events.
As a team, we were incredibly excited and proud to welcome all our students and share this important moment with them. See some highlights of the weekend below.
Welcome Reception
The weekend got off to a shining start on the 9th floor of the Avani+ Riverside with views over the Chao Phraya River and the Bangkok skyline. The breakfast reception allowed new students, senior students, parents, faculty, staff and specially invited guest experts to mingle and get to know each other.
Alongside the leisurely mingling, students also got down to important business – completing registrations, picking up welcome packets full of information, and getting set up on AIHM’s online learning platforms that allow 24-access to learning opportunities outside the classroom.
Students introduced themselves and shared their dreams. The occasion was more than a mere icebreaker. To highlight AIHM’s close-knit community and collaborative approach to success, students started out by sharing their dreams with each other. Listening to their fellow students, they were able to understand each other’s goals and begin to walk together and support each other along their shared journey.
AIHM to Connect
Connection is key. During their three and half years at AIHM, students will forge strong and lasting connections with one another. The AIHM to Connect event began building these important relationships. Students stood together in unison and revealed some of their favourite things. As students introduced themselves and their passions, they began to recognise the significance of both their similarities and differences.
AIHM brings together like-minded individuals and as students shared their interests, they began to see they were more alike than different. The things they share in common will be foundational links in the professional networks they are beginning to build during their time at AIHM. At the same time, their differences will also bring them closer. In the weeks and years ahead, students will learn from each other, inspire each other and play vital roles in each other’s growth.
Dress for Success
AIHM’s hospitality students proudly wear the attire of a young hotel executive in training. Mindsets and outward appearance go hand in hand, reinforcing each other and propelling students toward success. During the Dress for Success session, students slipped into winning mindsets and a professional outlook. Women explored elegant and professional ways to wear their hair and scarves, while gentlemen were able to take advantage of a barber and turn their attention to details such as neckties and dress shoes.
AIHM to Explore
AIHM’s students enjoy an exceptional campus. They’re able to step from the door of the classroom directly into the Avani+ Riverside Bangkok Hotel and stroll within a few minutes to the adjacent Anantara Riverside Bangkok Resort and Riverside Plaza. Our staff led new students on a campus tour, introducing them to the locations where they’ll be learning during their practical arts studies and other significant moments of their AIHM education.
Students also discovered the numerous Minor International restaurants and lifestyle shops located in the Plaza and hotels. As an AIHM student, they receive special savings and benefits at nearly all of these outlets – a small but special bonus for being part of the AIHM community.
AIHM to Question
AIHM students learn to question – to investigate new ways of doing things, to seek out deeper understandings of topics, to improve themselves, to evolve, to grow and to innovate.
During the AIHM to Question session, students were invited to become more comfortable posing questions and advocating for their learning inside and outside of the classroom. Being confident and able to pose questions is an important skill that will help them not only in their academic studies, but as they progress into their internships as well. Questions empower students to proactively access all the learning opportunities available to them.
New students mined senior students’ experiences and knowledge, posing questions such as the following:
- How can I succeed in studying at AIHM?
- How do you see yourself in the next 10 years?
- What is your dream?
- How is your life here in Bangkok and at AIHM?
- What subjects do you like the most?
- How can I become more punctual?
- How should I approach learning?
- Do you have any tips for time management, please?
- How did you choose what department you wanted to work in for your internship?
- What made you decide to do your internship in finance?
AIHM to Reflect
As our new students became acquainted with the welcoming atmosphere of AIHM, we also wanted them to understand how reflection is embedded throughout their journey with AIHM.
Reflection forms a vital part of their learning as they move between classroom studies and practical application of theories in real-world settings. Our young leaders-in-training compare what they have learned in the classroom with actual hotel operations, reinforcing and refining their knowledge and skills.
By starting the reflection process from their first days on campus, students prepared themselves for the AIHM experience ahead of them. Building a practice of reflection ensures that when AIHM’s hospitality students are ready to choose their career tracks, they’ll make time to think about where they have been, where they’re going, and how their current trajectory aligns with what they want to achieve.
AIHM Hospitality Relay Races
AIHM’s students have a bright career ahead of them. Some parts of their journey will be marathons, and other segments will be sprints, but during the induction weekend they joined in actual relay races. The fun games introduced students to some of the hospitality lingo and general knowledge that will support their studies. The races also demonstrated the excitement that can come with learning and progressing toward their goals.
AIHM to Lead
Over the next three and a half years, students will develop their leadership capacities. As future hospitality executives, they’ll steer the industry’s next innovations and transformations. Keeping this objective in mind, AIHM provides numerous opportunities to assume leadership roles in our community.
In addition, students are encouraged to take initiative and forge their own opportunities with AIHM’s support. Whether launching clubs that align with their passions or establishing personal projects inspired by their interests, students learn to take charge and cultivate their own leadership styles. The AIHM to Lead session highlighted the array of opportunities available and the prominence leadership skills will take over the semesters to come.
Next Steps
The Induction Weekend was unforgettable. We are so excited to learn more about our newest students and their dreams as we walk alongside them in the next steps of their journey. After spending just a few days getting to know them and glimpsing their passion and ideas, we can already tell they have bright futures ahead of them.
Would You Like to Join in the Excitement?
AIHM is always on the lookout for bright young minds with big dreams for the hospitality industry. Can you see yourself at one of our upcoming welcome weekends? Check out more information about our BBA Degree in Global Hospitality Management.
