Aspiring event managers living in rural and regional NSW are being offered the chance to get a head start in their career with applications now open to win one of six scholarships worth $6,500 each.
Member for Cootamundra Steph Cooke said the program was part of the NSW Government’s $6 million Regional Conferencing Strategy & Action Plan and that in partnership with Meetings and Events Australia (MEA) aspiring students could be provided the opportunity to undertake the SIT50316 Diploma of Event Management.
“We’re proud to be supporting emerging talent for the tourism and events industry from rural and regional NSW by offering these scholarships again in 2019, following a similar successful partnership with MEA in 2018,” Ms Cooke said.
“The MEA Diploma of Event Management program has been specifically designed to accommodate study by distance learning for people already working in the events industry in regional NSW.
“This initiative aims to upskill NSW rural and regional workforce in the hope that they will stay to contribute to the industry and help drive the State’s economy.
“We know how important the business events sector is to driving our local economy with conferences and meetings bringing additional business to local restaurants, cafés, venues, attractions, and accommodation providers.
“In fact, overnight business visitors spend, on average, $237 per night in NSW – nearly double those of overnight leisure visitors.
“They are also more likely to return for a future holiday with family or friends.
“These scholarships recognise the significant growth opportunity for regional destinations such as ours by securing the future talent of the industry.”
The course will be delivered via MEA’s online learning tool allowing students to complete the tasks at their own pace and in their own time.
Minister for Tourism and Major Events Adam Marshall said the scholarship program supports a key strategic imperative of the NSW Regional Conferencing Strategy & Action Plan.
“We want to improve overall service standards in the areas of hospitality, catering, event management and audio-visual production in order to support conference delivery across rural and regional NSW by upskilling the workforce,” Mr Marshall said.
“I encourage anyone working in tourism and events who wants to further their career and contribute to the industry to consider applying.”
Applications for the scholarships program close on 24 March 2019.
To find out more information about the Diploma of Event Management and how to apply for a scholarship visit the Meet in Regional NSW website via www.meetinnsw.com.au/scholarships.
