Bachelor of Arts (Honours) in Tourism Management with a specialism in Hospitality

Course Overview

The Tourism Management programme with a specialism in Hospitality is specifically designed to provide a solid understanding of travel, tourism, and hospitality business for sustainable development of the service industry.

This three years undergraduate programme will provide a clear appreciation of tourism management and hospitality with operational and practical skills, related attractions, functions and destinations. 

This programme is also a Dual degree programme offered in partnership with De Montfort University (DMU) and is recognised by International Management Institute (IMI) from Switzerland.

This programme is specifically designed to provide students with:

• An understanding of the context, nature, function and significance of travel, tourism, hospitality and events activities to hold executive management and leadership positions in the industry
• A comprehensive awareness of technical and operational expertise, as well as sustainability of the tourism and hospitality industry with an emphasis on economic, environmental, social-cultural, and technological factors.
• Exposure to theoretical and practical issues of tourism and hospitality businesses.
• A wide range of employable skills, such as the ability to do research, develop, and market tourism and hospitality products and destinations; critical thinking; problem-solving; and interpretative skills; and excellent written and oral communication.

MORE THAN JUST A TOURISM MANAGEMENT DEGREE

Students who are enrolled in the Bachelor of Arts (Honours) in Tourism Management programme have the opportunity to opt for the IMI-Switzerland Certification and will be qualified to receive a certificate from IMI-Switzerland upon successfully completing the program.

Additionally, graduates of both the Bachelor of Arts (Honours) in Tourism Management and the Bachelor of Arts (Honours) in Tourism Management with a specialism in Hospitality from APU will have the opportunity to enroll in the MSc Degree in International Hospitality and Events Management programme at IMI-Switzerland.

Curriculum

DEGREE LEVEL 1

Students will be equipped with theoretical and practical aspects of tourism as a discipline. In addition, students will also be exposed to the basic understanding of the context within which travel, tourism, hospitality and events industry operate through modules such as introduction to hospitality and tourism, management, accounting, marketing, entrepreneurship, law, people management and with specific focus on issues involved in managing services besides developing business and communication skills, digital thinking, and independent learning. Students will also be exposed to various techniques and applications involved in virtual reality and augmented reality in introduction to VRAR and Metaverse

Common Modules

• Introduction to Management
• Business and Communications Skills
• Digital Thinking and Innovation
• Accounting Skills
• Marketing

Specialised Modules

• People Management
• Introduction to Hospitality and Tourism
• Introduction to Services Management
• Legal Aspects in the Hospitality and Tourism Industry
• Fundamentals of Entrepreneurship

Elective Module

• Introduction to VRAR and Metaverse

DEGREE LEVEL 2

A broader range of skills will be learnt, in which students will gain better understanding in supervising business and handling management operations, such as e-tourism, digital marketing, consumer behaviour, retail travel, geography, ticketing and computer reservation systems, innovation processes, international culture and communications, revenue management, hotel accommodation and restaurant management. In addition, they will explore topics and techniques in various sectoral applications within tourism management. We will nurture their independent learning to prepare them for the workplace and for further project oriented and research activities.

Common Modules

• Digital Marketing
• Business Research Methods

Specialised Modules

• International Cultural and Communications
• Innovation Processes
• E-Tourism
• Hospitality and Tourism Revenue Management
• Retail Travel Operations
• Ticketing and Computer Reservation System
• Geography of Travel and Tourism

Elective Modules

• Consumer Behaviour
• Hotel Accommodation Management
• Restaurant Management

INTERNSHIP (16 WEEKS)

Students will undertake an Internship / Industrial Training for a minimum period of 16 weeks to prepare them for a smooth transition from the classroom to the working environment.

DEGREE LEVEL 3

Students will make use of their previous studies and industrial experience to extend their familiarity in, studying crisis management and communications, sustainability, managing people and performance, investigation, venture building, tourism policy and planning, hotel innovation management, services management, MICE, and international tourism marketing with analyzing sustainable tourism developments, related policies, discovering new opportunities, exploring competitive advantage and decision making processes, with aims to groom them as hospitality industry leaders. A final year research project in hospitality management requires them to explore a topic individually – they will demonstrate their academic and practical ability in the chosen area of study.

Specialised Modules

• Crisis Management and Communications
• Sustainability in Tourism and Hospitality Industry
• Managing People and Performance
• Meetings, Incentives, Conventions and Exhibitions
• Investigations in Tourism Management
• Venture Building
• Final Year Project
• Tourism Policy, Planning and Development
• Monitoring and Evaluation of Services Management
• International Tourism Marketing

Elective Module

• Hotel Innovation Management

MQA Compulsory Subjects*

• Appreciation of Ethics and Civilisation (M’sian Students)
• Malay Communication Language (Int’l Students)
• Philosophy and Current Issues
• Workplace Professional Skills
• Integrity and Anti-corruption
• Co-Curriculum

(*All students are required to successfully complete these modules as stipulated by the Malaysian Qualification Agency)

Entry Requirements

Any qualification that APU accepts as equivalent to the above.

Please note that under Ministry of Higher Education regulations, only students who have achieved the minimum requirement in the English Language proficiency assessment as indicated above will be allowed to continue their studies in the main study programme. Students who do not have the required English Language achievement may apply for a student visa on conditional basis and are allowed to enrol in an English Language Certification programme at APU upon arrival in Malaysia and, subsequently, appear for the IELTS/TOEFL/PTE/MUET assessment.

Students who are unable to obtain the required level of English Competency during the maximum 12 months’ period, will not be allowed to pursue their studies in the main programme and will have to return to their home country.

Students from English speaking countries and those with qualifications taught in English (IGCSE, A-Levels, IB, American High School Diploma etc) are exempted from English requirements. Applications for exemption must be accompanied by supporting documents.

Note: The above entry requirements may differ for specific programmes based on the latest programme standards published by Malaysian Qualifications Agency (MQA).

The qualification and entry requirements for the programmes will be determined based on the "Comparison List of Equivalency of International Qualifications with SPM (O-Levels equivalent) and STPM (A-Levels equivalent)" published by Malaysian Qualifications Agency (MQA).

Career Prospects

• Travel and Tourism Consultant
• Events Manager
• Guest Relations Manager
• Food and Beverage Manager
• Restaurant and Catering Manager
• Hotel and Resorts Management
• Customer Services Manager
• Sales and Marketing Manager
• Hospitality Research Analyst
• Destination Marketing Manager
• Tourism, Culture and Conservation Official