Hospitality Management MBA Degree

The hospitality industry is one of the largest in the world and the main source of income for many countries. To market themselves globally or work in top-rated establishments, professionals should consider a master's degree or MBA in hospitality management. These specialized degrees combine general business management skills with industry-specific knowledge and case studies for applications in a wide range of careers. Such graduates can look forward to careers as strategic or operations managers, entrepreneurs, executive tourism administrators, and much more.

Students in MBA hospitality management programs learn the skills of the trade and issues and problems specific to the hospitality industry through class work, research, and directed projects. These programs include instruction in business administration fundamentals such as vertical business functionality, supply chain management, and cover best operational practices within large hospitality organizations.

Classes train students to apply leadership and business strategies to hospitality specific situations. Many hospitality management degrees include management fundamentals, hospitality administration, and elements of tourism. Courses typically include economics, business communication, purchasing and inventory control, and front office operations. Students also learn about retail and consumer behavior, housekeeping management, hospitality facilities design, resort development, real estate investments and finance, food and beverage cost control, and safety and sanitation.

The MBA in hospitality management qualifies most candidates to work as hospitality managers to staff and oversee operations and development in hotels, bed and breakfasts, resorts, cruise ships, and other facilities. Extremely important to the success of resorts and hotels, hospitality managers perform vital tasks such as managing money and hiring employees. For example, hotel managers supervise the daily operations of all staff, hire and train new staff, field complaints from customers, order and maintain supplies, manage advertising and marketing, and monitor accounting practices, and ensure premises are kept clean. In addition to rewarding salaries and bonuses, lodging, meal, and education discounts are other incentives for professionals working in this field. Students with graduate degrees also find work as event company directors, meeting planning executives, and hospitality finance directors and management consultants.

Hospitality Managment Schools

Students earning a Master of Science degree in hospitality management may find management positions running restaurants, hotels or lodges, and casinos. Students in these programs develop the entrepreneurial and managerial skills needed to succeed as owners and operators in the restaurant, hotel, and resort industries. They combine practical experience with classroom theory to assist students in gaining the understanding, skills, and techniques needed to achieve career goals in the hospitality and tourism industries. Most programs require graduate internships and classes focus on a practical understanding of the industry.

Coursework includes financial accounting and analysis, marketing management, project and financial management, restaurant development, international food production management, and strategic management. Additional classes may include advanced research writing, feasibility studies for the hospitality industry, research and statistical methods, and service operations analysis. Graduate students will also study organizational behavior in the hospitality industry, case studies in hospitality management, and hospitality enterprise technologies in these programs. Be sure to check out our available scholarships by state to see what you qualify for.

Hospitality Management Resources:
Cornell University School of Hotel Administration

Georgetown University