Background

    General Secretary Xi Jinping (2016) once stated, "Social practice, social activities, and various student society on campus jointly constitute the second - classroom for students, which is of inestimable value in broadening students' horizons, enhancing their comprehensive abilities, enriching their social experiences, and adding color to their lives." This statement highlights the pivotal role of student society in promoting students' all - round development. Student society serve not only as platforms for students to showcase their abilities and develop their skills but also as essential vehicles for implementing the fundamental mission of moral education and advancing holistic education. By organizing a rich variety of activities, they greatly enrich students extracurricular lives and inject a continuous stream of vitality into the prosperity of campus culture (Wu & Yang, 2024; Chen Fei & Guo, 2021).

    As a crucial component of the education system, vocational education is characterized by its distinct "employment - oriented" nature. Its core objective is to cultivate students' vocational abilities, enabling them to possess the capabilities to adapt to market demands and achieve sustainable employment (Hou & Wang, 2009). In this context, student society, as the main front for conducting second - classroom education, are of particular importance in cultivating students' vocational abilities and innovative thinking. They can help students better understand vocational requirements and enhance their vocational literacy through simulating vocational environments and providing practical opportunities, thus laying a solid foundation for their future careers (Zhang, 2011; Meng, 2023).

    However, the construction of skill-based student society in current vocational institutions still faces numerous challenges. Although these organizations have played a certain role in promoting students' skill improvement, on the whole, they are still in the initial stage of development, and there are many pressing issues to be addressed (Shan, 2015). For example, some student societies lack clear value guidance, resulting in hollow and superficial activity content. The phenomenon of an imbalance between supply and demand is prominent, with a significant gap between students' needs and the opportunities provided by the student society (Bai, 2025). In addition, some societies have a misalignment in their positioning, placing too much emphasis on form while neglecting substantive content and lacking a clear vocational orientation and professional guidance. Meanwhile, the insufficiency of social practice services also restricts the expansion of group members' vision and the improvement of their abilities (Wei, 2010).

    Faced with these challenges, the High-Star Hotel Operation and Management major (hereinafter referred to as G Major) of S School in Foshan City (hereinafter referred to as S School) has shown great courage in innovation and actively explored new paths for the construction of skill-based student society. The school has determined to construct the "enterprise-classroom" model for skill-based student societies based on vocational orientation. The aim is to closely integrate the actual needs of enterprises with the educational resources of the school through this model, providing students with more practical opportunities that are closer to vocational reality. With "vocational orientation and the cultivation of both morality and skills" as the core guiding principle, this model emphasizes the cultivation of students' professional skills while paying attention to the nurturing of their professional ethics and literacy. By integrating school - enterprise resources, carrying out on-campus and off-campus practices, as well as innovation and entrepreneurship practices, the school has consolidated the foundation of talent cultivation in the societies, committed to cultivating students' core vocational abilities and helping society members achieve comprehensive improvement in terms of professional skills and vocational literacy. Ultimately, this model will achieve a win-win situation in talent cultivation for skill-based student societies and meet the needs of enterprises, injecting new vitality into the development of vocational education.

Problem Analysis

Unclear Training Objectives

    Vocational education, as an educational type closely linked to the economic sphere, has the core mission of directly catering to the needs of enterprises and cultivating highly skilled professionals. Therefore, the educational activities in vocational institutions must be based on a clear vocational orientation to ensure that the knowledge and skills students acquire closely align with market demands (Hou, 2005). In vocational institutions, student societies serve as an important supplement to professional education. Their activities often revolve around professional characteristics, aiming to guide students to deepen their professional knowledge through practice and achieve an effective extension and consolidation of classroom teaching activities (Li & Li, 2024). Based on this, professional student societies in vocational institutions should be positioned as compound organizations of "interest + skill", which not only satisfy students' interests and hobbies but also focus on the cultivation of professional skills, rather than merely remaining at the level of entertainment (Xu, 2009; Liu, 2010). However, currently, student skill-based societies in vocational institutions have significant deficiencies in value guidance, specifically manifesting as the phenomenon of "emphasizing skills over morality". That is, they over-emphasize skill training while neglecting the education of humanistic qualities such as professional ethics and professional literacy (Han Xu, 2021). In addition, the forms of society activities are monotonous, lacking depth and connotation. They often stay at the superficial level of entertainment, making it difficult to truly enhance students' comprehensive qualities (Wei, 2010).

