Hospitality and Tourism Management is the study of the hospitality industry and it is an extensive field that has a lot of professional paths to choose from. This field occupies a wide-range of different spaces, including hotels, restaurants, casinos, lodging, event management, cruise lines, resorts, and other customer-oriented businesses.

This industry has seen sizeable diversification and growth, producing millions of new jobs annually.

What is the difference between hospitality and tourism?

Hospitality focuses on customer service and travel activities such as restaurants, hotel management, food preparation, event planning, etc. The hospitality industry offers services that tend to need income in order to make a purchase.

Tourism focuses on travelling for entertainment purposes, and the responsibility and care that companies give to travelers. People that work in this industry can be involved as travel agents, tour guides or work for travel companies.

What can you expect from a hospitality management degree?

Students will be introduced to the local and international hospitality and tourism industries, learning the basics of finance, business administration, marketing, human resources, public relations, and accounting. A degree in hospitality takes up to three years or four years to complete depending on the number of courses and terms studied per year.

A degree in the Hospitality field will create a significant sum of opportunities for a professional career, including internship experience where students garner pragmatic knowledge of the industry. After graduation, students are recommended to focus on an area that they prefer and look for a specific job based on that preference.

Why study hospitality and tourism management?

The hospitality industry offers you a great variety of careers to work in after graduation and grow into high-level positions. This degree will give you the opportunity to work in any country and in many types of jobs as you prefer. It also provides many skills such as leadership, customer service, time management, teamwork, etc., creating a great number of connections around the world.

Also, you can manage to obtain a great income depending on the type of job, position, and responsibilities that you have to perform. But here are some insights to have a small idea of how much can you make with a hospitality degree:

• The average hospitality management in Canada is $58,500 per year

• Entry-level positions start at $40,000 per year

• Managerial-level positions start at $60,000 per year

Keep in mind that these numbers are an estimate and can vary depending on the hospitality industry and the job position.

If you want more information regarding hospitality careers, please go to the article 'What are some careers that require a BHM degree?'. Also, if you are interested in the hospitality internship please go to the article 'Should I go consider a hospitality internship?'.