Let your degree fuel your aspirations
Laura is an International Hospitality and Tourism Management BA (Hons) student here at Coventry University London. After taking a gap year, Laura decided to switch from studying Events Management to Hospitality and Tourism after travelling around the world and gaining some valuable insights about herself.
More about Laura
I chose my course after I travelled around Europe – 10 countries – and was working in some of them and I realised I wanted to travel as my job! I found the course at Coventry University London so interesting because it’s so practical. There are guest speakers, field trips; I love that it’s very hands on. The course is so up to date and the lecturers know what they’re talking about which is very important for me.
To anyone who is considering the same course – come here. Just come here. Someone told me this place is one of the best places in London to do this course, and if you want to do it, it’s important to study tourism in a place where you can put what you’ve learned into practice.
I can relate to being unsure about going to university. However, when I travelled, I understood that I needed a steppingstone to start the career that I wanted, and university was that steppingstone. It’s also a good place to network – to meet people with common visions and perspectives.
The best parts of being a student at Coventry University London are the location and the diversity of students. I’ve always been keen to get to know people of other cultures, and now I’ve had the opportunity to meet people who I might not have otherwise met.
The teaching and support is excellent. I’ve always found help and advice when it was needed. The teachers are so positive and knowledgeable.
My go-to right now the Sky Garden! I go in the morning and evening. Hampstead Heath is also great when you feel the need to get out of the city. Buddha Bar is a fantastic restaurant and God’s Own Junk Yard is also cool – definitely a Sunday thing. Also, I love Coal Drop’s Yard.”
One of my most memorable moments of being at university was when I arrived by airplane to England at 9am, and quickly had to find my house using Google Maps. I go home, get ready, and then had my first job interview at 2pm at 10 Lifestyle Management and got the job! It was just for three months, and then I worked for an events company, and then for Starling Bank.
In the future, I imagine myself having a lifestyle management start-up. My first job really changed my perspective and showed me what I wanted to do – co-ordinate other people’s lives.
Laura Lielbarde, International Hospitality and Tourism Management BA (Hons) 2021 student, quoted in 2019
