Why Hotels Should Pay Attention to the Higher Education Enrollment Shortage

Higher enrollment in education is down, exacerbated by the pandemic. Birth rates in the States are down, too. If there are fewer people attending college this year and in the years to come, it might be more difficult to find the employees you want if and when they choose other industries.

In time, the hospitality industry may become more comfortable hiring people without a college degree. The trend is already happening in the public sector, too. Connecticut is among several states that have dropped the requirement for public servants to have a college degree.

That’s a smart move for the public, especially in a state dealing with a host of issues tied to its labor market. You or other leaders down the line may choose to change the hiring practice(s) at a given hotel if it means you can get a higher volume of qualified candidates in the door.

Where do international workers come in?

J-1 visas are key to many hotel operations, and there’s some possible overlap here where international students are concerned. Those who leave other countries to come to the United States usually enter higher education on a student visa. To continue staying in the country after their schooling has ended, they need an employer willing to sponsor 

Universities may move to more aggressively recruit students from other parts of the world if they cannot find the number of students they want stateside. In higher education, those students are especially valuable because many pay a great deal more than their American counterparts. Where the hospitality industry is concerned, some of those same students could be immediately useful to your business if you approach their situation the right way.

Marriott has a page on its website explaining its process. At one point, the French American Chamber of Commerce sponsored visa applications for people seeking to work in area hotels. Graduating students want to continue staying in the country and need labor. It can be a really smart and useful marriage if you’re willing to do the work on the front end that would be required to help these folks out.

Consider how adept your company is at developing talent

Your company might have no trouble finding students and recent graduates to take jobs there. If that isn’t the case, fewer folks in college might make the recruiting sweat a bit, having a smaller pool to choose from. In reality, hiring standards at the hotel can drop to meet the circumstances.

If company culture can encourage some training on the job, a high school graduate can actively contribute to the company in plenty of ways. There’s no reason an employee should have had to endure four years of college to work with folks pursuing the same goals and interests.