Lack of Professional Guidance

    In the construction of professional societies in vocational institutions, although most professional skill-based student society are equipped with professional teachers as mentors, some on-campus professional teachers, due to their long-term work at the front-line of teaching, lack practical experience in industries and enterprises and have an insufficient understanding of the latest development trends in these sectors. This disconnection between theory and practice leads to teachers' inability to provide students with forward-looking and practical guidance and advice (Li & Li, 2024). Taking the field of sommelier service as an example, some teachers may only be familiar with traditional beverage knowledge and service skills but have a lack of understanding of emerging beverage varieties and innovative service methods in the market. This lag in knowledge update severely restricts the development of professional skill-oriented student society, making it difficult for students to access the most cutting-edge industry trends and technologies, thus affecting the improvement of their vocational abilities.

Insufficient Social Services

    As an important organizational form of the second-classroom, one of the core objectives of skill-based student society is to cultivate students’ vocational abilities and social practice abilities (Xie et al., 2009; Wei, 2010). However, currently, some skill-based student society in vocational institutions are overly conservative in activity organization. They excessively consider factors such as safety and cost, basically confining group activities within the school campus. This closed-off activity model results in students' lack of actual social service experience, making it difficult for them to apply the knowledge they have learned to practical work, thus affecting the improvement of their social practice service abilities. Taking the Sommelier Society as an example, although students have learned rich beverage knowledge and service skills at school, due to the lack of actual social service opportunities, they are unable to transform this knowledge into practical operational abilities and find it difficult to demonstrate their professional literacy in a real work environment. This disconnection from social practice not only limits students' career development but also affects the overall improvement of the educational quality of vocational institutions.

Main Approaches

Career-Oriented Development with A Focus on Integrated Moral and Technical Training

   The talent cultivation of career-oriented professional student societies should "emphasize application, serve the workplace, and drive development." Meanwhile, it is essential to guide society construction with correct values and promote the sustainable development of high-quality societies through activities that combine both fun and substance, thereby enhancing the appropriateness of talent cultivation in vocational institution student societies specializing in professional skills.

    Clarifying Talent Cultivation Objectives Based on Career Orientation. The Ministry of Education of China has clearly proposed that vocational education should  "serve as the purpose, be employment-oriented, and integrate production, teaching, and research." (Ministry of Education of the People's Republic of China, 2004) It aims to cultivate technically skilled talents with strong practical abilities, good professional ethics, and who are oriented towards frontline production, management, and service positions (Lu, 2013). The teaching team of the G major at S School deeply recognizes that student societies specializing in professional skills, as an extension of professional courses, must be based on the talent cultivation objectives of the G major and oriented towards the corresponding occupational positions in the practical field. Therefore, before establishing student societies specializing in professional skills, the team conducted thorough research. They delved into the current development status and trends of the industry, sorted out the job requirements related to sommelier services in the catering industry, and explored the talent cultivation needs of beverage service societies for occupations such as bartenders, sommeliers, wine tasters, and mixologists. On this basis, the cultivation objective of the Sommelier Society was established as cultivating compound beverage talents with a sense of national pride, an international perspective, cross-cultural competence, possessing certain beverage knowledge, having solid beverage service skills, good social communication and coordination abilities, and being able to contribute to the promotion of beverage culture.

