On 8 October, UIC’s ACE (Academy of Continuing Education) department sponsored an exhibition for International Certification courses. The exhibition was open to all, and all courses that were present were available no matter who you were. Each course provided an internationally recognised certification upon completion. The exhibition ran from 11:00 until 18:00 and was located in the UIC gallery. These courses will be taught at UIC making it ideal for students, teachers or staff to participate.
Presenting their courses in the exhibition included the Asian Wine Service and Education Centre that provides an understanding as well as the correct etiquette when dealing with wine. Also a company called Williamart attracted a lot of attention as they provide a course to teach people how to be a professional coffee barista. Williamart consider their coffee to be the Ferrari of the roaster bean industry and have even included several other products such as a bar of soap that smells like coffee. Another popular course exhibited was the Wedding Planning programme hosted by Katemagg Event & Wedding.
 |
| Williamart shows people how to be a professional coffee barista |
There were presentations given by each exhibitor as well as live demonstrations, which gathered a lot of attention especially when Williamart were giving out free cups of freshly made coffee with decorated art. The coffee barista course brought some of their machines and provided lattes, expressos and other types of coffee for visitors to try. They provided a live demonstration and dazzled the crowds by producing different types of flowers and animal decorated art to finish off the coffee’s appeal while explaining the importance of coffee making.
 |
| Katemagg Event and Planning will be training individuals on how to become a Wedding Planner |
The Association of Bridal Consultants (ABC) that organise the Wedding Planning course is the world's largest and most reputed professional wedding association with over 6,000 active members in more than 40 countries. Headquartered in Connecticut, United States, ABC has branches all across Asia including Japan, Korea, Singapore, Malaysia, the Philippines, Mainland China, Taiwan and Hong Kong with over 700 members, including Katemagg who was at the exhibition. The mission for the Wedding Planning course is to uphold the professional status and professionalism of the wedding industry by creating a networking platform for wedding professionals. Also Katemagg Event & Wedding will offer support and facilitate the advancement of individuals taking the course by providing cross-cultural Continuous Professional Development (CPD) training support, foster the culture of sharing, and support and respect for diversity in cultures and viewpoints.
 |
| The Asia Wine Service and Education Centre |
The Asia Wine Service and Education Centre (Known as AWSEC) is the only Approved Programme Provider in Hong Kong for running courses and examinations up to and including Diploma level. The Wine & Spirit Education Trust (WSET) is a UK based organisation providing wine qualifications. Founded in 1969, WSET aims to provide high quality education and training in wines and spirits. Since then, the organisation has grown into the foremost international body in the field of wines and spirits education.
WSET qualifications are internationally recognised and are now represented in over 60 countries. The WSET courses have become almost a requirement to be eligible for the prestigious title of Master of Wine.
Several students that were asked for their opinions about the exhibition said that this exhibition is a great way to understand the courses on offer. Among them, a sophomore student studying Food Science and Technology mentioned that the exhibition provided free advice and helped him to understand the courses as well as providing a convenient platform for asking questions. Students from the Public Relations and Advertising course supported the exhibition as it gave them a chance to thoroughly talk about the courses to understand their suitability.
If you have any interest in any of the above-mentioned courses or would like to inquire about other courses being provided at UIC, you can contact ACE’S department at uiccaps@uic.edu.cn
Reporter/Photographer: Samuel Burgess (MPRO)
(with special thanks to the ELC)
