BA (Hons) International Tourism & Hospitality Management (with Industry Placement)

What you will study

YEAR 1 (LEVEL 4)

MODULES

• Introduction to Management & Business: This module will introduce students to some of the fundamentals of business, including organisational structure and the nature of the modern business practices. It will also provide opportunities for the student to acquire a broad understanding of management by exploring the skills and characteristics of effective managers and leaders, and techniques to successfully manage a team.
• Introduction to Business Finance & Accounting: This module aims to introduce the contemporary concepts and principles of accounting and finance so as to enhance the abilities of the students, by applying relevant management accounting, financial accounting and financial management techniques, to determine the most appropriate operational financial decisions, and analyse the effects of those decisions on a firm’s performance and financial position.
• Marketing Essentials: This module is about recognising the importance of marketing’s role in driving success and delivering results. Students will learn about the different functions of marketing in the 21st century and will study how an appreciation of consumer behaviour and the marketing environment can enable effective targeting and planning. By the end of this module students will have gained an awareness of the various tools available to the modern day marketer, and be capable of recognising their strengths and weaknesses, enabling them to use them both creatively and effectively in an operational context including commercial and non-profit sector organisations.
• Business Communication Skills: The module aim is to recognize the importance of effective integrated internal and external communications in building sustainable relationships and delivering customer value. Students will also learn how to communicate effectively in a business and academic settings understanding the fundamentals of presentation skills, written communication and professional communication.
• Understanding Human Resource Management: This module provides a comprehensive understanding of the role of human resource management (HRM) in organisations. The module covers the following HRM fundamentals:

- Types of organisation prevalent in the business world
- The importance of human resource management and the role of HR practitioners
- HR activities in organisations
- Impact of technology on human resource management

• Business Analytics: This module aims to develop a critical and practical understanding of the concepts and principles of analytics and the ability to apply these concepts to the systematic analysis of data within the contemporary business world.

YEAR 2 (LEVEL 5)

MODULES

• Managing International Visitor Attractions: This module provides students with the opportunity to develop a comprehensive understanding of the development and management of global visitor attractions. The specific natures of a variety of attractions are introduced to illustrate the diversity of management requirements necessary to ensure both the maintenance of the attraction and the satisfaction of visitor needs. The module will introduce students to the range and diversity of natural and man-made attractions across the globe and provide a deep understanding of the governance, marketing, and operational issues of opening attractions to the public whilst providing a quality visitor experience.
• Entrepreneurship & Innovations: This module aims to provide students with the opportunity to discover how ideas are developed, how entrepreneurship operates and an understanding of Innovation and entrepreneurship theories within a business context. It will enable students to enhance their employment prospects in the workplace by providing them with an understanding of the sought-after traits of entrepreneurship and innovation and how to express them.
• Digital Business Strategy: This module aims to equip students with the skills needed to build digital competitive advantage in a rapidly changing world. The rules of business have changed and why it is no longer enough for firms to be better or cheaper to gain competitive advantage. These new rules make it essential for companies to re-examine four fundamental aspects of their business to thrive in the digital era—their strategy, value chain, customer engagement, and organization structure.
• Managing Sustainable Planning and Development for HTE: This module aims to examine the contribution of hospitality, tourism and events to development goals, to introduce students to the components of sustainable planning and to critically assess the contribution of hospitality, tourism and events to broader sustainable development objectives.
• Agile Leadership: This module aims to develop a critical and practical understanding of the concepts and principles of agile leadership and the ability to apply these concepts within the contemporary business world, to create the right environment for agile teams to succeed within an organisation.
• International Events Management: The purpose of this module is to provide students with a thorough and critical comprehension of international events management and the role of events specifically within tourism & hospitality and more broadly within contemporary society.

YEAR 3 (INDUSTRY PLACEMENT)

• Industry Placement (Core): The module aims to provide students with the opportunity to gain valuable experience in the workplace, specifically related to the student’s specialism, via first-hand experience. This module allows students to undertake a sustained period, embedded with a host employer, to work on one or more defined projects or goals. The student will be expected to find and secure a suitable placement opportunity in collaboration with NWBS. The Industry Placement will typically take place during the normal academic year, over the two normal university semesters. However, where necessary, it may start earlier and finish earlier where required by industry. As such its duration should normally be in the region of 40 weeks dependent on working hours.

