The Hertz Corporation (NYSE:HTZ) announced that its Hertz London Heathrow operations hosted seven Kingston College Travel and Tourism students at week-long work experience placements throughout April.  Hertz and Kingston College connected through their mutual affiliation with the Global and Travel Tourism Partnership (GTTP.org), a multi-country educational foundation to introduce students to career opportunities in Travel & Tourism.

The Hertz Heathrow Area Manager gave the Kingston College students daily assignments in customer service, teamwork and office learning skills. This included observing customer service at check in, working as part of the Instant Return and Gold Desk teams, and helping customers with directions and luggage handling.

Michel Taride, Hertz International RAC Group President, and Chair of the GTTP’s Advisory Board, said: “We were delighted to host the Kingston College travel and tourism students at Heathrow, our largest airport location in Europe. The college has an impressive travel and tourism studies program, aimed at helping students with career planning and preparation. Providing practical work experience for students is a great way for the travel and tourism industry and educational institutions to work together to foster future talent.”

Based in South West London, Kingston College is a major provider of further education for post-secondary students. Its Service Department offers Level 1-3 travel and tourism courses aimed at students aged 16-19. The goal of the college’s work experience program is to expose students to a travel and tourism related working environment and to work as part of a professional team.

Martin O’Brien, Programme Leader – Service Industries, Kingston College, said: “Our students thoroughly enjoyed their Hertz work experience. The students have reported that they grew in self-confidence as well.  As many students are planning a career in travel and tourism or wider service industries, they particularly appreciated the opportunities to greet and help customers as well as work alongside the Hertz Heathrow team. I would like to thank the team at Hertz for providing our students with such a fantastic opportunity.

Kingston College has been affiliated with the Global Travel and Tourism Partnership for several years, and two of its students represented the UK at the 2012 GTTP Student/Teacher Conference in Monaco. The College works closely with the GTTP UK Director to maintain their industry knowledge and relevance for the students.

Hertz has been an Advisory Board Member of the GTTP for nearly 20 years. Additional Global Partner Advisory Board members include senior executives from Amadeus, American Express, Carlson Wagonlit Travel, Delta Airlines, Enterprise Holdings, HRG, KDS, Starwood and Travelport.