Fostering professional Barista Skills at the 3rd International Barista Championship for College Students
Chennai, 22 November 2017 – The Management Development Institute of Singapore (MDIS) was proud to host the 3rd International Barista Championship for College Students. The final nine top student competitors from MDIS, Zhejiang Technical Institute of Economics in China, and City of Glasgow College in UK, competed in Singapore for a chance to take home the Championship and ‘Signature Drink’ Award.
Organised by the MDIS School of Tourism and Hospitality and Zhejiang Technical Institute of Economics, the competition promotes the art and skills of Baristas, and was conceptualised to meet both institutes’ aim of developing and enhancing practical industry skills for its students. The top nine student competitors had their skills tested across three categories – Espresso, Cappuccino and Signature Drink. They were evaluated on the quality of their beverages, technical skills, craftsmanship, presentation skills and service skills.
MDIS emerged victorious in the ‘Signature Drink’ category and placed third overall in the competition. The MDIS team of Teoklit Premto from Albania, and Ryu Ji Hye from Korea, won with their cool and stylish creation ‘Lady Marmalade’. In customising their signature drink, the team made the most innovative use of ingredients and catered to broad consumer taste. Their delectable blend of homemade Korean orange marmalade; vanilla ice-cream; coconut juice; and a shot of expresso, was topped with homemade mint cream and a garnish of chocolate powder and orange peel.
Korean student, Park Minjin, from the MDIS Advanced Diploma in Tourism, Hospitality and Events Management programme, came up against very strong competitors from Zhejiang Technical Institute of Economics – Zhang Junqiong and Yang Chenheng placed first and second respectively in the competition. Minjin clinched the third place win by impressing the judges with her display of expert knowledge in coffee and its world culture, as well as her final presentation and taste of her espresso and cappuccino brews.
“The opportunity for practical applications was what attracted me to the MDIS tourism and hospitality course. This is the first competition I have ever participated as a student and it has been an eye-opener for me. I have not only gained in-depth knowledge but really useful skills which I can apply in my work in the future,” shared Minjin.
“At MDIS, we continually seek ways to engage our students in practical learning opportunities and this presented an excellent platform for our Tourism and Hospitality students to gain skills that are practical and relevant for the future. Such learning opportunities will help them develop and master ever-changing skills to maximize their future readiness,” shared Dr R Theyvendran, MDIS Secretary-General.
Over the past decade of collaboration with Zhejiang Technical Institute of Economics, more than 10,000 students have participated in our co-operating programmes. These have included academic and training programmes, academic research as well as student and teacher exchanges to share and exchange ideas, knowledge and innovation.
