- Nearly 20 dining facilities on campus, RIT Inn and Conference Center, and the newly acquired Radisson Hotel offer world-class, off-campus, commercial facilities to gain hands-on management and hospitality experience.
- Latest industry trends and technology taught by top faculty and industry practitioners with leadership from the Hospitality and Tourism Management Advisory Board.
- Build vast international connections and engage in one-of-a-kind opportunities, including international study at RIT's global campuses (RIT China, RIT Croatia, RIT Dubai, and RIT Kosovo); cooperative education and internship experiences at the world's top hospitality companies and entertainment/travel destinations; and connections with a worldwide network of over 25,000 alumni.
The hospitality and tourism degree provides an in-depth understanding of the hospitality and tourism industry and prepares you to enter any segment of the industry, including food and beverage management, hotel/resort management, travel management, food marketing and distribution, cruise line operations, resorts and spas, event management, and airline catering.
Technology in Hospitality
Among the biggest evolutions in the hospitality field is the impact of technology on the guest experience, food service and delivery, and more. Technology, along with data analytics, is driving how resorts, restaurants, theme parks, and cruise lines are interacting with guests and managing their expectations. From apps that help plan and manage guest experiences, to wearables that unlock guest room doors, to online check-in and food ordering, today's hospitality professionals must be knowledgeable of how the latest technology is being used to improve the guest experience.
A Degree That Does it All: Hotel Management, Hospitality and Tourism, Restaurant Management
RIT's hospitality management degree includes a comprehensive core curriculum that provides you with a strong foundation in the core principles of hospitality, service management, and tourism operations. You'll develop an essential set of skills in operations analysis, project management, food safety, traditional and digital marketing, facilities management, strategic planning, information systems, real estate, and human resource management–which are needed to successfully manage the operations of all types of hospitality venues across all industry sectors.
You can customize the hospitality management degree around your personal career aspirations and interests by creating a three-to-five course sequence from disciplines from across RIT's nine colleges. This broadens your knowledge and expands your expertise. Courses in innovation, entrepreneurship, marketing, finance, packaging science, web design and development, and more expand upon the major's core courses and create opportunities for your to engage in hotel management, hospitality and tourism, and restaurant management in new, exciting ways.
Hospitality and tourism majors study the hospitality industry alongside students majoring in computing, information sciences, engineering, business, entrepreneurship, and more. This exposes you to diverse ideas in areas that are making a significant impact on the hospitality and tourism industry. This powerful experience can help inform your senior capstone project, where you will tackle a hospitality industry problem and propose an innovative solution.
Immersive, Hands-On Hospitality Management Experiences
What sets you apart is the real-world, hands-on experiences you'll gin working in restaurants, bakeries, coffee shops, dining services, and the food and beverage industry as a whole. RIT's hospitality management degree provides you with immersive, hands-on experiences in a range of hospitality and tourism locations.
Dynamic On-Campus Experiences: The RIT Inn and Conference Center, and the newly acquired Radisson Hotel offer world-class, off-campus, commercial facilities to gain hands-on experience in hospitality management. In addition, you will also be able to immersive yourself in hospitality management experiences at more than 20 on-campus dining locations, including express dining, markets, on-campus restaurants, catering, coffee and bakery shops, liquor-licensed venues.
Hospitality Internships and Co-ops: A combined 1,200 hours of internship or cooperative education experience provides you with the career experience you need before you graduate. Students have completed internships or cooperative education experiences at some of the world's most recognizable names in hospitality, including Del Monte Hotel Group, Hershey Entertainment & Resorts, Marriott, The Walt Disney Company, and more.
International Hospitality: Study Hospitality and Tourism Abroad
With the truly global nature of hospitality and tourism, multicultural intelligence is a very important asset for success in the hospitality and tourism industry. The hospitality management degree is also offered at RIT Croatia, one of our global campuses. Because courses are taught by RIT faculty, you have a unique opportunity to complete a study abroad experience in Dubrovnik, Croatia, one of the most prominent tourist destinations in the Mediterranean Sea. Known as the "Pearl of the Adriatic" for its spectacular location on the Dalmatian Coast and for its historic Old Town district, Dubrovnik is home to some of Croatia's most beautiful Gothic, Renaissance, and Baroque churches, monasteries, palaces, and fountains. It's also the center of many Croatian cultural activities and festivals.
Students are able to complete a semester-long study abroad experience or participate in a 10-day study experience. In both cases, you'll learn about the hospitality and tourism challenges and opportunities in Croatia as you study international hotel and resort management.
Jobs in Hospitality and Tourism
Hospitality and tourism is a massive global industry. According to the World Travel & Tourism Council, one in five jobs created globally over the last ten years has been in travel, hospitality, and tourism.
The industry is looking for professionals who are adept at integrating technology and innovation into hospitality. Graduates are employed in a range of positions across all areas of the industry. Some work in guest-contact or direct guest-service as food service managers and owners of restaurants, event and catering companies, institutional food service organizations, or in hotel/resort/travel management for hotels, resorts, cruise lines, managed-care facilities, theme parks, and more.
Graduates also find themselves sought-after by related industries such as the retail sector (banking and investment organizations), hospitals and managed-care facilities, and vendor companies (such as Ecolab, Oracle). The global nature of the industry provides excellent opportunities for graduates who want to pursue a career in international hospitality, service management, tourism, and more.
Combined Accelerated Bachelor's/Master's Degrees
Today's careers require advanced degrees grounded in real-world experience. RIT's Combined Accelerated Bachelor's/Master's Degrees enable you to earn both a bachelor's and a master's degree in as little as five years of study, all while gaining the valuable hands-on experience that comes from co-ops, internships, research, study abroad, and more.
+1 MBA Early Acceptance Pathway: Successful RIT applicants who are offered admission into the BS degree in hospitality and tourism management as an incoming first-year student may also be offered conditional early acceptance into the +1 MBA Early Acceptance Pathway. This option enables you to earn both your BS degree and an MBA in as little as five years of study. Learn how the +1 MBA Early Acceptance Pathway can help you add a competitive advantage to your studies.
+1 MBA: Students who enroll in a qualifying undergraduate degree have the opportunity to add an MBA to their bachelor's degree after their first year of study, depending on their program. Learn how the +1 MBA can accelerate your learning and position you for success.
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