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A college dedicated to tourism and hospitality

ABU DHABI - Dressed in a spotless uniform, Afra Sultan Al Dhahri sits next to the coffee table in the main auditorium of the European International College (EIC).

Very gentle, soft spoken and all smiles, Afra told Khaleej Times that she has now finished her kitchen cooking course and has moved on to the service course.

“I always wanted to study veterinary medicine, but there is no such school here and I didn’t want to go abroad, away from my family,” she said.

Her family also includes six dogs and seven cats, most of them rescued.

While she considered her second option, Afra came across the EIC, a college dedicated to the tourism and hospitality industry, and she took a liking to it.

“The kitchen cooking (course) was very hectic, but very nice in the same time. It was not the normal cooking that we might do at home. It is French, Italian and generally international food,” she explained.

“I used to cook at home what I learnt in class and my family liked it.”

During the first college semester, she also learns all about food and beverage service.

“I did not think that it’s a big deal knowing how to greet people or how to place a knife and fork on the table, but of course it is and we have to do things in such details,” went on Afra.

As soon as she finishes her two years EIC schooling and gets her diploma in Hotel Management and Tourism, Afra, like many of her colleagues, plans to go to Switzerland, where she will complete her studies and get her Bachelor’s degree.

Since it is affiliated with Cesar Ritz Colleges in Switzerland, EIC offers Swiss curriculum and it is also accredited by the UAE Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research.

Students who graduate from the Abu Dhabi college only receive a diploma, and for a BA they need to continue their studies in Switzerland.

During an Open Day in May on the EIC campus here, Claudia Habets, dean of the college, announced that EIC will also start a Business School from September this year.

“We will have diplomas in Marketing and Sales, Banking and Finance and Human Resource Management,” she explained.

These three diplomas will be in addition to the other two in Hotel Management and Tourism, as well as Destination and Leisure Management.

Currently, EIC has 75 students from 31 different nationalities. About 60 per cent of them are from the Arab world, largely Syria and Lebanon, and the other 40 per cent from Europe, Africa and Asia.

“We don’t pretend our students are tourism managers after two years, but we do prepare them with skills,” claimed Habets.

It is not just managerial skills, but also a proper attitude towards the tourism industry and knowledge that the EIC focuses on.

Since hospitality is closely linked with local culture, Ali Al Saloom, founder and manager of Embrace Arabia, an Emirati cultural awareness initiative, was also invited at the Opening Day to talk about UAE’s dos and don’ts, clichés, traditions and, of course, the proverbial Arab hospitality.

silvia@khaleejtimes.com