International Hospitality and Tourism Management (Top-up) BA Honours

Our course gives you the skills, knowledge and hands-on experience to succeed in this exciting and dynamic profession.

Why study international hospitality and tourism management (top-up) with us?

Our BA in International Hospitality and Tourism Management opens up career opportunities in a wide variety of industries, from hotels and accommodation to airlines and cruise ships, resorts, attractions and tour operators, and everywhere in between.

Designed to build on your foundation or HND qualification, you’ll study alongside students from around the world to develop the marketing and event management skills needed to thrive in a hospitality management career. You’ll also learn the theoretical approaches to policy and planning, and study the strategic management and decision-making processes that are at the core of the international hospitality industry.

Build your hands-on practical management skills

Based in London, you’ll be at the centre of one of the world's best tourist cities, which means you’ll have access to all the attractions, experiences, and opportunities the English capital has to offer. You’ll be part of our thriving Business School, which means you’ll get plenty of support from our international academic team who bring vast experience from all areas of the tourism and hospitality industry.

During your hospitality degree, you'll take on modules such as event management where you'll plan and execute all aspects of an event. Other modules like strategic management or tourism marketing ensure you can analyse business problems and evaluate potential solutions. All of this allows you to build a portfolio for the initial steps in your career.

Another key part of the course are visits to working hotels and event spaces such as the Marriott hotel and Barnet Copthall Stadium, home of Saracens Rugby Club, so you can experience what it's like to work in a fast-paced environment.

We’ve got cutting-edge business resources – including the Chartered Management Institute's Management Direct Resource Hub – that will help you reach the top of the tourism management career ladder.

Get the support you need to succeed

When it comes to support, you’ll be matched with a Personal Tutor to get the backing you need. You’ll also get support from our Student Learning and Graduate Academic Assistants who have personal experience in your subject.

This is the ideal first step towards a management career in tourism or hospitality.

What will you study on the BA International Tourism and Hospitality Management (Top-up)?

This course can be studied either full-time (one year) or part-time (two years). It consists of four distinct modules that all use an extensive range of examples and case studies to reflect the global nature of the industry. Upon graduation, you will have gained the skills and confidence to effectively solve complex problems, and communicate across the area of tourism management and the hospitality business environment.

Modules

We’ve made temporary changes to some course modules for students starting in 2020 in response to the coronavirus outbreak. If you’re applying to start this course or progressing into year one, two or three this autumn, there’s information on these updates below.

How is the BA International Tourism and Hospitality Management (Top-up) taught?

You will gain knowledge and understanding through tutor-led lectures and interactive seminars to convey core material and to stimulate and develop critical discussion of contemporary issues. Private study will engage you in the breadth and depth of reading required to gather the material needed for participation in the interactive sessions and the development of assignments. Group work and interactive sessions in class with develop the practice of sharing and pooling information.

Assessment

We’re planning to deliver our assessment in a similar way to previous years. We will review this regularly, and let you know in advance of your assessment if we need to make any changes.

Your knowledge and understanding is assessed by a variety of forms of written work designed to allow you to show your understanding of key issues, debates and controversies through well-argued and substantiated writing. Examinations will test a your knowledge of core material and ability to use material concisely to explore argumentative questions in a time constrained mode. Presentations will test a your ability to convey material and arguments clearly and concisely in class. Portfolios will show how your accumulate knowledge and understanding over a period of time.

Teaching and learning - changes for students in 2020

If you’re starting university in 2020, we’ll be teaching you in different ways to make sure you get the best learning experience possible. You’ll learn through live sessions with teaching staff and have the chance to study independently too, with access to all the online resources you need through our globally available student portal.

We’re planning different scenarios for teaching so we can be flexible. While we’re social distancing, we currently plan to teach your course fully online through a mixture of live interactive sessions and independent learning. This will ensure you’re equipped with the same skills as on campus study, and offer you an engaging learning experience where you can meet and network with your lecturers and fellow students through online platforms. We are also exploring opportunities for face-to-face interactive sessions with smaller groups of students and staff where possible and we can make the appropriate arrangements. You will still be able to access bookable study spaces on campus, and any of the facilities and support services which are open, as well as our extensive online support.

The table below shows current plans for your learning across a typical week, including scheduled live online teaching and an indication of what we hope to teach face to face, where you can make it to campus. While some weeks might look different to this, due to how we schedule classes, the table gives you an idea of what to expect based on the overall number of teaching hours on your course.

You’ll receive final arrangements for your teaching and a full course timetable before you start.

Read more about our scenarios for returning to campus and what they might mean for your teaching and learning experience, and how you’ll be able to access student support.

Future plans for teaching

We’re developing our timetable for face to face teaching  with current government advice on social distancing to keep you safe. If social distancing requirements are lifted, we’ll start to safely move back towards our usual teaching arrangements with more opportunities for face to face learning. Some learning and support might stay online in this scenario. If more restrictions are put in place, or there is another lockdown, we’ll be prepared to deliver your learning and support fully online, with alternative arrangements made for any required placements. We’ll always give you notice of any changes that we make.

Definitions of terms

• Live learning – Live learning will cover everything you’ll do with teaching staff like lectures, seminars, workshops and other classes, and we’ll schedule all of this for you. This might include some study outside your regular timetable, like taking part in discussion forums or online blogs where you’re supported by academic staff.
• Independent learning – Independent learning is all the studying you’ll do outside your live learning sessions with teaching staff. This self-paced study will give you the chance to learn, prepare, revise and reflect in your own time as you need to, and you’ll have access to on-demand resources and materials to help you do your best.
  • Self-paced study – Self-paced study will give you the chance to learn wherever and whenever you want to and at your own pace, outside your live learning sessions. This independent learning could include reading and reflection, preparation for classes, revision or homework along with access to other online activities such as quizzes.
  • On-demand resources – You'll have access to on-demand resources like pre-recorded video lectures and workshops as part of your independent study. You’ll be able to review and revisit whenever you need to at your own pace.

Support

You’ll have a strong support network available to you to make sure you develop all the necessary academic skills you need to do well on your course.

Our support services will mainly be delivered online and you’ll have access to a range of different resources so you can get the help you need, whether you’re studying at home or have the opportunity to come to campus.

You’ll have access to one to one and group sessions for personal learning and academic support from our library and IT teams, and our network of learning experts. Our teams will also be here to offer financial advice, and personal wellbeing, mental health and disability support.

More on teaching for your subject in 2020/21

Read our guide to what’s been happening in your subject area recently and more about what to expect this autumn.

How can the BA Hospitality and Tourism Management (Top-up) support your career?

There is an exciting diversity of tourism careers across the private, public and voluntary sectors, with roles for graduates within the tourism sector including;

• Business Development Officers
• Customer Service Agents
• Graduate Trainee Managers
• HR Executives
• Marketing Executives
• Project Managers
• Travel Consultants

International Tourism graduates have gone on to work in areas including local authorities, tourist boards, airlines, airports, travel agencies, hotels, museums, heritage centres, sports, meeting and event companies. Some of the companies our graduates have been employed by include City of London Corporation, Etihad, Eurostar, Marriott, Radisson Blu Edwardian, Thomas Cook, Travel Republic and Virgin Holidays. A number of graduates also go on to do further study for a Master’s Degree or PhD qualification.