Hospitality & Tourism is a growing, diverse, rewarding and exciting industry to become a part of.  This international super-employer, which is among the largest services industries, provides more than one million jobs in the U.S. alone and ranks as one of the top 10 largest industries in 49 of the 50 states in the U.S. Resident and international travelers in the U.S. spend an average of $2.1 billion per day, $88 million per hour, $1.5 million per minute and $24,500 per second.

Hospitality Management is the hallmark of the trillion dollar global industry ‘umbrella,’ consisting of travel, tourism and hospitality. Its constituents enjoy management jobs found in hotels, resorts, spas, casinos, cruise ships, conference planning and event management, food, beverage and catering, as well as health, sports, entertainment, senior and country clubs. Jobs are not just in the United States - if students want to see the world or like to travel, this may be the opportunity for them. In 2008, travelers going abroad grew to 6% and service 25.3 million people creating the need for qualified, talented people. The Hospitality and Tourism industry is responding to this increasing demand.

The Hospitality industry does not discriminate – it enables. While it sees no age, 19% of workers in the Hotel and Accommodations industry are younger than 25, starting off in entry-level positions and are on the management track.  Moreover, multiculturalism plays a key role in the development and growth of the Hospitality and Tourism industry. Females and ethnically diverse groups make up a growing portion of entry-level positions. The hospitality industry is constantly looking for ways to attract and keep this demand high.  Career movement within the Hospitality industry is as common as it is desired, as larger organizations have career ladder programs and offer managers the opportunity to transfer to other locations all over the world. Click here to see a career ladder for the Hospitality industry. After your Hospitality Management education, expect to hit the ground running at entry level, where you’ll work hard with the tools you’ve  learned to begin to climb the career ladder.

The Hospitality Management program offered at ICE features a comprehensive diploma program that puts students on the fast track to a career in hospitality management. The in-school curriculum begins with an introduction to the hospitality, travel and tourism industries, and then progresses through accounting and finance, front and back office hotel operations, MIS and technology, food and beverage management, housekeeping, sales and marketing, human resources, and finally rounds off with event management and conference planning. Click here for more information on our Hospitality Program.

• “Hospitality is a well established industry therefore there are well established strategies, policies & procedures for being successful in the field. Getting the formal training to learn these is integral to real success in the field.”  Alycia Herrera, Human Resources Manager, Club Med North America

• ‘Businesses are always looking for employees knowledgeable about a position, this cut the time and costs of training.  Graduates of ICE start out with this edge.’ Scott Erlich, Managing Director, Wolcott

• ‘…this industry offers excellent growth to motivated individuals and also offers a wide range of specialties ranging from Food & Beverage to Finance.  The field itself is inherently global and no limited to a single geographical area.’ Henry Salus, Rooms Division Manager, Harvard Club

Source Data: American Hotel & Lodging Association 2005 “Turnover and Diversity in the Lodging Industry,” American Hotel & Lodging Association 2007 and 2009 Lodging Industry Profiles, June 2009 U.S. Travel Association report “Travel is an Economic Engine,” November 2009 U.S. Travel Association report “Economic Impacts of Travel and Tourism,” Bureau of Labor Statistics’ 2010-2011 Career Guide to Industries, Multiculturalism Foodservice & Hospitality Alliance