STUDENTS FUTURE IN HOSPITALITY MANAGEMENT EUROPE

The future of hospitality management Students in Europe- Les Roches Marbella

Table of Contents

Chapter 1: Introduction4

Background of the study4

Problem Statement5

Purpose of the study & abstract8

Significance of the study8

Rationale of the study10

Chapter 2: Literature review13

Latest growth in International Hospitality Schools in Europe13

Latest increase in employment demand in Hospitality industry (higher than the offer)14

High turnover in hospitality and need of professionals16

Differences between hospitality workers from generation and baby boomers and Y, and comparison with X ;( different motivators)18

Les Roches one of the Top 3 Hospitality Management schools in Europe20

Les Roches Marbella20

Programs21

Cooperation with the industry (importance of internships)22

Chapter 3: Methodology23

Research Design23

Data Collection & Sampling24

Chapter 4: Analysis25

Questionnaire results25

General25

Remain in the industry27

Leaving the industry33

Chapter 6: Limitations and Recommendations40

Bibliography43

Appendices70

Appendices70

Chapter 1: Introduction

Background of the study

The results accumulated from various studies to date point to the many benefits of cooperative education such as students' improved self-confidence, self-concept and improved social skills (Gillin et al., 1984; Wilson, 1974), gains in practical knowledge and skills (Williams et al., 1993), enhanced employment opportunities (Clark, 1994; Sharma et al., 1995). There is, however, little evidence about these students' expectations from their cooperative education placements with regard to specific aspects of the job and the organisation. The placement of students in various organisations as trainees is an academic requirement to foster the work experience so the students will attain the necessary skills to supplement their theoretical training (King, 1994).

Work experience gained through cooperative education placements can help in the induction process, so that hospitality organisations may be better able to retain their employees and foster their performance. It is important, therefore, to both educational institutions and industry, that students have realistic expectations from their prospective entry to these organisations. If employers know what students expect from their organisational environment, they can better prepare the students and organisational processes for successful entry to the labour force.

Problem Statement

In the previous study, Moos's (1974) concept was used by assessing expectations from work environment of students studying in Catering and Hotel Management degrees (Waryszak, 1995). In that study expectations were assessed of the students studying in the Catering and Hotel Management course in the Faculty of Business at Les Roches Marbella. The students were eligible for cooperative education placements in 1993-1994. The students completed the Work Environment Scale (WES) (Moos, 1987). In all, 80 students responded to a mail questionnaire before their cooperative education placements.

The growth of academic hospitality and tourism education is not developing at the same speed among the different European countries. Inevitably, the cultural diversity of the European continent has caused its countries to implement a variety of hospitality and tourism programs in relation to course length, curriculum, and administrative organization of courses. In Germany, the tourism specialization was developed within the Fachhochschulen, which confer Bachelors' degrees after the completion of eight semesters of classes. Within the colleges of Geography, Political Economics, and Business Administration, hospitality and tourism courses are offered as a specialization for one or two semesters. Switzerland is one of the first European countries to develop tourism courses ...