    Emphasizing The Integration of Moral Education and Technical Skills to Achieve Core Value Guidance. Student societies are not merely organizations initiated by students out of interest; they should also highlight their role as carriers in value guidance, ensuring a correct political orientation and vitality. When constructing skill-based student societies, the teaching team of the G major at S School attaches great importance to ideological guidance within student societies and actively creates a favorable environment for ideological and political education within the society. In the design of society curricula and activities, not only are professional skills and occupational abilities emphasized, but also the cultivation of professional ethics, craftsmanship spirit, aesthetic taste, and good service awareness. For example, by organizing visits to beverage culture museums and inviting industry role models to share experiences, students' professional ethics and craftsmanship spirit are cultivated. Meanwhile, the team fully explores the moral education elements and content within professional sommelier service skills. Through methods such as video learning, role modeling, and case studies, ideological and political elements such as "confidence in beverage culture, patriotism, international perspective, professional ethics, and craftsmanship spirit" are integrated into society curricula and activities, empowering the cultivation of compound talents in the beverage field who possess technical skills, capabilities, responsibilities, and sentiments, from the land to the dining table.

    Combining Internal and External Activities to Enrich the Connotation of Society Development. Individuals. cultivated through vocational education should not be mere robots with only skills. Emphasis should also be placed on the cultivation of humanistic accomplishment. In the design of society curricula and activities, immersive and experiential on-site learning and education are highlighted. Based on the staged characteristics of the training in the operation and management of high-star hotels and the students' ability levels, project-based activities are introduced in an orderly manner, taking real enterprise situations as references and teaching students in accordance with their aptitude, thus forming a society curriculum and activity design that "manifests externally and seeks internally," achieving a compatibility between fun and substantive development. For example, students are organized to carry out creative activities with a wine culture theme, allowing them to not only enhance their professional skills but also cultivate innovative thinking and humanistic qualities in the activities.

Joint Cultivation by Schools and Enterprises: A Dual-Entity Approach to Education.

   Student societies specializing in professional skills integrate resources from both schools and enterprises, incorporating "enterprise job standards, real enterprise tasks, frontline enterprise masters, and enterprise production environments" into society construction. Simultaneously, they leverage vocational skill competitions and relevant certificate examinations to empower society development. Joint cultivation by schools and enterprises, guided by dual instructors (one from school and one from enterprise), promotes student growth.

    Pooling Resources from Industries and Enterprises to Generate Synergistic Educational Effects. Student society activities are centered around the major, possessing strong professionalism and practicality. The cultivation of students' occupational abilities must align with the actual conditions of industries and enterprises. Enterprise-based classrooms necessitate the establishment of a comprehensive, whole-process guidance mechanism both on and off campus, featuring collaborative education by dual instructors from schools and enterprises. This mechanism ensures consistency between school education and teaching and enterprise demands, enabling students' knowledge, skills, and qualities to meet enterprise requirements (Fei, 2014). On the one hand, the advisors of the Sommelier Society actively participate in industry and enterprise-related affairs, such as serving as judges for wine and spirits competitions organized by the Guangdong Provincial Alcoholic Beverage Industry Association and international-level beverage evaluation events, thereby staying abreast of industry trends and the latest technologies. On the other hand, high-quality educational resources from enterprises are introduced, and industry masters are hired to provide skill coaching for the society members. Leveraging the frontline work advantages of enterprise instructors in positions such as sommeliers and bartenders, the latest industry trends and cutting-edge skill knowledge are integrated into the cultivation of society students. For instance, renowned bartenders are invited to demonstrate bartending techniques on-site for students, share bartending experiences, enabling students to have close contact with beverage masters and enhance their professional skill levels and professional refinement. Additionally, through enterprise-based classrooms, students participate in master class courses taught by professionals in real enterprise environments, learning in authentic settings and precisely improving their professional skills guided by real enterprise instructions.

