Career Summary

Manjiri Gaikwad is an enthusiastic and dedicated tourism expert, passionate about creating social innovation in her field.

Partway through her Bachelor of Electronics and Telecommunication Engineering at the University of Mumbai, Manjiri discovered a passion for sustainable tourism. Not long after, she learned about the Master of International Sustainable Tourism Management at Monash University, which she then completed in 2018.

Manjiri now works at one of the big four accounting firms, EY, as a Project Monitoring Expert in the National Programme Management Unit for the Ministry of Tourism in India. As part of her role, she monitors the implementation of niche tourism schemes, then strategises and reports on her findings.

Career Pathway

Present – Project Monitoring Expert, EY
2022 – Community Tourism Manager, Global Himalayan Expedition (GHE)
2022 – Team Member, Mountain Homestays
2019 – Consultant (Tourism Awareness), Provork Consultancy Services
2018 – Master of International Sustainable Tourism Management, Monash University
2018 – Volunteer, Tourism Collective
2018 – Intern Certification Assistant, Ecotourism Australia
2017 – Housekeeper, Atlantis Hotel
2016 – Product Manager, Odati Adventures Pvt. Ltd.
2016 – Adventure Tour Guide
2013 – Bachelor of Electronics and Telecommunication Engineering, University of Mumbai

Why did you decide to come to Monash to study your Master’s?

I wanted to work in the tourism industry, but I didn’t know what kind of meaningful formal education was on offer. All I knew was that I wanted to learn more than just surface-level tourism management and hospitality skills. That's when I discovered Monash University and learnt about the sustainable tourism course that they were offering.

As it so happened, I chose the focus for my degree before deciding where I would study, but it was ultimately the city of Melbourne that attracted me most. I spoke to a lot of people, especially previous students from India, before making my decision. I reached out to a lot of people on Facebook, and they all told me that I’d learn a lot in Melbourne. They said it’s a very multicultural city, and that that specific course would be very interesting.

So, it wasn’t just the education that influenced my decision. Even outside of university, you get a very rich experience in Melbourne. There was a real sense of safety and excitement that I got from the city.

What brought on your passion for tourism?

I had previously completed my Bachelor’s in Electronics and Telecommunication Engineering at the University of Mumbai, but it took me a while to understand the prospects of engineering and whether I was interested in them.

I decided to take a gap year, and took up some courses in adventure tourism in India. During that time, I realised that tourism was typically seen as people just going out, having fun, exploring places and coming back, but it’s actually so much more than that. The impact of these unplanned, unorganised activities can be huge, and this particular field is virtually untapped. That’s when I realised I’d like to do more in the tourism sector than in the technical engineering side.

I wanted to do something in tourism, but I wanted to do something meaningful, something changemaking. That's how I came to learn about sustainable tourism and how to impact rural communities, the environment and economic sustainability in a healthy manner while travelling or working in the tourism industry. I read a lot about the subject and found it all very interesting, so that’s where my passion for travel and tourism really began to grow.

Did the Master’s degree live up to your expectations?

It actually exceeded my expectations. I expected that we’d learn a little bit about how to manage environments, how to be inclusive of communities, and other things to consider when planning for tourism, but the course was structured in such a way that it wasn’t just learning from a textbook.

From the very first semester, Monash opened us up to the real world, and we got to pick what we wanted to learn. We were then put in touch with other people who were working on that specific subject. At one stage, we got to take a trip along the Great Ocean Road, where we met several stakeholders in that area on the government side, the community side, and the environmental activist side.

It was so great to be able to learn from the real world and not have our learning environment restricted to simply reading articles and completing assignments. This particular teaching style exceeded my expectations, and I learned a lot from it.

Did your course include any internship opportunities? 

Yes, there were many opportunities to participate in all kinds of interesting internships.

I eventually took an interest more in the environmental and community side, so I took up an internship with Ecotourism Australia in Brisbane. On the other hand, a lot of my friends in the course interned in the business side or in the government side of the tourism industry, with organisations like Tourism Australia.

What unique ways did Monash support and nurture your learning?

When I first applied to Monash, I had only really looked at the course, but after I started, I realised that outside the course, we had the whole Monash Arts department as a separate resource we could use to meet our goals.

There are so many opportunities and things going on where you can meet other people, and in the Monash environment, you get to meet people from all different cultures. It kind of opened a Pandora's box for me just meeting everyone and exploring all the possibilities by attending lots of events and social gatherings.

I was able to learn so much about how to speak to people from different cultures, and I just don’t think I would have gotten those opportunities anywhere other than Monash.

How do you use the skills that you learned in your Master’s degree in your current role as a Project Monitoring Expert at EY?

I would say the main skill that I always come back to is the ability to research. Students around Melbourne used to say that when kids from Monash are doing research, we’re a level above the rest. Even for the smallest assignment, we research very intensely, and we were taught to fact-check everything. This took some time for me to get used to, so my first semester was a bit of a struggle.

Once I learned it, however, it really helped me, and it still helps me in my role today. No matter what, I always make sure I have done quality research for my work. On top of that, whenever I’m presenting my work, I always make sure it’s very easy to understand and that there’s something unique in there that I’m putting forward.

What exactly does your role look like at the moment?

I'm a Project Monitoring Expert at Ernst & Young (EY). The particular sector of Ernst & Young that I work in is the National Programme Management Unit (NPMU) for the Ministry of Tourism in India. They look after various tourism schemes within the Ministry of Tourism, and develop the niche tourism segments of tourism.

My role is to monitor the activities undertaken by States, Central Nodal Agencies for Niche Tourism Segments and also the Ministry itself. In particular, I monitor sustainable tourism, rural tourism, ecotourism and other niche types of tourism. I make sure that everything is in alignment with what the scheme and the strategy say. I also ensure implementation, maintain steady contact, and provide reports to the ministry officials.

Would you recommend the Master of International Sustainable Tourism Management?

Absolutely 100 percent! I have already recommended this Master’s degree to so many people. I don’t just recommend it because it offers expertise in tourism, though. It’s also because of the opportunities it gives you to learn about all sorts of different fields. For example, you can pick up units from Environmental Science or International Development while you study. That was one thing that really interested me, because the assignments in those units were unlike what I was studying in tourism, but the skills and the particular approaches that I learnt were transferable.

Now in the tourism industry, when we are talking about environmental challenges, my knowledge from that Environmental Science subject helps me a lot. I think this kind of structure in the course is really helpful for practical life implementation.

What advice do you have for students who are thinking of doing this course at Monash?

Don’t just attend the classes – make sure you participate in all the discussions. They are really interesting, and it will teach you to approach things with a different perspective.

Always stay on top of what’s relevant and what's happening, because in the tourism industry, there is no set pattern. Every day is different.

Make sure you're meeting lots of people, and stay in touch with your classmates because they will have a lot to offer. Try to make as many connections as possible.