Apart from the degree programme, with intake reaching maximum capacity in the coming academic year, the institute also provides professional and continuing education and training. In 2000/2001, the institute had 233 degree-programme students and 3,208 people being trained. In 2007/2008, the figures surged to 926 and 11,300 respectively.

Last year, there were 138 graduates with bachelor degrees; 148 with higher diplomas; 43 with diplomas and 43 with certificates. Figures for this year are not available, except for an additional 80 graduates from the higher diploma programmes in heritage management and tourism event management.

Given the dynamic nature of the industry, the courses are practical. IFT president Fanny Vong Chuk-kwan said industry and government representatives sat in the IFT co-ordinating council for training activities and met twice a year with IFT management to discuss training needs. 'The IFT and industry regularly develop courses together,' Dr Vong said. 'We also keep ourselves in the loop by being on industry trade associations, such as the Macao Hoteliers and Innkeepers Association, and keep up with industry issues every month. Seeing the rise of meetings, incentives, conventions and exhibitions, (MICE), we partnered with the University of Technology in Sydney last year to deliver a four-day executive development programme on events management. There are also students enrolled in various other short-term professional training courses in MICE-related areas.'

The IFT launched its tourism event management degree in 2005, and enrols around 40 students a year. There are about 40 applications for each of the certificate and diploma courses a year. So, every year, about 120 students in full-time, or equivalent mode, are studying MICE-related programmes.

'We are engaged in joint projects with intergovernmental agencies, such as Unesco, in the development of training materials for the region in heritage interpretation. I believe this is evidence of regional recognition of our quality and ability to deliver,' Dr Vong said.

The institute has also rolled out a series of upgrades and refurbishments for its training facilities that are open to the public.

IFT director Gloria Wong Mei-cheng is proud of the 20-room Pousada de Mong-Ha training hotel, which will be finished this month.

'We [closed] the training hotel between August 4 and September 5 for refurbishment,' Ms Wong said. 'Every room will be installed with new furniture and an LCD computer terminal for internet access. The Portuguese design remains, but we used smaller Chinese-style multifunction furniture to save space. We [are] also ... a green hotel.

'The 100-seat Educational Restaurant got a new look early this year. A modern and trendy design replaced the home-style decor and added a modern-looking wine cellar.'

IFT students take part in day-to-day operations with supervision from lecturers. These training grounds provide a real-life environment for them to apply what they have learned, while comments from guests help them to refine their service skills.