New Interns on the block

Two young up-and-coming Cook Islanders have joined the Sales and Marketing team at Cook Islands Tourism. Mary-Anne Tiria (Marketing Administration) and Marei Nicholas (Trade & Communications) have both signed up for the Corporation's 'Intern Cook Islands' programme.

Two young up-and-coming Cook Islanders have joined the Sales and Marketing team at Cook Islands Tourism. Mary-Anne Tiria (Marketing Administration) and Marei Nicholas (Trade & Communications) have both signed up for the Corporation's 'Intern Cook Islands' programme. The pair will be based at Head Office for the next 6 months where they will work with the Marketing team to develop their skills and achieve set objectives.

Mary-Anne is 24 years old and a recent graduate from AUT University with a Bachelor’s degree in International Tourism Management. With her passion for Tourism and helping our Cook Islands people, Mary-Anne is more dedicated than ever to apply her skills outside of the classroom. Since graduating, Mary-Anne had been looking for a suitable position based in Rarotonga, but kept her options open with a couple of opportunities in Auckland, just in case. Since securing her internship, which she discovered through peer networks, Mary-Anne aims to build strong working relationships within the Cook Islands Tourism Industry while making a positive contribution towards sustainable Tourism development in the Cook Islands. Mary-Anne' comments that "the internship is a great kickstart to my career development of a journey I started 4 years ago at University, so it is great to put everything into practice".     

Marei Nicholas is the Corporations' youngest staff member. At only 17 years old she has already ticked off a goal for 2018 by securing employment within the Tourism Industry. Marei’s interest in Tourism came from her last year at Tereora College where she took Tourism Studies as an elective – and loved it!! She loves the way in which her home is portrayed to the world and is eager to learn about the marketing strategies that support the Love a Little Paradise brand. Marei’s goals during her internship are to gain a more practical understanding of the Tourism Industry and develop her knowledge of the Cook Islands offerings to equip her for a future career in the industry. She is also an active member for the Avatiu Netball Premier team with interests in art & design, travel and photography.

Intern Cook Islands aims to develop young Cook Islands professionals to thrive within the Tourism Industry. The program provides an encouraging working environment where interns can gain practical experience and applications of real world scenarios. Since its inception in 2013, Intern Cook Islands has recruited a total of 13 interns who were positioned to provide support within both the Marketing and Destination Development teams. Head Office Digital Coordinators, Daniel Fisher and Tayla Beddoes are both graduates of the program and are a testament to the opportunities and pathways that this Internship presents.

 

Cook Islands Tourism is always on the lookout for interested applicants, if you have any interest then send your CV and a brief outline about yourself to Noeline Mateariki on [email protected] or Claire Wilson on [email protected]