For Caroline Aase, discovering the right career in hospitality meant learning as much about what she didn't want to do as what she did.

As a hospitality management student at the University of South Carolina, Aase gained firsthand experience in hotel operations, working in everything from front desk services to food and beverage. Those experiences helped her develop an appreciation for the industry while introducing her to career possibilities beyond traditional hotel management.

Today, the 2024 graduate is a transactions and asset management analyst for IHG Hotels & Resorts in Atlanta, working behind the scenes to help one of the world's leading hotel companies maintain and grow its portfolio.

"I really do love the fact that at Carolina, the College of Hospitality, Retail and Sport Management puts so much emphasis on internships," Aase said. "They were extremely valuable in ensuring that not only could you learn firsthand what a hotel job meant or what a restaurant job or a club job or any of those jobs meant, but understand more so how to time manage and how to do both things and how to learn while also learning on the job."

Finding Her Place in the Industry

Aase's role at IHG is different from the careers many students initially envision when they choose to study hospitality management.

Working within the company's hotel development organization, she analyzes transactions, supports hotel licensing agreements and helps manage relationships with hotel owners. Her team focuses particularly on properties approaching the expiration of their franchise agreements, helping determine how those hotels can remain part of the IHG family.

With approximately 4,700 hotels in the Americas portfolio and 200 to 300 franchise agreements expiring annually, the work involves a substantial volume of transactions and strategic decisions.

"It's a lot of work of analyzing and providing support or leading in some cases," Aase said.

Her responsibilities include coordinating hotel licensing transactions, evaluating property performance, analyzing business metrics and supporting ownership changes. In 2025, she helped execute 25 hotel licensing actions, including relicensing agreements and change-of-ownership transactions.

The work allows her to remain connected to an industry she loves while enjoying a more traditional corporate work schedule and the flexibility to work remotely.

That combination was exactly what she hoped to find after graduation.

Learning Through Experience

Aase's path to hotel development began with hands-on experience in Columbia.

During her sophomore year, she joined the Graduate Columbia Hotel, where she worked for approximately two years. Her responsibilities included front desk operations, housekeeping and other aspects of hotel service.

Later, she pursued a rotational internship at the Cambria Columbia Downtown Hotel, working across five departments and gaining additional exposure to food and beverage operations.

Rather than simply accepting an existing internship opportunity, Aase helped create one.

Having met Cambria general manager (and HRSM alum) Jesse Broome through hospitality events and her involvement at USC, she approached him about developing a rotational experience that would allow her to explore different departments. He was receptive to the idea, giving her an opportunity to expand her understanding of hotel operations.

The experience reinforced an important realization: Although she enjoyed working in hotels, she didn't necessarily want to spend her entire career in day-to-day operations.

"Because I had the opportunity to do that in college, I knew I didn't want to do it out of college," she said.

Aase emphasizes that discovering what doesn't suit you can be just as valuable as identifying what does.

She encourages current students to pursue internships that expose them to different settings, departments and responsibilities, even when those experiences fall outside their initial interests.

"I wish that I would have done maybe an internship that was outside of Columbia or outside of a little bit more experimental," she said.

Her own internships were both in hotels, but rotating through different departments helped her recognize how varied careers within a single industry could be.

The Power of Making Connections

While her internships helped Aase determine the direction she wanted to pursue, relationships formed through the College of Hospitality, Retail and Sport Management helped her turn that interest into a career.

During her time at USC, Aase participated in a visit to IHG's headquarters with School of Hospitality and Tourism Management Senior Instructor Kevin Ayres and other students. There, she met a professional working in the company's hotel development organization.

About a year later, as she explored career opportunities, Aase reached out to reconnect.

Her intention wasn't necessarily to ask for a job. She simply wanted to learn more about his work and how the organization had evolved since their previous conversation.

Instead of scheduling an informational interview, the contact asked for her resume.

"That's kind of how I got my foot in the door," Aase said. "He really liked the initiative and almost cold call-esque reaching out just to see and learn more about a different segment of the industry."

That connection ultimately helped launch her career at IHG, where she began working shortly after graduating in May 2024.

For Aase, the experience demonstrates why networking is about more than collecting contacts or searching for employment.

The relationships she developed at USC continue to provide encouragement, guidance and professional support.

She remains connected to the college and regularly seeks advice from mentors, including Andrea Belfanti, a fellow HRSM alum whom she credits with helping her navigate her early career.

"Even if it's not for a job, it's more the support is extremely valuable and it allows me to do my job better today," she said.

Building on a Strong Foundation

Aase graduated from USC with a 4.0 GPA and an impressive collection of academic honors, including the Academic Excellence Award for Hospitality Management, a Statler Foundation Scholarship and the Charles B. Walker Endowment Scholarship.

She also pursued additional professional development, completing coursework in commercial real estate financial analysis and market analysis through the CCIM Institute.

Those experiences helped prepare her for a role that combines hospitality industry knowledge with financial analysis, relationship management and strategic decision-making.

Now more than two years into her career, Aase continues to develop her expertise while exploring opportunities for advancement.

She also credits the support of her manager, who is based in Toronto, with helping her grow professionally. Having strong female mentors, both at IHG and through her connections to USC, has been particularly meaningful.

Although she is enthusiastic about continuing to advance in hotel development and asset management, Aase remains open to the opportunities her career may bring.

Her experience offers two important lessons for hospitality management students: A degree in hospitality can lead to far more than managing the daily operations of a hotel, restaurant or resort. And sometimes, the most valuable part of an internship isn't finding your dream job. It's discovering the possibilities you hadn't considered.