Aramark Collegiate Hospitality has launched a hands-on Student Hospitality Management Program to prepare college and university students for successful leadership roles.
In addition to mentorship opportunities with the company's current leaders, the program offers an opportunity for students to launch long-term careers with Aramark after they graduate.
The Student Hospitality Management Program is being piloted at Indiana's Purdue University, which consistently ranks as one of the leading hospitality and tourism management (HTM) programs both globally and nationally.
The internship is customized to create a program for each student’s specific interests.
Aramark Collegiate Hospitality has partnered with the university for more than three years, providing retail food and beverage services at more than 30 outlets across the campus.
Futures Better Served
The Aramark team at Purdue enlisted other Aramark Collegiate Hospitality experts to develop the Student Hospitality Management Program so it could be tested and expanded to other universities in the future while complementing existing Aramark leadership programs.
The program was introduced at a campus career fair and through Purdue’s School of Hospitality and Tourism Management promotions and word-of-mouth.
Interviews with Purdue students began in fall 2023.
Three students—one senior and two juniors—were selected to participate in the inaugural internship program this semester.
I hope to become a future leader in the hospitality industry, and I also hope to start my career with Aramark.
“I am really interested in food management and wanted to grow those skills,” said student intern Ruthie Seals, a junior studying HTM at Purdue. “Students certainly are set up for success while working in this internship program.
The program takes place over 16 weeks with a commitment from students of 20 hours per week.
It combines comprehensive, hands-on training in dining operations, leadership, human resources, marketing, finance and accounting, supply chain, nutrition and sustainability.
Each intern is paired with an experienced Aramark Collegiate Hospitality management mentor who provides guidance, support and feedback, along with bi-weekly one-on-one leadership discussions to encourage growth and professional connections with Aramark leaders in areas of each student’s interests.
Mentors also collaborate with other Aramark Collegiate Hospitality department managers to evaluate student progress and recommend future placement and skills-building.
A review, assessment, and feedback discussion takes place at the end of the 16-week program.
Down the line, we hope this will lead to more students entering into Aramark’s S2L (Step Up to Leadership) and A2L (Accelerate to Leadership) programs
