After retiring from active works in banking industry, I studied for a Master of Education course in the hope of landing on a part time lecturing work locally or overseas. I could teach Management courses but most colleges will need a PhD candidate. I cannot teach secondary level courses as I do not have the necessary skills and knowledge to teach current secondary courses. My friend in http://www.baanunrak.org/ has offered me to teach in their school  http://www.baanunrakschool.com/ as volunteer. Maths teacher but my academic knowledge will need a lot of head cracking to take up the challenges. So teaching job will have to wait. And now I have misplaced my M.Ed scroll.

As I am financially independent and with my own saving and with 2 children's support,  I do not want too much pressure and a job that require long duration or commitments. I was advised by a friend who work in tourism industry to work as tourist guide. The plus points are we are able to decide how much time to commit and take time off for our own enjoyments and family trips.

My good friend, Tan Kiew Seng, told me that HTC travel will be starting a new Academy like what Reliance Travel did in their expansion. A large amount of investment was allocated and the college will have a lot of infrastructure and experience faculty staff will be employed. He gave us me the contact for HTC International Academy in KL http://www.htcia.edu.my

The facilities and "hardware"

The facilities are indeed modern and students will be able to study in a conducive environments. Looking at the modern facilities, I envisage that a large sum of investments have been put in. All that is needed like pantry and chill-out area are provided besides the usual classroom with modern facilities. The class room are brightly lighted and furnitures are appropriate and comfortable. the Audio-visual and presentation LED project ideally located to ensure students are comfortable in their study. The lighting is sufficient and appropriately located. This facilities is as good as if not better than my previous college where I studied for Master in Education in Kuala Lumpur.

The course structure

The course is very well prepared and follow the National Occupational Skills Standard (NOSS) standard. NOSS is defined as a specification of competencies expected of a skilled worker who is gainfully employed in Malaysia for an occupational area, level and pathway to achieve the competencies.

The course is modular and consist of 23 modules and they are

Malaysian Tourism Knowledge
Module 1 Tourist Guide Professionalism
Module 2 Geography and nature of Malaysia
Module 3 History of Malaysia
Module 4 Cultures of Malaysia
Module 5 Government system of Malaysia
Module 6 Industries of Malaysia
Module 7 Agro based Industry of Malaysia
Module 8 Cottage industries of Malaysia
Module 9 Transportation and communication system of Malaysia
Module 10 Destination knowledge of Malaysia
Module 11 Tourism production of Malaysia
Module 12 Events, festivals and entertainment of Malaysia
Module 13 Cuisine, dining, and gourmet

Tour guiding
Module 14 Pre-tour arrangement
Module 15 Tour transport
Module 16 Accomodations
Module 17 Meet and greet
Module 18 Customer Service
Module 19 Handling tourists' special needs
Module 20 Optional tours
Module 21 Safety and security
Module 22 Contingency plan
Module 23 Tour Report

The lecturers 

As this is a practical course, the gurus of the trade will be the best people to share and impart the knowledge. Nothing speaks better than the experiences.

Mr. Chua Eng Han and Mr. Eric Tan were 2 of the big names and veteran in tourism industry and they are the main contributors to the program modules and lecturing. Besides the two, there are many more part time lecturers who have worked in the travel industry for many years.

The differentiating factors 

HTC travel's main business is Chinese inbound tours and students will have opportunity to work for the company upon obtaining the Tourist guide badge. Besides that, there are ample opportunities for trainee to follow the tour guiding at appropriate time and upon completing the required modules.

Bright future Malaysia tourism industry in general and in particular for Chinese speaking tourist guides

With the MH370 episode slowing forgotten by the Chinese in China, I believe the spring is back for Chinese tourist arrivals. HTC international Academy will be a good place to start if you are looking for a career as tourist guide.