Marcel Langenegger from Menzingen (ZG) actually wanted to become a civil engineer. After his apprenticeship as an electrician and the subsequent technical professional baccalaureate of one year, everything would actually have been ready - things had changed.
Already in former times he was on the road a lot with skis and bikes in the mountains and organized an event here and there. During the vocational baccalaureate a colleague approached him with the recommendation of the Higher Professional College for Tourism in the Engadine. On a sunny winter day the information day took place in Samedan, which made a very good impression on Marcel Langenegger. He was fascinated on the one hand by the event sector with its various forms of implementation and on the other hand by the fact that tourism is taught where it is practiced.
After passing the entrance examination, nothing stood in the way of moving to the campus of the Academia Engiadina in Samedan. Marcel Langenegger has always been open to learning new things and approaching new people. «You have to be aware that, unlike in the city, you don't simply return to your previous environment after school. On campus I got to know new people with a lot in common, which resulted in an interesting network».
For the internship in the second year, the contrast was appealing; the internship location was an event agency in the middle of Zurich with various large events. A very interesting experience, exciting events - and yet the desire to return to the mountains.
In the third year, all the students got together again in the Engadine; three of them lived in a shared flat and dealt with the marketing specialisation. For Marcel Langenegger, this specialisation was the most effective, because many group work was done with concrete cases from all over the Engadine.
The diploma thesis was linked to the third year, which was an opportunity to find a company that could be a potential employer in the future. This was how it worked for Marcel Langenegger. Immediately after completing his studies, he was allowed to help shape the development of the company as Product Manager at BICI Adventure. He also had the opportunity to take the exam as a marketing specialist after graduating as a tourism specialist, as the content taught in the course already met this requirement.
«I now have an interesting starting position, I have a tourism and parallel marketing education - an ideal combination and am well prepared for the future»; for example in the marketing of BICI at Swiss holiday fairs or in the detailed organisation of Singel Trail Bike Tours with partners all over the world, for example in the Himalayas, Greenland, Morocco or South Africa.
«I can recommend the study for tourism specialist HF to all, who like to give presentations before people and who have a flair for sales. And, one must know that one is in the Engadine - then it is a perfect connection of study contents and spare time.
February 2016
Information to study as a Tourism Specialist HF
HFT Graubünden prepares students optimally for their activities and careers in the tourism industry. The federally recognised degree programme is practice-oriented and teaches in six semesters both sound industry knowledge and general knowledge in economics, marketing, communication, information technology, psychology and law. Start is annually, in August/September. The course can be completed in two different ways: with an internship year and with seasonal positions in summer and winter.