The major in Hospitality Management is designed to prepare students for a wide range of careers in the fields including, but not limited to, hotel/resort management, tourism (including global tourism), food and beverage management, and event planning. Students graduating with a major in Hospitality Management have a unique blend of coursework including a solid background in general business skills, economics, human resources, and the legal environment of business. They will have the expertise needed to provide excellent customer service grounded in best professional and ethical practices while building their skill-set leading to their own individual success. Based upon their desired area of career choice, students will have the opportunity to use both Hospitality electives and free electives to enrich their education, drawing upon courses in communication/public relations, entrepreneurship, sport management, event planning, marketing, recreation, and technical theater. They will also have the opportunity to learn in special topics and independent study courses. The Hospitality Program relies upon not only classroom learning, but also experiential learning that is guided by both on site and faculty supervisors. For this reason, a carefully sequenced set of courses have been developed that first prepare students for the mandatory summer’s work experiences over summers 1, 2, and 3 and then use those experiences for reflective learning during the following academic year.
The Hospitality Management major will provide students with:
- A wide range of critical thinking and problem solving skills related to becoming an effective manager within the Hospitality industry;
- Strong general business and leadership skills;
- Skills in specific business fields including accounting, management, marketing, finance and economics;
- Skills necessary for success in the hospitality industry including hospitality management, hospitality marketing, food and beverage management, event planning, and other related skills;
- A continuous experiential learning component which bridges classroom learning and hands on summer work experiences;
- The opportunity for specialization and breadth of knowledge through available electives in hospitality and related fields: sports management, recreation, theater design, communications, public relations, and others.
Requirements for Graduation:
To be eligible for graduation, students majoring in Hospitality Management must complete a minimum of 123 credits, achieve a cumulative grade point average of 2.0 or higher, and complete the General Education Requirements of the College. A minimum grade of 2.0 is required for First Year Seminar and all courses taken as part of Foundations. Courses used to complete the General Education Requirements may not be taken on a pass/fail basis.
The General Education Requirements of the college require students to successfully complete First Year Seminar, Foundations, Disciplinary Perspectives, and a Constellation. Students who enter the college with 30 credit hours completed will not take a First Year Seminar course and therefore must take an additional 3 credits for graduation. Transfer students that are awarded 60 or more credits upon acceptance to York College will not be required to complete a Constellation.
Students majoring in Hospitality Management must earn a 2.0 or higher grade in each of the General Business Component Courses, a 2.0 or higher grade in each of the Hospitality Component and Elective Courses, the 1 credit Career Development Courses and achieve a 2.0 cumulative GPA in the Professional Development Summer Work Experience Courses. Students transferring into the Hospitality Management major will be expected to complete Career Development Work Experience Courses during the appropriate academic year to meet the experiential component of this major.