BA (Hons)
Hospitality Management
Preparation for the international hospitality industry
Course Overview
Why take this course?
Hospitality is one of the fastest-growing industries in the UK and worldwide, despite the ongoing economic challenges.
With a multitude of prospects in its varying fields, our course is packed with practical experiences, training in specialist environments and customer-facing scenarios so you gain a real taste of what it’s like to work within all areas of hospitality.
What will I experience?
On this course you can:
- Do a one-year placement working in a paid full-time role
- Delve into 'live' case studies based in hospitality organisations
- Opt to study a foreign language, options include French, German, Italian, Spanish or Mandarin
What opportunities might it lead to?
These days, financial rewards in the hospitality industry are attractive and positions are plentiful in this ever-expanding global market – great for those with an interest in travel. So whether you see yourself working at the Ritz or even opening your own restaurant, bar or hotel, we’ll equip you with the know-how and skills to get you there.
Here are some routes our graduates have pursued:
- event management
- leisure
- operations management
- marketing
- setting up their own business
You get a great opportunity to do a compulsory year in an hospitality establishment, which is a great way for getting an idea of how the industry works and you can make some really useful contacts.
Laurence West, BA (Hons) Hospitality Management student 2013
Key Facts
- UCAS Course Code:
- N220
- Duration
- 4 years sandwich with work placement
- Entry
220 points to include 180 points from 3 A levels or equivalent.
Other qualifications- Fees
UK/EU/Channel Islands and Isle of Man full-time students: £8,750 p/a*
International full-time students: £11,000 p/a*
*Please note that all fees are subject to annual increase.- Contact
- bus.admissions@port.ac.uk
+44 (0)23 9284 8200 - Department
- Portsmouth Business School
Subject:
Business and Management
Find out what our students say about studying at Portsmouth, including:
- Insight into different aspects of the business world
- Lecturers who are experienced in their field and are passionate about sharing their knowledge
- Excellent work placement opportunities and careers support
Visit us at our open day
Wed 10 Jul
Structure & Teaching
Year one
Your first year gives you a broad understanding of essential business disciplines as well as introducing you to the key functions within the hospitality industry.
Core units in this year include:
- Introduction to Hospitality Operations
- Hospitality Operations
- Legal and Environmental Issues in Hospitality and Tourism
- Professional Skills Development for Hospitality Managers
- Introduction to Finance Reporting for Hospitality Managers
- Understanding Markets and the Economy
Year two
There is a focus on operational management issues in this year as well as the chance to tailor your degree through our range of options.
Core units in this year include:
- Marketing for Hospitality and Tourism
- Organisational Behaviour and Human Resource Management for Hospitality
- Management Accounting and Business Decision Making for Hospitality and Tourism
Options to choose from in this year include:
- Licensed Trade Management
- Events Management
- Advanced Food and Beverage Studies
- a foreign language
Year three*
Specialise further in a range of specific business disciplines and the aspects of hospitality that particularly interest you.
Core units in this year include:
- Strategic Management
- Experiential Learning and Career Development
- Business Research Project (direct entry year four)
Options to choose from in this year include:
- Travel and Tourism Economics
- Gastronomy
- Cross Cultural Awareness in Business
- Managing and Developing People in the Hospitality and Tourism Industries
- Management Accounting for Strategic Analysis and Control
*This course is also available as a 4-year sandwich (work placement)
Teaching and Assessment
Our teaching approach involves a varied structure of lectures, seminars, tutorials, workshops and practical sessions. We aim to provide a stimulating environment that encourages use of IT teaching methods as well as participation in group discussions and projects, alongside individual study.
How are you assessed?
We ensure a balance in assessment approaches to suit differing learning styles. Here’s how we assess your work:
- individual and group coursework
- examinations
- online activities
- case studies
- practical assignments
- your choice of independent research
Tutor's view
Penny Dossor
Business and Management
This four year programme provides you with the opportunity to develop business management expertise alongside professional operations management skills. If you who wish to specialise in tourism, you may focus on specific units to achieve our 'with tourism' award.
Visit us open day
Facilities & Features
The Highbury College
One of the UK's largest educators for the hospitality industry
Placements Office
Offering great placement opportunities
Academic Skills Unit (ASK)
ASK will help you become a successful university student
University Library
Modern, comfortable and a great learning environment
The Highbury College
The more practical part of the programme is taught at Highbury City Centre College, one of the UK’s leading educators for the hospitality industry. Their specialist training facilities include professional kitchens and a high quality restaurant. They are located within the University campus, so no additional travelling is involved.
Placements Office
Take advantage of our Placements Office. Providing you with a huge portfolio of employers offering great business-related placement opportunities, the experienced team is always on hand to offer advice on everything from producing high quality applications through to preparation for a company assessment day.
Academic Skills Unit (ASK)
ASK will help you become a successful university student. Our workshops are designed to improve a number of essential academic skills from essay writing and understanding plagiarism to revision and exam techniques. This is a great way to enhance your academic performance and make a smooth transition into university study.
University Library
Modern, comfortable and a great learning environment, our library offers a wealth of information including 400,000 books, DVDs, maps and thousands of online ejournals and newspapers. Many electronic resources are available anywhere, 24/7 and our friendly staff are always on hand to help.
The work feels practical and relevant to real life in the industry. The lecturers have lots of excellent contacts and organise a lot of great trips.
Hannah Davenport, BA (Hons) Hospitality Management student 2012
Careers & Opportunities
Career prospects
Hospitality is a booming industry with 10% of the population working in a hospitality-related employment. The job opportunities are numerous and the chance to develop a career with a global company is a great way to broaden your horizons. Once you take that first step onto the ladder, promotion in the hospitality world can be very rapid.
You can expect to find career opportunities in areas such as hotels, restaurants, event and facilities management, clubs, resorts, spas and healthcare operations. Or, you may even want to start your own business.
Roles our graduates have taken on include:
- events manager
- personnel training manager
- conference and banqueting manager
Work experience
Boost your degree with the opportunity to undertake a one-year placement working in a paid full- time role which offers progression and a suitable level of responsibility. You will benefit from the contemporary business experience that employers demand, making you highly employable upon graduation.
With employers now seeking key business competencies and experience alongside a good degree, work experience is more vital than ever. Due to its very nature a placement year is the best and most involving type of work experience you can do during your time at university. As such, a placement will help ensure you are as employable as possible upon graduation.
Career planning
6.04 minutes
Finding a job is a competitive business, but the statistics show that 89 per cent of our 2011graduates went into employment, further study or training within six months of finishing their degrees.
To make sure you take the right steps on your career path, we’re here to give you help, support and advice throughout your study. Even after you’ve graduated, we continue to give you support for up to five years.
Employers tell us that they want graduates to be able to demonstrate certain skills when they come out of university. Our courses take account of this. We make sure we prepare you for employment through work-related learning, projects, placements and working in simulated environments that are designed to prepare you for the working world.
Open Day
Our next open day is Wed 10 July
VISIT US! Have a look around and get a feel for what it’s like to live and study here. We’ll be on hand to talk to you about your course interests and show you all of our amazing facilities. You’ll also get to meet tutors and other students…
Application, Fees and Funding — find out more