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It is quite possible to become a hotel manager without spending years working your way up from bellboy without any guarantee that it will ever happen, but you will probably need to earn a college degree and get some hands-on experience in the field before truly launching your career. There are many hotel management school options, including associate’s and bachelor’s degree programs at four-year universities, two-year community colleges and various technical institutes. The most traditional option that employers are looking for is a bachelor’s degree from a four-year college or university. The following information should be very helpful if you’re considering enrolling in this type of program.
College Prerequisites for Future Hotel Managers
The hotel management school requirements vary from one institution to the next, and some schools only have programs for more general subjects, such as hospitality management or business management. Business or hospitality management school requirements should be about the same as those for a more focused hotel management program. You can generally expect to see these prerequisites for any bachelor’s degree program of your choosing:
There is good news for students who only have a GED certificate (rather than a high school diploma) or others who don’t qualify to enter a university program for any given reason. After completing an associate’s degree at a community college or technical institute in a subject such as business, hospitality management, restaurant management or hotel management with a decent GPA, you can transfer to a four-year university to complete the remaining requirements for a bachelor’s degree, in approximately two additional years. Check with the schools of your choice to see what sorts of transfer options they offer.
What to Expect
The coursework may vary depending in whether your program is focused on hotel management or hotel and restaurant management, or whether you are in a more general hospitality management school program. These are some of the subjects you can expect to see in the required coursework if you are studying hotel management:
Most hotel management school programs also provide the opportunity for students to complete internships at hotels or other businesses in the hospitality industry to get some hands-on experience, which counts for school credit and looks great to potential employers. In fact, some schools require students to complete an internship to graduate. It’s all part of the process of preparing for a successful future career as a hotel manager.