   Integrating "post-curriculum-competition-certificate" to cultivate high-quality talents. The integration of "post-course-competition-certificate" represents an innovative talent cultivation model for high-skilled talents in vocational education. In this model, students acquire genuine skills through the unity of knowledge and action, achieving seamless alignment between the knowledge and skills learned in school and the demands of enterprise positions (Zeng, 2021). The Sommelier Society of S School adopts the " post-course-competition-certificate" integration model of introducing job requirements into courses, incorporating courses into job positions, integrating competitions into teaching, and embedding certificates into evaluations. Job requirements for bartenders, sommeliers, wine tasters, and mixologists are integrated into the society's curriculum, enabling students to clarify their learning objectives and career directions. Meanwhile, requirements from skill competitions such as restaurant service (selected national competitions, WorldSkills Competitions), hotel services, as well as the requirements for the “1+X” Wine Tasting and Sommelier Service Certificate, are incorporated into society curricula and activities, forming a society educational model that aligns courses with job positions and integrates courses with certificates. For example, students are organized to participate in various sommelier service skill competitions, promoting learning through competition and enhancing their professional skill levels. Students are also encouraged to obtain relevant certificates to increase their employability.

    Guided by industry standards to facilitate talent cultivation. In the development of the Sommelier Society, international educational resources are introduced, benchmarking against the globally leading Wine & Spirit Education Trust (WSET) qualification certification courses in wine and spirits. S School has successfully applied to be a WSET examination center, obtaining authorization for WSET Level 1 and Level 2 certifications, while society advisors have obtained WSET Level 1 and Level 2 instructor qualifications. Additionally, the VINCERT comprehensive wine certification system, the Chinese Alcoholic Beverage Industry Association's wine taster standards, and the China Hotel Association's star-rated sommelier occupational standards are introduced, assisting the Sommelier Society in precisely cultivating talents and enhancing the appropriateness of talent cultivation in professional skill-based societies. By adhering to industry standards, students' knowledge and skills are aligned with international standards, improving their professional qualities and employability.

True Knowledge Emerges from Practice, and Service Facilitates Growth

    Professional practice serves as the fundamental approach and an integral part of cultivating application-oriented talents in vocational institutions. In the construction of student societies for the G major at S School, practice is carried out in three domains: 1) consolidating professional capabilities through on-campus society activities, 2) enhancing occupational capabilities through enterprise practice, and 3) forging practical innovation capabilities through practical curriculum.

    On-Campus Society Activities: Project-Driven Development. The Sommelier Society of the G major adheres to the principle of "project-as-carrier, task-as-driver, and occupational capability-as-core competence" in practice. Dual instructors from both the school and enterprises adopt a project-based teaching approach, assigning specific tasks based on real enterprise projects. For instance, organizing a wine tasting dinner, hosting a cocktail and cold buffet reception, or completing a masterclass sommelier service are real enterprise projects that serve as tasks for society activities or courses. Driven by these project tasks, students enhance their professional skills and occupational capabilities. Through the operation of actual projects, students can better understand and master the knowledge and skills of beverage service, improving their ability to solve practical problems.

    Off-Campus Social Practice: Service-Enabled Development. Providing external services is an important avenue for demonstrating the value of student societies specializing in professional skills and a key factor in enhancing professional influence. During the society construction process of the G major team at S School, they actively explore the educational model of "enterprise-based classrooms" guiding society students to integrate the professional knowledge and skills they have learned with practice through participating in sommelier service practices at international wine exhibitions, international wine evaluation competitions, and other similar events. Simultaneously, based on real beverage service work scenarios, this approach further promotes the cultivation of students’ occupational capabilities, effectively honing their professional qualities, social skills, sense of social responsibility, and mission. For example, when students participate in services at international wine exhibitions, they need to communicate with clients from different countries and regions. This not only improves their foreign language proficiency but also cultivates their cross-cultural communication abilities and service awareness.

    Innovation and Entrepreneurship Practice: Innovation-Inspired Vitality. The Sommelier Society places emphasis on cultivating the innovation capabilities and entrepreneurial spirit of its society members. Outstanding graduates who have started their own businesses are invited to serve as innovation and entrepreneurship mentors for the society, sharing their experiences in innovation and entrepreneurship. The society launches innovation and entrepreneurship activities with the theme of "Setting Up Stalls by Royal Decree, Selling Beauty," guiding students to engage in innovation and entrepreneurship practices during weekends and holidays. They set up stalls in parks, riverbanks, squares, and other locations, offering non-alcoholic cocktails, classic cocktails, innovative cocktails, classic snacks, and more to local residents and tourists. Through innovation and entrepreneurship practice, a platform is provided for society members to showcase themselves, exercise their abilities, and realize their self-worth, cultivating their innovative thinking and entrepreneurial capabilities.

