At any time, more than 5000 students from all over the world are studying at one of the numerous hotel management schools in Switzerland for successful careers in hospitality and its related fields. Today, a large number of executives in the global hotel industry are graduates of Swiss hotel schools. Why has the country reached such a dominant position in this field? There are several reasons.

Switzerland has been one of the first countries to develop tourism as a major industry. To meet the growing demand for professional hotel managers, the first hotel management school, the Ecole Hôtelière de Lausanne, was established more than one hundred years ago. The country is still enjoying an excellent reputation in this field.

Furthermore, Switzerland is a small, safe and friendly country, with an excellent infrastructure, and a beautiful, unspoiled and natural environment, with both clean air and water. For many parents, this is an important argument when choosing an overseas destination for their children's education.

A decisive point is without doubt the excellent education provided by most Swiss hotel management schools. Outsiders may be surprised to hear that all are private institutions - no government permission or approval is required, nor is their any control. The owners decide the level, the quality, the curriculum and the award of the school. This flexibility enables the schools to decide autonomously what kind of courses they want to offer, and, whenever necessary, to rapidly adapt their curricula to the developments in the hotel industry. This explains why there is such a wide choice of programmes and standards.

A typical feature of Swiss hotel management schools is the combination of operational training with a varying degree of business administration subjects, and the emphasis placed on the development of the students' personality.

Operational training includes an exposure to practical work up to the level necessary for the understanding of related departmental management procedures. This operational training is considered essential by the hotel industry, but is often missing or not paid sufficient attention at other schools, particularly in the countless university hotel management programs in North America. The business administration subjects provide the student with the skills in finance, marketing, human resources management, and other related fields necessary at the general management level. During the last years, several schools have strengthened the part devoted to business administration, and obtained the right to offered British or US Bachelor's Degree programs.

The kind of discipline, grooming and professional attitude expected from students at hotel management schools in Switzerland is normally not enforceable at schools in other countries. Because of their independence, Swiss hotel management schools do not yield to pressures from powerful politicians or influential business people to accept or consider for promotion any particular student.

Finally, another important asset is the international environment at most Swiss hotel management schools. In view of the globalisation of the economy, it is vital that future managers learn to work with people from different cultural and ethnic backgrounds. With up to 50 different nationalities at Swiss hotel management schools, students are fully immersed in this environment.

Author
Gothard Frick
Managing Director
IHTTI School of Hotel Management Neuchatel