In July 2023, the DTU Hospitality & Tourism Institute started holding the DTU Tourism Forums, with the aim of creating  high-level tourism meetings where information could be shared and strategies proposed for the most sustainable development of tourism in Vietnam. 
 
On October 13, a second DTU Tourism Forum on the theme “Tourism: A Career Journey” was held due to the great success of the first. The digital forums enabled students to learn about and build a career in tourism. Their success will add momentum to the sustainable development of local tourism and help shape the future for students with an interest in the field. The event attracted the interest of several students and experts in the Hospitality sector and provided valuable information on activities since the pandemic.

HTi Provost Dr. Mol Chun Min delivers the opening speech at the Tourism Forum

In his opening speech, DTU Hospitality & Tourism Institute Provost Mol Chun Min said: “As you may know, in 2022 our DTU Hti training programs were recognized by the UN World Tourism Organization as the first such Vietnamese programs to meet TedQual standards, later listed by QS World University rankings in the top hundred worldwide. This international recognition demonstrates that the DTU Hti programs now meet international standards in both education and research.”
 
“In addition to its efforts to improve training, the Institute is always planning ways of contributing more to the development of tourism in the region. As a result, we decided to create the DTU Tourism Forum, where Hti students, tourism experts and local companies can exchange ideas and submit appropriate recommendations. At the same time, students will be able to meet, have discussions with the speakers and experts in the field, learn more about potential careers and then develop their own plans for their futures.”

Ms. Nguyen Thi Uyen Thu, Director of HR at InterContinental Danang Sun Peninsula Resort 

The main speaker of the second forum was Ms. Nguyen Thi Uyen Thu, Director of HR at InterContinental Danang Sun Peninsula Resort. She gave an overview of the revival of the local hospitality business after the pandemic, emphasized the importance of human resources and provided detailed information on the necessary requirements when students choose a career in the hotel sector. She remarked that there have been some encouraging improvements since tourism in Vietnam reopened in March 2022, with the service sector doubling the overall GDP growth rate, contributing 95.91% to growth overall. Danang is gradually recovering strongly and, in the first seven months of 2023, revenue from accommodation and food services in Danang is estimated to have reached nearly 13 trillion VND, up 39.5% compared to the same period last year.

Large numbers of hospitality students attend the second DTU Tourism Forum

However, just as tourism is taking off, the sector is experiencing an acute shortage of manpower. According to the Vietnam National Authority of Tourism, the number of personnel in accommodation establishments is currently  350,000, meeting only 70% of current demand, and the sector actually needs 507,000, including 50,000 in administration only. Each year, the sector needs 40,000 new employees with 25,000 for retraining. However, institutions only train about 20,000, so the number of professionally trained tourism workers is still low, accounting for only 43% of total requirements. Meanwhile, Ms. Thu emphasized that the tourism industry is always searching for highly trained resources, which will open up many attractive career opportunities for skilled DTU graduates.
 
Ms. Uyen Thu then discussed several essential factors that students need to be aware of when choosing a major in tourism & hospitality: to always maintain their passion for the profession; to study well and build themselves a solid foundation of knowledge and skills; to be friendly, responsive, and communicative; to have good people management and foreign language skills; and to be good observers, be patient, be dexterous, and be healthy.
 
At the forum, DTU Hospitality & Tourism Institute students were able to meet, exchange ideas, and talk with tourism experts. In addition to Ms. Uyen Thu, the exchange session was attended by three other special guests: Ms. Le Thanh Thao, Manager of the Melia Vinpearl Danang Riverfront Hotel; Ms. Nguyen Pham Son Chau, Director of HR at the Sheraton Grand Danang Resort & Convention Center; and Mr. Trinh Hoai Nguyen, Deputy- Director of the SaigonTourist, Danang branch. They all shared their experiences working in the hospitality sector, in order to give students a better understanding of career opportunities in the field.