Achievements

Consolidating Professional Skills and Enhancing Professional Identity

   Participation in professional skill-oriented student societies has emerged as a pivotal approach for vocational institutions to elevate students' sense of professional identity. Research indicates that students involved in professional student society exhibit significantly higher levels of professional awareness, preference, and engagement compared to their non-society counterparts (Liu et al., 2023). Taking the Sommelier Society of the G major at S School as an example, the society has established a distinctive cultivation model characterized by "project-led and school-enterprise joint cultivation," providing students with a platform that seamlessly integrates theoretical knowledge with practical operations.

    Under the guidance of projects, students actively engage in a variety of practical initiatives related to beverage service. From acquiring knowledge about beverages to honing service skills, every aspect of their learning is closely aligned with the demands of real-world work scenarios. Concurrently, the school-enterprise joint cultivation model facilitates the direct involvement of enterprise experts in the teaching process, enabling them to impart the latest industry trends, operational norms, and practical experiences to students. This cultivation approach equips students with a more solid foundation in beverage knowledge and more professional sommelier service skills, encompassing not only basic knowledge such as beverage varieties, origins, and taste profiles but also professional skills including beverage mixing, tasting, and service etiquette.

    During their participation in various social service activities, students receive tangible remuneration for their labor, which not only acknowledges their efforts but also deepens their appreciation for the value of their professional expertise. Furthermore, these social service activities broaden students' perspectives, offering them opportunities to interact with clients from diverse backgrounds and with varying needs, thereby enhancing their understanding of the industry's diversity and complexity. These experiences further deepen students' cognitive understanding of their major, enabling them to more clearly recognize the significance and prospects of their field of study, thus significantly enhancing their professional identity and pride.

    Moreover, participation in professional skill-based societies exerts a profound influence on students' future career choices. Surveys reveal that these students are more inclined to pursue careers that align with their society and major after graduation. Taking the Sommelier Society as an example, some students have resolutely chosen to enter the beverage industry upon graduation. Leveraging the rich knowledge and solid skills acquired in the school society, they swiftly adapt to their job positions, demonstrating outstanding professional qualities and innovative capabilities, and achieving favorable career development. Some students have become sales pillars in beverage enterprises, while others have been promoted to management positions in hotel bars, contributing their strength to the development of the beverage industry.

Outstanding Competition Achievements Broadening the Pathways for Talent Development

   In the past three years, students from the Sommelier Society of the G major at S School have achieved remarkable results in various vocational skills competitions related to beverage service, fully demonstrating the society's exceptional effectiveness in talent cultivation. At the national level competitions, two students have won awards. These accolades not only represent the students' top-tier proficiency in professional skills but also bring great honor to the school and the society. At the provincial level competitions, students have performed even more outstandingly, with a total of seven students receiving awards. These achievements are the best reward for the students' diligent efforts.

    Vocational skills competitions serve not only as a test of students' professional skills but also as an important avenue for them to obtain professional skill certificates. By participating in these competitions, students have successfully acquired relevant professional skill certificates, which are strong evidence of their professional abilities and add significant weight to their career development. Meanwhile, the competition results have also provided some students with the opportunity to be recommended for admission to top-tier undergraduate or higher vocational technical institutions within the province. A total of six students have seized this precious opportunity based on their excellent performances in the competitions. These students will have the chance to further their studies at a higher platform, enhancing their professional literacy and comprehensive abilities.

