The training at CTA is a mix of theory and practical classes. The curriculum is a nice blend of skills essential to succeed in a career, viz Communication, Grooming, Emotional Intelligence and Digital skills and domain knowledge of Cabin Crew operations, Ground services and 5-star hotel operations.  Students also get the advantage of up-skilling via curate courses via Udemy Business and extracurricular activities via Wings Club, which is the social and cultural activities platform for students.

However, we felt an internship could really help our students sharpen their skills and make them stand out in a competitive environment.  This also ensures that they can improve their employability factor. While it’s true that airlines do not necessarily ask for an internship as an eligibility criteria, what is also true is that they would be more interested in a candidate who has an internship experience before he/she appears for an interview.  So a candidate with internship experience, even if it is for 3 months, would certainly be carrying an edge over candidates fresh out of their classes at their institutes.

A 3-month internship is a mandatory part of our course curriculum. After having spent 9 months at the academy, our students head to 5-star hotels to learn and deliver hospitality the way it is done at the highest level. Airlines do not provide such internships, due to security concerns. However, for us, as a serious training academy, we wanted our students to be in the real environment of hospitality delivery, to serve real guests, to gain and sharpen new skills, to get exposure to the real world and then use the experience to gain an advantage, be it in airline interviews, hotels or any other sector where hospitality is the key.

We arrange internships for our students in 5-star hotels, not just in Kolkata but in other major cities of India as well. The selection of course is interview-based, but our training ensures that all our students get a placement for internship across major 5-star hotel brands, be it  Oberoi, Taj, ITC, Novotel, JW Marriott, Hyatt, Leela, Westin etc where they learn and develop best practices as far as guest service is concerned. Also, while interning, the students can establish critical networking connections as well which could be useful for them in future.

The internship therefore equips them with a much better understanding of hospitality and this fact is appreciated by the airline companies as well when they are recruiting Cabin Crew and Customer service professionals for ground services. Also, in most cases, the hotel itself offers employment to the student on successful completion of the internship and the student can join the hotel as an associate and begin his/her career in hospitality.

An internship therefore prepares a student better for the real working world, be it airlines or hotels. The basics of delivery of high-class hospitality remain the same, no matter where one is working.  An internship in a 5-star hotel therefore is an ideal way to understand the real essence of customer service. Later, no matter if one is serving passengers, guests or customers, skills learnt during the internship will always be very useful and rewarding.