By Menachem Wecker
Given the state of the economy, GW School of Business student Ethan Elser, B.A. ’10, thought he was lucky to have a choice between two summer job offers. But that was before he found out about a third opportunity.
Just before spring break, one of Elser’s friends asked about his summer plans. Elser told her he had several options, but his dream job was working at a hotel or abroad. She stopped in her tracks, he remembers.
The friend put Elser in touch with her father, who works in the Asia Pacific office of InterContinental Hotels Group. Soon after talking with Elser, the father connected him with InterContinental Hong Kong.
Elser had been to Shanghai on a trip in 2000, but this was his first time in Hong Kong. “I cannot express how much I have learned about management, hotels and myself,” he says. “I worked on nearly 20 projects affecting operations throughout the hotel in areas such as housekeeping, food and beverage, communications, quality control, finance and human resources.”
But the part of the experience that had the greatest impact on him was cultural rather than financial. “Asian culture is vastly different from American culture in nearly every way,” he says. “Learning to adapt to it is something I will take with me for the rest of my life.”
Growing up in Milwaukee, Wis., Elser knew he wanted to go to college in a larger city. Upon the advice of his college guidance counselor, he visited GW during his junior year in high school and remembers immediately falling in love, particularly with the University’s size, location, the well-respected business program and the “active and engaged” student body. “GW fit everything I was looking for and more,” he says. “The more I learned and heard, the more I wanted to come to GW.”
At GW, Elser so enjoyed two introductory courses--one in hospitality, the other in marketing--that he decided to adopt the two as a double concentration. “One of the great things about GW’s business program is you get a well-rounded education,” he says. “It’s amazing to think that I have found two of my passions by two intro classes. It goes to show the level of teaching at GW.”
Elser also actively participates in student groups and activities. He was chairman of the Marvin Center Governing Board, vice president for financial affairs for the GW Student Association and treasurer of the fraternity Sigma Chi. He also participated in Mock Trial, GW News Radio, WRGW and was a member of his class’ gift committee.
“I’ve had the best of both worlds--education training and work experience,” he says, “neither of which would have been possible without GW.”