   The society's outstanding graduates have also achieved remarkable accomplishments in their respective fields. One of them has taken on the role of chief bartender at the Too High Bar in the Rosewood Guangzhou Hotel. With his exquisite bartending skills and unique service philosophy, he has won the favor of numerous customers, achieving an annual income of over 250,000 yuan and becoming a leading figure in the industry. Another graduate has chosen to start his own business. Leveraging the experience and resources accumulated in the school society, he has successfully opened his own bar, realizing a splendid transformation from a student to an entrepreneur. These success stories of outstanding graduates not only provide broad development prospects for individual students but also set a good example for the school, enhancing its influence in the field of vocational education and attracting more students to apply for the beverage service major at the school.

Prominent Social Practice Enhancing the Alignment of Talent Cultivation

   The "on-campus practice, off-campus practice, and innovative practice" trinity talent cultivation model constructed by the Sommelier Society offers students comprehensive and multi-level practical training opportunities, effectively solidifying the fundamental skills of in students’ societies. During the on-campus practice phase, students familiarize themselves with the basic procedures and operational norms of beverage service through simulated training, case analysis, and other methods, laying a solid foundation for off-campus practice. Off-campus practice serves as a crucial stage for students to apply their acquired knowledge to real-world work scenarios. They step out of the campus, delve into actual work environments such as enterprises and hotels, and engage in exchanges and learning with industry experts and frontline employees, thereby accumulating rich practical experience. Innovative practice, on the other hand, encourages students to unleash their creativity and imagination, undertake innovative projects and activities, and cultivate their innovative spirit and teamwork capabilities.

    Over the past five years, teachers and students from the Sommelier Society have been invited to participate in large-scale international wine and beverage exhibitions and events, including the 30th, 31st, and 32nd  China (Guangzhou) International Wine & Spirits Fair, the 25th and 26th IGC Wine & Spirits Awards, and the 110th China Food & Drinks Fair. In these events, students have garnered unanimous praise from cooperating enterprises with their excellent service awareness, sincere smiles, and professional and proficient service operations. They not only provide high-quality beverage services for the events but also actively interact with exhibitors and attendees, promoting beverage culture and professional knowledge, showcasing the demeanor and capabilities of students from vocational institutions.

    Participation in external service activities has effectively enhanced the social alignment of high-standard professional talent cultivation. Through collaboration and exchanges with enterprises, the school can promptly grasp changes in industry demand for talents and adjust talent cultivation plans and curriculum settings, ensuring that the cultivated students better meet the actual needs of enterprises. Meanwhile, these activities fully validate the construction philosophy of the S School's Sommelier Society, which is "to serve society, enterprises, and members," achieving a win-win-win situation for the school, enterprises, and students.

    Moreover, by participating in these large-scale events, the social influence of the professional brand has been significantly enhanced. The school's and the society's reputation within the industry has continually risen, attracting more students and social resources to pay attention to the school's beverage service major. Many students have chosen to apply for the major due to the society's outstanding achievements and good reputation in the field of beverage service. Consequently, numerous students have opted to apply for the beverage service major at the school after learning about the school's remarkable achievements and reputation in the beverage service field. Meanwhile, numerous enterprises and institutions have established cooperative relationships with the school, offering students internship, employment, and entrepreneurship opportunities, injecting new vitality into the school's development.

    The involvement in external service activities has effectively enhanced the social alignment of high-star professional talent cultivation. Through collaboration and exchanges with enterprises, the school can promptly grasp the evolving demands for talents in the industry, thereby adjusting talent cultivation plans and curriculum settings to better align students' training with the actual needs of enterprises. Meanwhile, these activities fully validate the construction philosophy of S School's Sommelier Society, which is to "serve society, serve enterprises, and serve members," achieving a win-win situation for the school, enterprises, and students.

    Furthermore, by participating in these large-scale events, the social influence of the professional brand has been significantly enhanced. The school and society's reputation within the industry has continuously improved, attracting more students and social resources to pay attention to the school's curriculum development. Many students choose to apply for the G major at the school after learning about its outstanding achievements and good reputation in the field of sommelier service. Meanwhile, some enterprises and institutions have also established cooperative relationships with the school, providing students with opportunities for internships, employment, and entrepreneurship, injecting new vitality into the school's development.

