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From enrolling myself in the IITFC Certification Course to getting my certification done, I’m going to share my 1st hand experience of the IITFC Certification Program in this article. Just stick to your chair, hold your smartphone tightly in your hand & keep scrolling through this article to get each & every minute detail of the IITFC certification program.
About me
Let me introduce myself first. I am Vishal Kumar & I’m currently pursuing my Bachelor’s degree in Tourism Management from Banaras Hindu University.
How did I come to know about IITFC Course?
It was the month of April 2020, when the whole world was facing the 1st wave of COVID-19, I was in my 1st year of college. Being a student of Tourism Management, I wanted to utilise the lockdown period for my skill enhancement & thus I was looking for some certification program or short course so that I can learn about Indian destinations.
I was surfing the internet & going through many of the YouTube videos but nothing worked for me. I was not getting detailed content/information about Indian destinations in a very organised manner. Then, I asked one of my senior Nidhi didi, she was pursuing MTTM from Banaras Hindu University. She told me about the IITFC course. I visited the website of the IITF certification program. To access the course structure, I needed to enrol for the same. The fee structure of this course was Rs. 2,000.
After filling in the required details, I put off my debit card from my wallet to fill in the credentials for the online payment but I found that I have been registered at zero cost for this certification program. It was really a WOW moment for me because I had saved Rs. 2000.
Why did I get enrolled for ZERO costs?
It was really a wow moment for me but deep inside, I was curious as well. Then I checked the brochure. I found that the registration fee is exempted for the students who are the domicile residents of Aspirational Districts as identified by NITI AAYOG. Being a student of the general category, it was the very first time for me that I was being exempted from any registration or enrollment fees.
Course Structure
The course structure of the IITFC certification program really quenches my thirst for knowledge about Indian destinations. It has 7 different modules covering each & every aspect of tourism.
Here you can read in detail about the different modules & course structures.
This certification course is divided into 7 modules. Modules 1-6 are divided into various units. At the completion of each unit, you need to clear the assessment by scoring a minimum of 60% in every unit.
Modules 1-6 were basics and just discussed the basics of tourism, the historical part o India, communication skills, understanding group dynamics & tourist facilitation. Module 7 was the real gem that I was desperately looking for! The detailed state-wise information of India.
Note Preparation
Well, I was making notes from the very 1st day of the commencement of this course. The best part of this training program is that you can complete & learn modules at your own pace. Since it was lockdown & my classes were running in online mode so I had plenty of time which I vested to complete this course. Also, in the later 2020, IITTM was designing the courses & uploading them to our dashboard.
Finally, on 19th September 2020, I completed all of my 7 modules & then I was eligible for end of program examination.
OCC Certificate
After the completion of all the online modules, I received my provisional certificate on the 19th of September 2020. After then, I got an email on the 16th of October 2020 mentioning that now I can download my Online Course Completion Certificate (OCC Certificate).
Online Examination
I received my OCC certificate on 16th October 2020. After then, the registration process for the end program was started. Fees for End Program registration was Rs. 500 & again Rs. 500 for each additional state. The deadline for registration was 25th October 2020. I completed my registration within the stipulated time & was excited for the End Program exam which was scheduled on 1st November 2020 at 10 AM sharp.
Ohh, the End Program exam which was scheduled on 1st November 2020 got postponed!!
Now, it was scheduled on 8th November 2020. I was like “Ye bhi theek hai”
On 8th November 2020, I appeared in the online examination at 10 AM with my laptop. I was not able to log in. Actually, there was a server issue. I tried connecting for more than 50 minutes but the same issue again & again. Guess the next?? Yes, right. This time again our exam got cancelled. This time, I was like “Accha baat nahi hai ye”.
On 14th February 2021 at 1:52 PM, when many of the IITFC participants were probably celebrating valentine’s day, the IITFC team planned to surprise us with this schedule of End program online examination. finally, it was scheduled on 26th & 27th February 2021.
Result
This time, all went well & I successfully completed my online exam for the IITFC program. Like all the candidates, I was also waiting for the result.
On 26th March 2021, I got an email regarding the declaration of the result. I checked my result & I was marked as “Pass“.
Now, it was time for a communication seminar.
Communication Seminar
In the month of May 2021, I got an email regarding a communication seminar. It was about to commence on 7th June 2021. It was going to be organized in batches.
The communication seminar of my batch was scheduled from 15th June 2021 to 21st June 2021. Mr Amit Tiwari Sir (from IITTM Gwalior) was my trainer. For the communication seminar, a WhatsApp group was created by our trainer & zoom meeting link was shared over there only. We, the participants needed to interact & present on various topics in the meeting. Overall, it was a good 7 days for me.
After the completion of 7 days communication seminar, we were asked to share a video as the assignment for this training program.
IITFC Police Verification
Enrollment done, registration done, exam done, communication seminar done… Now what?? Certificate of completion?? No.
There were a few more formalities as well. Document verification & then police verification. We were asked to get our police verification done from the nearest police station & submit it to the regional tourism office (in my case, it was India Tourism, Kolkata)
On 18th October 2021, I received an email from IndiaTourism Kolkata regarding the IITFC Police Verification done.
As I’m a resident of Bihar, I applied for the same via online mode on 19th October 2021. I got my police verification done by 23rd October 2021. I emailed my police verification letter on the same day & also sent the hard copy via courier (DTDC) on 24th October 2021.
Certificate of Completion
Again, we need to wait. a long wait of around 4.5 months. Finally, I received an email regarding the distribution of the Certificate of Completion & launch of the e-marketplace portal for IITFC & IITG. This ceremony was conducted in online mode & by the evening of the same date, I got another e-mail which mentioned that I can download my certificate of completion now from the iitf.gov.in portal.
Ohh, wait!! This story is not over yet. The badge & ID card is yet to be dispatched. Yes, you heard it right.
IITFC Badge
On 22nd March 2022, we IITFC participants were asked for a few details like passport size photograph, OCC certificate, etc for the issuance of ID card. Well, in this context, only IndiaTourism Mumbai has conducted a ceremony on the 5th May 2022 for the distribution of the I’D card & IITFC Badge.
I will update this section once I’ll receive my IITFC badge & ID card.
Update 1
Received my badge on 15th June 2022. Yes, finally. On 12th June 2022, I got a call from Incredible India, Patna office regarding the seminar scheduled on 15th June for badge distribution. I’m sharing a few of my photos along with the IITFC badge.
Well, this was my experience along with 3000+ students who were in the first batch of the IITFC course. If you want to share your story as well or want to add a few points to this article, do let me know in the comment section below or write us at: mail@travelxamp.com
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