Bath College students spend a month living and working in Greek hotels and salons

Students got a taste of what it’s like to live and work abroad during an Erasmus trip to Crete.  

Twenty students studying beauty, spa and complementary therapy at Bath College spent a month on the island completing work experience.  

Within days of their arrival, at Rethymnon, they were trained and working on paying clients at local hotels and salons.  

Spa therapy students had the chance to work at a five-star hotel and beauty students gained experience using high tech laser therapy equipment.  

Erasmus is a European Union programme offering opportunities for students to study, work and train abroad.  

Students stayed in self-catered apartments, within walking distance of most placements. Some even hired cars and bikes in order to see the island, visiting Milli Gorge, nature parks and the beach.  

Lecturer Lucy Baughan said: “All the students made friends with their employers and colleagues, socialising outside the workplace with them.  

“The hotels offered all the students jobs if they ever want to return and were very sad to let them go. The students did extremely well representing the high teaching standards we have at Bath College.  

“During their stay they had to live independently, including cooking, travelling and time keeping. They all supported each other as a group, putting messages on Facebook if they were going out somewhere to eat and inviting others to join them.  

“Everyone returned home happy and grateful for experience, with several students hoping to repeat it next year. We are in discussion with the hotel chain who would like to send therapists to us for training and to visit our local spas.”