Event management is bold & colourful

Are you considering managing your friend’s wedding? Or a sports event for  the club? Prospective event managers will be able to enrol for a diploma in events management at Boston City Campus and Business College from next month onwards. According to Kerry Damons, the college is launching the new diploma to satisfy the need in the market for qualified professional event managers and coordinators.?

 

“Judging by the number of events that are hosted daily, you can see that the events management industry is thriving,” she says. “There are private events like weddings and birthdays; there are trade exhibitions and shows, corporate functions; product launches; conferences; fashion shows and music concerts; major sporting events; awards evenings, networking sessions, annual general meetings, the list just goes on and on.

 

There are so many events on the go that we can probably plan the year in accordance to events rather than according to days and months.”?Lots of events means that there are job opportunities in the events management industry. So if you’re interested in events and have the right mix of creativity, initiative, attention to detail plus lots of energy, you may want to consider a career in event management.?“Most of us have attended a number of events, be they big or small,” Damons adds. “But have you ever stopped to think how much work goes behind on the scenes?

 

To succeed in events industry you need much more than an idea; you need the right personality traits, levels of energy and passion as well as the right skills and knowledge.”?She points out that events are “live” things - you only have one chance to do it right. There is no undo button or second try. ?“Take for example the famous Dutch DJ Armin van Buuren’s show that was held recently at Coca Cola Dome,” says Damons. “It was an international show of epic proportions and people paid good money to attend. It is unthinkable to have something go wrong and the event managers really need to know their stuff.  

 

It is thus essential to invest in good training and to spend some time gaining practical experience before you embark on a fulltime career.”?The diploma that Boston is launching is called Diploma in Event Management (Qualification code: HDIPEM) on NQF Level 6. It is a three-year qualification that opens doors to career opportunities such as:?

·       Event coordinator or supervisor?

·       Event assistant manager or manager?

·       Junior marketing coordinator or field supervisor?

·       Marketing relationship, key account supervisor or assistant manager?

·       Hospitality, services, sales or product representative or manager?

·       Small business manager, owner or entrepreneur?

 

The purpose of the qualification is to ensure that graduates are equipped with the everything they will need to project manage a successful event, this includes disciplines in event management, marketing management, entrepreneurship, project management, integrated marketing communication, public relations, financial management, business management, computer literacy and applied research methods. In total, the course has 20 compulsory modules that you cover over the three years. Boston provides all prescribed texts, course outlines, timetables, sample assessments, printed study guides, workbooks (where applicable) and tutor videos for each module.

 

You can do the events management course through correspondence provided you have reliable and consistent access to a computer and Internet. Certain course material and assessments will only be accessible online or electronically. Students that don’t have a computer or Internet access must go the Boston Tuition Centre nearest to them, which shouldn’t be too difficult seeing that Boston has centres throughout the country (for a complete list visit www.boston.co.za .?The minimum requirement for admission into the diploma is a National Senior Certificate (NSC), with English and Mathematical Literacy as two (2) of the subjects passed. You will also need endorsement for admission to diploma study, or an equivalent qualification.

 

If you’re not sure whether you qualify, the best is to phone or visit a Boston career advisor that can give you the lowdown on what is considered as an equivalent to the NSC and can also help with foreign qualifications. ?Those that are interested in going up one more level, NQF level 7 and above, can use this diploma in event management to proceed to advanced diplomas or bachelor’s degrees in a variety of disciplines at a number of public universities, private or foreign higher education institutions. ?

 

Applications for Boston’s diploma in events management open this week with the last day for registration being July 25. For more information, visit www.boston.co.za.? 

 

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