Competent qualitative catering services are in high demand everywhere and women have a special gift to develop the skills needed to become professional cateresses. Training such professionals with high standards and a Christian spirit of cheerful service and dedication is the aim of Wavecrest College in Lagos , an initiative of some faithful of Opus Dei in collaboration with others who share this vision.
As a way of creating awareness about the various opportunities available to women in the hospitality industry, Wavecrest College, Lagos recently organised a three-day seminar.
According to Ifeoma Nwabachili, the registrar of the institution, the essence of the seminar was to change the society's perception and attitude towards hospitality management. She explained that with the growth and development of the industrial enterprise, which "has altered the character and culture of the society," there was an imperative to also improve on the form of technical education being offered in hospitality management.
She noted that the college, which is a Monotechnic, emphasizes specialization and maintains a close relationship with the industry to grasp the dynamic changes taking place at various times.
She said, "Wavecrest College seeks to deepen and extend the profile of a career in hospitality, with broad-based knowledge and skills training, so that people will no longer regard it as a course for drop-outs or people who do not have the right qualification."
The college, established by the Women's Board Educational Co-operation Society, a non-governmental organisation in 1972, currently runs a full time national diploma programme in Hotel and Catering Management, and a certificate course in Hospitality Operations. There is also the Family and Home Management Orientation Programme.
Nwabachili stated that the school currently accommodates 60 full time students, but can take about 240 students at a time. She also noted that one of the aims of the seminar was to provide young girls with the opportunity to learn about hospitality and tourism career opportunities.
On the benefits of the college's various programmes, she said, " employers of labour are asking for our graduates. They are in high demand and we cannot meet one percent of the demands. Students who leave here are able to get jobs easily and are able to sustain themselves by doing things and making products that they can sell."
She also revealed that the college was in the process of obtaining approval from the National Board for Technical Education (NBTE) to run Higher National Diploma (HND) programmes.
On career opportunities, she said, "for a start, you can be an educator, an entrepreneur such as Mr Bigg's. You can work in an airline, restaurant or hotel. You can even go into welfare catering in schools, hospitals, prisons, or you can go into publishing or information technology."
About 450 participants attended the seminar.