Travelling into Tertiary Studies

The qualification:

Certificate in Advanced Travel, Tourism and Business
Sir George Seymour National College of Tourism and Travel
Phone: 0800 10 10 20
Website: www.sirgeorge.co.nz
Email: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

The course

Sir George Seymour's Certificate in Advanced Travel, Tourism and Business is a 37-week, full time course, preparing people for a career in the travel and tourism industry, focusing specifically on outbound travel.

The programme is Sir George's flagship course, and offers three level three NZQA qualifications and one level four NZQA qualification concurrently, plus an International Air Transport Association (IATA) qualification, which is recognised internationally. The certificate is designed to provide students with an understanding of the business of travel and tourism, including airfare construction, the rules and regulations of international travel, foreign exchange, customer service and communication skills, intercultural communication, the Galileo computer reservation system, land transport, accommodation, key attractions and geography.

Sir George Seymour College was first established in Christchurch in 1991 and now covers the breadth of the country. The advanced diploma is offered at campuses in Auckland, Hamilton, Wellington and Dunedin, as well as the original Christchurch campus.

Students complete the course in unit standard blocks, in a mix of internal assessment and regular testing, encapsulated in 12 unit standards throughout the nine-month course.

To gain entry applicants must be a minimum age of 18 years on entry to the course, and have received NCEA level 2 (60 credits) plus NCEA Level 1 (20 credits) or equivalent, or unit standards, course, study, or work experience deemed equivalent.
There are intakes at regular intervals through the year.

The total cost of the course is $6,590, and student loans and allowances are available. Graduated students have an over 90 percent job placement rate.

Sir George Seymour is fully registered and accredited with the New Zealand Qualifications Authority and follows guidelines set by the Aviation, Tourism and Travel Training Organisation (ATTTO). Students are eligible to apply for Government Student Loans and Allowances.

What graduates think:

Jason Russell, 24
Travel Management Consultant
FCm Travel Solutions
Mt Eden, Auckland

After spending almost four years travelling and working in hospitality, I came back to New Zealand and decided it was time for a change.

I decided to get into the travel industry, and chose Sir George Seymour because of its track record of gaining its students employment.

I found the advanced certificate to be a lot of fun, with some great teachers, and enjoyed the fact that the year was spent on a broad range of topics with regular internal assessment, rather than just one big cram at the end of the year.

I decided early on that I wanted to become a travel consultant, and so learning GDS systems like Galileo gave me a good understanding of fare construction and quoting, which has helped me a lot in my job now.

The practical focus of the course helped me to gain an understanding of the both the most popular destinations visited by kiwis and the practicalities of international travel, which was backed up by my own experience overseas.

I started working with FCm Travel Solutions in the Corporate Connections area, but as soon as a corporate consultant position came up I applied, as that's what I trained specifically for. I thought why wait, I should use the information I learnt in the course, and give it a go.

Sir George gave me a good base, and I've also learnt a huge amount since taking up the role of corporate consultant.

What employers think:

Fran Purcell
Area leader
FCm Travel Solutions
Mt Eden, Auckland

The Sir George Seymour Advanced Certificate is definitely a good course for candidates to have, and as it forms a solid base for us to build on.

Having knowledge in programmes like Galileo is perfect for us, as Galileo is one of our main GDS programmes.

When hiring candidates previously we looked for at least two years experience in the travel industry, but with the labour market so tight now we have to evolve in the way we approach employing candidates.

Today the most important things we look for in a candidate are that they have some form of OE behind them and that they can really excel at both customer service and more importantly customer stimulation, and develop a real rapport with the client and take that relationship to the next level. That's what our clients are asking for these days, as well as the knowledge base.

But this focus on a candidates attitude also means that people may not have as much experience with some of the practicalities of the industry as in the past, so that's where the Sir George course works so well.

On top of what our candidates have learnt in their tertiary study, we add in our in-house training programme so we can get them up and running as quickly as possible, providing excellent service to our clients.