The Student Volunteer Experience, Part Two

Penned by: Fernando Sarmiento

The Encounter of an Business:

Final 7 days I bought the opportunity and privilege to depict the University of Houston Conrad N. Hilton University for World wide Hospitality Management as just one of 18 university student volunteers for HITEC 2022 (June 27-30), the world’s largest and oldest hospitality know-how and finance convention. In celebration of its 50^th anniversary, the occasion was held at Orlando’s iconic Orange County Convention Centre, exactly where over 6,000 attendees and exhibitor gathered to go over answers to vital problems our business faces, as very well as place forth the most recent goods and companies, with the intention of creating our prospects and doing the job life a little superior.

As a seasoned function-goer myself, I was humbled by how substantially I realized and acquired from the knowledge. My earnest gratitude goes to HFTP, their strategic partners, and the HFTP Cougar Chapter, of which I am a member. It is thanks to them that I obtained to make new friendships and professional connections, and ongoing to discover outdoors of the classroom.

The Perform and the People today:

We ended up requested to assist as the welcoming deal with of HFTP by orienting and assisting both of those attendees and exhibitors all through the conference, delivering typical help for the duration of sessions, and of system, maintaining the organizers knowledgeable of something appropriate.

Despite the fact that the pupil volunteers experienced been dependable with a quite critical process, it never actually felt like operate due to the fact the leadership behind the occasion ended up all really enthusiastic about our role and place in good work to make us all experience welcomed, prepared and associated all over.

Also, I was stunned by a lot of of my fellow students’ etiquette and expertise of the market. But it was seriously their sunny disposition and kindness in the direction of everyone that manufactured them these types of a memorable combine of persons to operate along with with. These extraordinary learners from hospitality-linked fields arrived from different educational institutions throughout the country, these types of as San Jose State University, Northern Arizona University, New York College, as nicely the Valencia School (to title a couple of).

The Substance:

We had been encouraged to attend sessions of our fascination, converse with seasoned professionals from the hospitality market, and wallop HITEC exhibitors with queries.

With this party staying HITEC’s 50^th anniversary, the organizers and their partners ended up positive to contain some appealing routines in the program, these as the HITEC Opening Celebration at SeaWorld Orlando presented by Venza and CyberTek, the place I got each my ft and telephone soaked the HFTP Younger Specialists (YP) Satisfy-up at The Tin Roof, which was a meet up with-and-greet above light-weight drinks and snacks, hosted by HFTP and AAHOA and sponsored by Aimbridge Hospitality (pictured earlier mentioned) and a distinctive “Fireside Chat” session with lodge mogul Mr. Harris Rosen as component of HFTP’s 2022 Management Excellence Sequence.

Overall, volunteering at HITEC was an inspiring encounter for me, and I would invite other pupils to think about volunteering at the subsequent prospect they get. It is a chance for learners to get a sense of doing work on the entrance lines of function-arranging, learn additional about the hospitality sector and its technological and economical parts, get the job done on your networking techniques and make new lifelong close friends and specialist connections. It is incredibly substantially well worth the try.

Fernando Sarmiento is a student at the University of Houston Conrad N. Hilton School for World-wide Hospitality Leadership and college student volunteer at HITEC Orlando 2022.