Course descriptionBoston University School of Hospitality Administration is a full-time, four year bachelor degree program. To the right are the different groups of Hospitality classes from which you can choose.
Specializations Hospitality Specialization Courses: 48 credits HF100 Introduction to the Hospitality Industry
Prerequisite: None
This course is the entry course for the SHA curriculum and a prerequisite for all other SHA courses. It provides an overview of the hospitality industry and its components including hotels, restaurants, theme parks, cruise lines, and travel distributors. It also provides an introduction to various business disciplines including management, marketing, accounting, finance and strategy. Students gain an historical perspective and also discuss current events. Industry examples and case studies are used extensively. This course is not offered to seniors. SMG students should enroll in the alternate entry course HF200. 4 cr, either sem.
HF120 Fundamentals of Food Service Management
Prerequisite: HF100
Lab-based overview of food production. Emphasis is placed on food science, nutrition and food management skills. Students practice food management techniques, proper use of tools and equipment, and the evaluation of food products. The concepts of managing from the front door and the back door are discussed.
2 cr
HF140 Hospitality Field Experience I
Prerequisite: HF100
400 hours of supervised internship experience. 0 cr
HF200 Hospitality Management for Business Majors
Prerequisite: SMG SM121 and SMG registration.
This course is an alternate entry course for the SHA curriculum, and a substitute for HF100 as a prerequisite for all other SHA courses. HF200 is an advanced version of HF100 and presumes prior knowledge of various business disciplines. It provides an overview of the hospitality industry and its components including hotels, restaurants, theme parks, cruise lines, and travel distributors. Students gain an historical perspective and also discuss current events. Industry examples and case studies are used extensively. This course is not offered to seniors. This course is limited to SMG students only. Students from other schools within the university should enroll in HF100. 2 cr. 2nd sem.
HF210 Financial Accounting for the Hospitality Industry
Prerequisite: SHA HF100
Introductory course in accounting designed to provide students with a basic understanding of the language of business. This course examines the basic accounting processes of recording, classifying, and summarizing business transactions. It also provides and opportunity to study elements of financial statements such as assets, liabilities, equity, revenue, and expenses. 4 cr
HF220 Food and Beverage Management
Prerequisite: SHA HF100 (or HF200)
Focus on principal operating problems facing managers in the restaurant industry. Topics such as concept development and entrepreneurship, menu analysis, cost control, operational analysis and customer service processes are addressed.
HF231 Human Resources Management for the Hospitality Industry
Prerequisite: SHA HF100
Explores contemporary human resources management relative to the hospitality industry, with emphasis on planning, job analysis, recruitment, selection, hiring, placement and ethnic diversity in the workplace. Specifically, the course concentrates on employee motivation, leadership, training, team building, employee performance and retention. Management philosophies of work compensation, discipline and labor relations are discussed as they affect current hospitality industry strategies to attract and retain a quality workforce. 4 cr
HF240 Hospitality Field Experience II
Prerequisite: SHA HF100 and HF140
400 hours of supervised internship experience. 0 cr
HF250 Hospitality Law
Prerequisite: SHA HF100
Look at the laws that apply to hotels, foodservice establishments, and the travel industry. Consideration of innkeepers' duties to guests. Concepts of liability and negligence, contract and property practices, and miscellaneous statutes applicable to the hospitality industry. 4 cr
HF260 Marketing Principles for the Hospitality Industry Prereq: SHA HF 100 and SHA registration
This course provides an understanding of the role and function of marketing in the hospitality industry. It offers an overview of generic principles of marketing for any industry (including consumer products and manufacturing) and introduces specialized principles for the hospitality industry. For all topics, it uses examples taken primarily from the hospitality industry. Subjects covered include marketing strategy, marketing research, consumer behavior, segmentation, positioning, product and concept development, pricing, distribution, and marketing communications (including advertising and public relations). Class discussion, lectures, and case studies. 4 cr, either sem.
HF270 Lodging Operations and Technology
Prerequisite: SHA HF100 (or HF200)
This course provides an introduction to the operations and technology of the rooms division within hotel properties. Explores theoretical principles and operational tactics for management of front office, reservations, housekeeping and engineering functions. 4 cr.
HF310 Managerial Accounting for the Hospitality Industry
Prerequisite: SHA HF100 (or HF200), CAS MA120, and SHA HF210 (or SMG AC221)
After a review of financial-accounting principles, this course examines how financial information is assembled and presented according to the Uniform Systems Accounts for hospitality enterprises. The primary emphasis of the course is on analytical and decision-making uses of financial information, including such topics as cost behavior, leverage, cost-volume-profit analysis, contribution-margin pricing, and budgeting. The course concludes with a review of hotel operating forms, including franchising and management contracts, assessing their impact on financial performance and risk. 4 cr
HF370 Revenue Management and Technology
Prerequisite: HF100 (or HF200), HF270
This course provides an advanced overview of the revenue management function in hotels. Revenue management is an integrated approach to maximizing revenue that includes capacity analysis, demand forecasting, variable pricing, and distribution technology. 2 cr
HF410 Finance for the Hospitality Industry
Prerequisite: SHA HF100, HF210, HF310, and CAS MA113 (or MA115)
Studies the techniques financial managers and external analysts employ to value the firm and its assets. Topics include financial statement analysis, taxation, discounted cash flow, stock and bond valuation, cost of capital and capital budgeting. The techniques of discounted cash flow and the command of taxation principles developed in the course are applied to commercial real estate analysis, including hospitality properties. 4 cr
HF432 Hospitality Leadership
Prerequisite: SHA HF100 and HF231. Seniors only.
Focus on leadership and management for the hospitality industry. Using a leadership continuum as a framework, we will explore several different levels of leadership, from a "traditional" leadership role as the head of a major corporation to the more personal aspect of self-leadership. Several different leadership models will be analyzed and applied to the hospitality industry. Leadership tools will be explored - hands-on, realistic tools that you will be able to use in your personal lives, while in school and in the business world upon graduation. Second semester only. Seniors only/Juniors with approval. 4 cr., seniors only, either sem.
HF440 International Experience
Prerequisite: SHA HF100
Can be fulfilled by living or working in a foreign country for ten weeks or exploring, through coursework, the language and culture of another country. Students may also propose an independent study to fulfill this requirement. International students may use their experiences in the United States. 0 cr
HF460 Hospitality Strategic Marketing
Prerequisite: SHA HF100 (or HF200), and HF260 (or SMG MK323). Seniors only.
Work with local hotel sales and marketing groups to develop their strategies, plans and programs for targeted market segments. Case studies and exercises are used to help develop the skills needed by the students to accomplish this. Industry speakers bring the current market reality into the classroom. 4 cr