Rachel Piggin
BPhEd (1994) PGDipTour (1998)
After travelling internationally, and working at Club Med Copper Mountain in the US, Rachel Piggin decided what she wanted to do with her career. The Phys Ed Otago graduate headed on her big OE, and came back with career aspirations.
'Those 3 years away sparked a passion for understanding what motivates people to travel, what affects their behaviour when they are in a foreign place - and my passion for NZ also grew - I wanted to be a part of building our reputation overseas'.
'I'd studied at Otago for my undergrad degree so knew it was a great student city with a brilliant lifestyle. I knew about Otago's tourism courses as friends of mine had studied there and once I has seen the jobs they had and where their careers went I knew Otago was for me (again)'.
Rachel enjoyed the flexibility of the one year Post Graduate Diploma in Tourism. Gaining the qualification in tourism helped to open doors for Rachel, and get the job within the tourism industry that she always wanted.
And her dreams came true. After working with Tourism Rotorua as the Promotions Officer and being involved in all aspects of regional tourism promotion, nationally and internationally, she is now the Marketing Manager at Waiariki Institute of Technology in Rotorua. 'I've been able to bring in some destinational marketing aspects to the promotion of courses at the main Waiariki campus and in Tokoroa, Taupo and Whakatane where we have regional campuses. Rotorua is a great place to holiday - but also to live and study and I try to get this message across when promoting Waiariki'.
'If you're interested in studying tourism - find out what part of the tourism industry you want to be in and choose a course that relates to that area. Studying at Otago is great - make the most of the lifestyle, the people, the lecturers and resources, and most importantly the proximity to a great part of the South Island'.