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Learning hospitality the Swiss way

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The Glion Institute of Higher Education is a 52-year-old hospitality management school

Switzerland remains the worldwide leader in international hospitality management education according to the world’s largest provider of custom research and analysis, TNS Sofres. The world’s top three hospitality management schools are all Swiss. TNS Sofres, published the rankings for the world’s best hospitality management schools based on a survey of 232 senior managers and recruiters from 28 luxury hotels chains around the world.

Ecole hôtelière de Lausanne (EHL) was named the world’s top hotel management school for 2013. Glion Institute of Higher Education and Les Roches International School of Hotel Management came in second and third position respectively. Founded in 1893 by Jacques Tschumi, an enterprising Swiss hotelier, EHL was the world’s first trade-school to focus on hospitality education.


GLION INSTITUTE

Glion Institute of Higher Education also offers top quality business degrees in hospitality and related tertiary industries. It has a close relationship with the GCC and the region, helping clients such as Accor, Hyatt, Marriott, Kempinski, Rotana and the Royal Court of Oman through partnerships and collaborations as well as tailor-made trainings.

'It’s quite amazing to see how Dubai has grown and developed over the years and it’s going to keep growing in a sustainable manner,' says Fabienne Rollandin, director career, industry and alumni relations, Glion Institute of Higher Education, over a flying visit to the UAE.

There is huge growth and potential in the region with the Expo 2020 and Qatar World Cup 2022, which has created a demand for skilled hospitality professionals, she says. Currently 11 per cent of their students come from the Middle East and Africa with almost 30 per cent of their total student body working in the Gulf region. This means that the demand for hospitality staff exceeds the supply of students from the region. 'The main challenge we face in the Middle East region is the perception towards hospitality as a purely service-oriented career. We want tell people that hospitality is as much about service as about management and high-profile positions. For instance, when Qatar Airways recruited from our campus recently, they were not looking for flight attendants but managers, each responsible for 50 people.'

Glion is recommended by the Ministry of Education in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and by The Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research (MOHESR) of the UAE. Emirati students can get full scholarships at the Glion institute, while applying for graduate and post-graduate courses.

Apart from undergraduate and post graduate programmes, Glion offers continuing education programmes online as well as tailor-made trainings and short courses, which can be offered in the Switzerland headquarters or Glion London, which has recently opened, or online.

The online MBA costs $32,000, but learners can also take up individual modules worth $2,700 (lasts about two months), informs Anouk Tenten, partnership manager.


INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL

Les Roches International School of Hotel Management, also based out of Switzerland, has launched a Master of Science in Hospitality Leadership with classes starting in January 2015. Les Roches is also recognised by the MOHESR of the UAE.

The Master of Science in Hospitality Leadership is a two-semester programme that allows students to pursue courses at Les Roches campuses in Bluche, Switzerland. The degree’s curriculum is built on three pillars: leading oneself, leading others, and leading businesses and organisations.

Courses will focus on training students how to effectively lead virtual and international teams, strategic management, conflict and negotiation and innovation and creativity. The curriculum will provide students with a global view on hospitality leadership to help them understand what it means to be a strategic and successful leader in the industry and help them complete complex scenario analyses that lead to creative solutions.

'Today, global hospitality businesses aspire to hire graduates who not only have knowledge of the industry, but also have unique strategic leadership skills,' says Sonia Tatar, CEO of Les Roches. 'The objective of this master’s degree is to develop tomorrow’s leaders and equip them with strategic thinking competencies, help them drive compelling visions and acquire competitive leadership traits. This programme will give students a unique academic experience which will position them at the forefront of the hospitality industry.'

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