YEAR 4 (LEVEL 6)

MODULES

• Strategic Marketing: This module aims to build on the marketing foundations studied previously and provides a staged approach to the nature of strategic marketing which contribute to the achievement of a competitive advantage. It will introduce the broader aspects of strategic marketing that reflect contemporary developments in advocacy and ethics.
• Global Food & Drink Tourism: This module aims to explore the increasingly important area of food and drink tourism for economic development and destination image formation on a global scale. As such, students will examine the importance of food and drink products to the tourist experience and to destination success for those countries and regions closely associated with food and drink. Further, students will analyse the relationship between tourism and gastronomy and examine the direct and indirect advantages and disadvantages to local and regional communities associated with the development of gastronomic tourism and event initiatives.
• Contemporary Issues in Hospitality Management: The aim of this module is to identify and analyse some of the key contemporary issues that are pertinent to the Hospitality sector. The course content will focus on those issues that are deemed to be the most significant for this sector at the time of teaching. Each year three key issues will be explored on the module, one from each of the following themes: Technology, Global hotel brands, Country culture and Hospitality, Sustainability, Human Resources, New Trends in Hotel Design and Operational Management.
• Strategic Management: This module presents a systematic approach to the study of strategic management, building upon an array of ideas and theories ranging from industrial organization theory to institutional economics. This unit outlines the fundamentals of strategic management and gives students an introduction in this important area of business management. Students will gain an awareness of the issues involved and the techniques that managers adopt. The tools and techniques will help students understand how organisations achieve sustainable competitive advantage.
• Dissertation: The aim of the dissertation module is for students to demonstrate the application of knowledge and skills gained during the undergraduate programme of study in all programme routes in an independent, self-motivated, enquiring and problem-solving manner. This serves to extend, underpin and enhance learning through the identification of a business/management problem in either business, accounting & finance, HTEM, HRM, Marketing and any other business related area which requires theoretical research, structured data collection, subsequent analysis leading to conclusions and recommendations.

The information listed in this section is an overview of the academic content of the programme that will take the form of either core or option modules. Modules are designated as core or option in accordance with professional body requirements and internal academic framework review, so may be subject to change.

Entry requirements & applying

The academic requirements for the course are 96-112 UCAS tariff points at GCE A-level or equivalent, from a minimum of two A levels and GCSE Mathematics and English/Welsh (First Language) at Grade C/4 or equivalent. Appropriate AS-Level and Level 3 Key Skills qualifications will also be taken into account.

Teaching & Assessment

Students are assessed in a variety of ways over the course of their undergraduate studies. The balance between the different forms of assessment is determined by the different aims and learning outcomes of the core and option modules. Assessment methods include academic essays, presentations, reports, simulation exercises and examinations.

Teaching and Learning

Wrexham University is committed to supporting our students to maximise their academic potential.

We offer workshops and support sessions in areas such as academic writing, effective note-making and preparing for assignments. Students can book appointments with academic skills tutors dedicated to helping deal with the practicalities of university work. Our student support section has more information on the help available.

In terms of particular needs, the University’s Inclusion Services can provide appropriate guidance and support should any students require reasonable adjustments to be made because of a recognised prevailing disability, medical condition, or specific learning difference.

Teaching methods include workshop-based core skills modules, lectures by practitioners, student-led seminars, pre-recorded material available on VLE and guided research.

Independent learning is an important aspect of all modules, as it enables students to develop both their subject specific and key skills. Independent learning is promoted through the feedback given to students, which takes several forms including small group and one-to-one discussions.

Career prospects

Our Careers & Employability service is there to help you make decisions and plan the next steps towards a bright future. From finding work or further study to working out your interests, skills and aspirations, they can provide you with the expert information, advice and guidance you need.

This degree offers potential for employment in a wide range of areas within the tourism and hospitality sector. Your qualification, practical experience and volunteering opportunities will provide you with the prerequisites employers are looking for. Alternatively, it may equip you with the skills to start your own business in the service sector.

Specific careers can include:

• Destination Manager
• Accommodation Manager
• Food & Beverage Manager
• Corporate Hospitality
• Catering Manager
• Conference Centre Manager
• Event Manager
• Destination Marketing Manager
• Service Manager

Other opportunities in other areas include HR management or carrying on your studies at postgraduate level.

Fees & funding

You do not have to pay your tuition fees upfront.

The fees you pay and the support available will depend on a number of different factors. Full information can be found on our fees & finance pages. You will also find information about what your fees include in the fee FAQs.

All fees are subject to any changes in government policy, view our undergraduate fees.

Programme specification

View the full programme specification here

Accommodation

If you’re looking for a place to stay while you study then take a look at our accommodation pages to get more information on your options, including our on-campus halls of residence Wrexham Village.