GRADUATE James Ghulam is fulfilling his lifelong ambition to live and work in America after securing a job with a US hotel management firm in Texas.

The 24-year-old from Newcastle will spend three years as an operations manager for White Lodging Services (WLS), providing leadership support between 30 Marriott and Hilton hotels in the Lone Star state.

James got his foot in the door of his chosen career while studying business and management at the University of Sunderland.

He said: “In my second year I decided to sign up for the university’s nine-month Study Abroad exchange programme at Valdosta State University in Georgia.

“I absolutely loved it, ever since I was young I’ve wanted to live and work in America. I decided to stay on, made some enquiries and found a placement in Houston, Texas with WLS for one year.

“The experience really was life-changing and I knew when I returned to university for my final year what I had to do to succeed. It really helped open my eyes to the world of work and made me more professional. I worked as hard as I could to make sure I made my mark on the company so they did not forget me.”

He spent a year WLS’s Graduate Internship programme in Texas but had to return because there were no suitable jobs at the end. But in April he was offered his new role with the company.

James said: “The company is renowned in the US for developing young professionals, if you put the effort in with them they’ll develop you. They have taken me from a student abroad into a full grown professional.”