Straight A's

Andrew George Schinas from Malta has recently graduated from the Top-up Bachelor Programme in International Hospitality Management at Cphbusiness with an impressive grade point average of 12.

According to Andrew George Schinas himself the secret to his success is straightforward and he offers some great advice on getting good grades. Read here why he came from Malta to Denmark and where he got his interest in the food and service industry.

For many people it can be difficult to find their calling in life, but for 34-year-old Andrew George Schinas, who grew up in Malta next to a restaurant, his culinary interest was ignited early in life.

- My mom wanted me to get a job and talked to our neighbour who was a manager at an Italian restaurant that served pizza and pasta. So I got a job there and my interest grew from there. It became an extension of my social life and the people I met, many of them foreigners, made me see what a different world there is outside Malta.

A calling in life 

Later on it was the interest in food and service that brought Andrew George Schinas to Denmark. He was studying Food and Beverage Management and during a semester in London he met his girlfriend at the time. After finishing his education he moved to Denmark to live with his girlfriend and look for a job, but eventually ended up at Cphbusiness.

- When I first came to Denmark I started working as a thatcher, which was my first job. After that I did a lot of different jobs, working in about four or five different restaurants in managing positions, but when it came to for example budgeting and purchasing, I always felt that I missed that extra bit of academic knowledge.

To Denmark with his girlfriend 

Andrew George Schinas first found out about Cphbusiness online, but what really motivated him to pursue his interest was a career day at KVUC which really opened his eyes to the possibilities of going back to school.

- I heard from others who had similar problems and that got me thinking about how I could improve myself and get more knowledge. So I started doing research and found Cphbusiness, which at the time was called Hotel and Restaurantskolen, and started on an AP Degree.

Talking about himself and his academic success Andrew stresses the fact that he doesn’t have a natural talent for studying and that there is no secret to his success.

- In my opinion there is no secret to doing well - there is no natural talent. I have put in the hard work and have always made sure to read all the chapters and go to all the classes, so I am disciplined that way. It’s about getting your priorities straight and from time to time I have actually put my social life on hold to get more time to study, so I’m a bit of a perfectionist.

Be disciplined 

The practical experience that Andrew has picked up during his 8 ½ years in Denmark working within the food and service industry has been a factor in his good results at Cphbusiness and even though there are no shortcuts to getting good grades Andrew does offer some good advice.

- I’ve learned to be disciplined over the years and of course I have applied that to my school work, but if I had to give some advice on getting good grades it would be to always sit in the front of the classroom. That way you don’t get distracted by all the people who are on Facebook and so on.
During his time at Cphbusiness Andrew George Schinas has learnt a lot about working with others and especially group work has been a new experience.

- In Malta there is no group work and you focus more on yourself. At Cphbusiness it is expected that you actually work together with other people and synergize. I think I benefitted from that because I always used to think that I had all the answers, but here I have learned to look at things from different perspectives.

Now that he has graduated Andrew George Schinas has actually gotten a short term job at Cphbusiness working as a teacher’s assistant and although his plans for the future aren’t set in stone just yet he dreams of someday owning his own restaurant.

- Eventually in the future I would like to own something of my own, so that the many hours I put in will be for me, but I’m not sure if I have what it takes to be a business owner.

For now Andrew George Schinas will go back to Malta to work on a few business ideas, but most likely he will return to Denmark.