Experiential Insights

    As a vital component of the vocational education system, professional skill-based student societies in vocational institutions should proactively adapt to the developmental requirements of vocational institutions and diligently cultivate in three dimensions: empowering specialty construction, advancing market-oriented operations, and forging social service brands. This endeavor aims to comprehensively cultivate students' vocational capabilities, continually enhance their social adaptability, and contribute to the high-quality development of vocational education.

Empowering Specialty Construction

   Professional skill-oriented student societies should closely align with the school's professional construction and fully leverage the role of the second classroom as an extension and expansion of professional education. By meticulously planning and organizing various social practice activities, a robust bridge between professional characteristics and the second- classroom can be established, creating heuristic and project-based extended classrooms (Wei, 2010). These activities should not only encompass the practical application of professional knowledge but also encourage students to undertake professional innovation projects, organically integrating professional knowledge, practice, and innovative activities to form a complete system for enhancing professional capabilities. Through participation in these practical activities, students can gain a deeper understanding of professional knowledge, improve their professional skill levels, and simultaneously cultivate a sense of identity and pride in their major, thereby fostering a virtuous cycle of mutual promotion between talent cultivation and professional construction. For instance, societies can design and implement relevant innovation projects in conjunction with professional course content, enabling students to deepen their understanding and mastery of professional knowledge through practice, achieving a dual enhancement of knowledge and skills.

Advancing Market-Oriented Operations

   The construction of professional skill-based student societies should emphasize the principal status of students and adopt an enterprise-like mindset in the construction and operation of the societies (Jiang, 2010). During the society construction process, it is essential to strengthen students' understanding of enterprises, occupations, and job positions, facilitating an early transition in occupational awareness to address potential disparities in the enthusiasm for school-enterprise cooperation and meet the practical needs of students for close contact with enterprises. Societies should establish a mindset of "running a society like running an enterprise," providing service outcomes in a market-oriented manner, continually enhancing the society's "hematopoietic" function, and achieving high-quality and sustainable development of the society. For example, student society can undertake relevant projects from enterprises, providing professional services to enterprises, thereby generating economic benefits while honing students' practical abilities and professional qualities. Simultaneously, student society can actively explore new models of cooperation with enterprises, such as jointly establishing training bases and conducting joint training programs, to further broaden the society's development space.

Forging Social Service Brands

   The development of professional skill-based student societies is inseparable from the support of socialized practice projects. Student society should persist in taking professional projects as the core and social work in enterprises, communities, and other sectors as the foundation, continuously excavating and refining professional characteristics, and deepening and solidifying social services. In the process of providing social services, societies should scientifically and reasonably manage the relationship between the quantity and quality of social services, concentrating efforts on creating a batch of brand projects that align with professional characteristics. These brand projects should not only possess a high degree of professionalism and innovation but also effectively address social issues and meet social needs. By continuously forging and promoting these brand projects, student societies can expand the transformation of their brand achievements, attracting more teachers and students to integrate into them and jointly contribute to social development. For instance, a Sommelier Society can create distinctive beverage culture promotion projects, enhancing the society's social visibility and influence through activities such as holding beverage culture lectures and tasting sessions, while simultaneously promoting the inheritance and development of beverage culture. These activities can not only attract more students and members of the public to pay attention to and participate in beverage culture but also provide a platform for society members to showcase themselves and hone their abilities.

Conclusion

   The Sommelier Society of the G major at S School has proactively explored and established a distinctive "enterprise-classroom" model amidst the wave of vocational education reform. Based on an occupational orientation, this model provides a highly valuable practical paradigm and theoretical reference for the construction of professional skill-oriented student societies in vocational institutions. It profoundly grasps the essence of vocational education, with "occupational orientation and the simultaneous cultivation of morality and skills" as its core principles, accurately positioning the direction of talent cultivation and offering an effective pathway to address the prominent issues in the current construction of professional skill-based student societies in vocational institutions.

    Against the backdrop of numerous challenges faced in student society construction, the innovation and effectiveness of this model are particularly prominent. Currently, professional skill-based student societies in vocational institutions generally suffer from unclear training objectives, resulting in society activities lacking systematicity and pertinence, and making it difficult for students to obtain clear guidance on their career development paths. The "enterprise-classroom" model integrates an occupational orientation throughout the entire process of society construction, setting training objectives closely aligned with the needs of industries and enterprises. This enables students to clearly recognize the close connection between the enhancement of their professional skills and their future career development, thereby stimulating their learning motivation and career planning awareness.

    The lack of professional guidance is another critical factor constraining society development. Although in-school professional teachers possess solid theoretical knowledge, they often lack practical industry experience, making it difficult to provide students with forward-looking and practical guidance. The "enterprise-classroom" model integrates school-enterprise resources, introducing enterprise experts to form a guidance team alongside in-school teachers, achieving a profound integration of theory and practice. Enterprise experts, with their rich practical experience, impart the latest industry technologies, operational norms, and workplace survival skills to students. In-school teachers, leveraging their theoretical strengths, help students construct a complete knowledge system. The two complement each other, providing students with comprehensive and multi-layered professional guidance.

    Insufficient social services confine student society activities to the campus, depriving students of opportunities to engage with society and understand the actual demands of industries. This leads to a disconnect between talent cultivation and societal needs. The "enterprise-classroom" model actively engages in diverse practices, extending society activities to the front lines of enterprise production and community service scenarios. This allows students to hone their professional skills in real-world social environments and enhance their sense of social responsibility and service awareness. By participating in enterprise projects and community public welfare activities, students can not only apply their acquired knowledge in practice but also promptly grasp changes in societal demand for talents, thereby adjusting their learning and development strategies accordingly.

    Practical effectiveness serves as a crucial criterion for evaluating the validity of a model. Driven by the "enterprise-classroom" model, the Sommelier Society of the G major at S School has achieved remarkable results. Students' professional skills have been significantly enhanced, as evidenced by their frequent successes in various professional skills competitions. These accolades not only affirm students' personal capabilities but also highlight the society's outstanding achievements in talent cultivation. Simultaneously, students' sense of occupational identity has been greatly strengthened, instilling them with confidence and enthusiasm for their chosen majors and enabling them to more clearly define their occupational goals and development paths. Moreover, this model has broadened the pathways for talent growth, providing students with more platforms to showcase themselves and realize their value, thereby cultivating their innovative spirit and practical abilities and laying a solid foundation for their future development. More importantly, the alignment between talent cultivation and societal needs has been substantially improved, with graduates capable of swiftly adapting to the corporate work environment and creating value for enterprises, thus achieving a tripartite win-win situation for the school, enterprises, and students.

    From the successful experience of the Sommelier Society of the G major at S School, we can glean profound insights. Professional skill-oriented student societies in vocational institutions should actively empower specialized construction by closely integrating society activities with professional courses, carrying out characteristic practice activities centered around core professional capabilities, fostering a collective culture with professional characteristics, and enhancing the society's professional connotation and quality. Advancing market-oriented operations is an inevitable requirement for the sustainable development of societies. Student societies should learn from enterprise management models and operational mechanisms, establish market and service awareness, conduct activities guided by market demand, improve the society's "hematopoietic" function, and achieve self-development and self-improvement. Creating social service brands is a pivotal measure to enhance the society's influence and societal recognition. Societies should focus on social hot issues and industry demands, forge a batch of exemplary and leading social service projects, form a unique brand effect, attract more teachers and students to participate, and contribute to social development.

   By empowering specialized construction, advancing market-oriented operations, and creating social service brands, professional skill-oriented student societies in vocational institutions can better cultivate students' vocational capabilities, enhance their social adaptability, and achieve coordinated development between societies and majors. This not only helps to improve students' comprehensive qualities and employment competitiveness but also injects new vitality into the cultivation of vocational education talents, promoting vocational education to develop towards higher quality and level, and nurturing more high-quality skilled talents for economic and social development.

Declaration of competing interest

   The authors declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.