SWISS IM&H: BLENDING THEORETICAL AND PRACTICAL TO OFFER INDUSTRY-LEADING HOSPITALITY MANAGEMENT EDUCATION
By David Hailstones, CEO & Chief Cultural Officer
Gone are the days when only the reputation and the rankings of the placement cell of an Institute were used as parameters by students to choose their higher education destination. Students are evolving constantly and they want to experience the world at its purest and meet people from different countries to understand their culture. For the right destination, students are willing to go above and beyond. With this trend making a massive rearrangement in the list of top higher education destinations, Switzerland has been climbing up the list of favorite study destinations among aspiring students. World-renowned for their breathtaking locations and class-leading industry-oriented education, there are not many other countries that are as beautiful, friendly, and safe for learning as Switzerland. Known as the birthplace of hospitality, Switzerland has some of the best hospitality management institutes in the world. One institute that has been leading the hospitality education in the country is the SWISS Institute for Management and Hospitality (SWISS IM&H).
6+6 Approach, Leading the Way
SWISS IM&H acts as a portal between aspiring students and a world full of opportunities in not just the hospitality industry, but all the other luxury services domains too. The institute offers a bachelor of business administration and masters in business administration, majoring in hospitality. "œOur programs are not just pure hospitality management and we also have courses in accounting, finance, marketing, and financial management, where the students will be learning all these subjects with examples and case studies from the hospitality industry. Our programs are structured in the 6+6 system. The student studies for 6 months and then completes 6 months of internship. Whatever they have learned in the theory term, they have opportunities to implement that knowledge immediately in the second half when they do their internship. These internships will be certified by the respective companies and by the time, they complete their course, our students will have nearly 2 years of work experience which increases their employability. Owing to the fact that our students are doing paid internships, they can also pay-off nearly half the course fees with just their internship earnings", says David Hailstones, CEO and Chief Cultural Officer, SWISS IM&H.
Another unique feature that separates SWISS IM&H from the rest is the fact that their students will receive a separate certificate for every year until the completion of their course. Talking about this aspect of their programs, Amin Ahmmed Khandaker, Chief Academic Officer (CAO), SWISS IM&H, adds, "œIn our college, each year, we have an individual degree and the student enrolled for the bachelor program after the first year will get a certificate named, certificate of hospitality management, after second year they will get diploma in hospitality management, in third year it will be higher diploma in hospitality management, and in the final year they will get the degree. In the masters, students will receive the postgraduate diploma certificate in hospitality management in the first year and in the second year they will receive the MBA certificate." While the practical aspect of learning is taken care of by the internships, the theoretical part of learning is also vibrant, effective, and futuristic in nature. The students are taught in the classrooms using state of the art facilities and SWISS IM&H is even using VR and 3D animations to train their students.
"SWISS IM&H acts as a portal between aspiring students and a world full of opportunities in not just the hospitality industry, but all the other luxury services domains too"
A Notch above the Rest
SWISS IM&H is a boutique educational institution and owing to the fact that they are small, the institute is very agile and they are quick to adapt to the changing
industry trends and technological advancements. One of the strong-points of SWISS IM&H is their team of experienced faculty members and to make sure that they are always on top of their game, SWISS IM&H conducts regular faculty development programs and workshops. To make the international students feel at home, SWISS IM&H conducts weekly cultural evenings so that the students can get to know each other better and this also increases the students' cross-cultural learning. In this ultra-competitive world, offering first-rate education isn't enough and talking about the additional benefits the students at SWISS IM&H receives, Hailstones includes, "œIn Switzerland, the students are going to learn what is required in the industry and the key objectives needed to become an expert. We have got calibrations with lots of hotel groups in the Middle East and we also have affiliations with Canada University, and then we are growing the alumni network which would also be a bridge for future jobs as well."
Operating with the five pillars of excellence that includes, education, sustainability, career-centered, digitalization, and wellbeing, SWISS IM&H makes sure they guide each and every one of their students towards success both in the personal and professional front. To expand their operations for the future, the institute is moving into a bigger and better facility in the next year and they will continue to provide the best value for money education that anyone can offer.
David Hailstones has been working with leading hotels for over 15 years of his career and in the next 15 years, he has been into hospitality education. Hailstones have been working as the director of operations for over 10 years in various hotel schools. He has been the CEO and Chief Cultural Officer of SWISS IM&H since 2019.
Prior to joining the SWISS IM&H in 2012, Amin Ahmmed Khandaker has proven experience working in various reputed institutions. His decision making and management skills have been a key factor that has been fueling the growth of the SWISS IM&H.
6+6 Approach, Leading the Way
SWISS IM&H acts as a portal between aspiring students and a world full of opportunities in not just the hospitality industry, but all the other luxury services domains too. The institute offers a bachelor of business administration and masters in business administration, majoring in hospitality. "œOur programs are not just pure hospitality management and we also have courses in accounting, finance, marketing, and financial management, where the students will be learning all these subjects with examples and case studies from the hospitality industry. Our programs are structured in the 6+6 system. The student studies for 6 months and then completes 6 months of internship. Whatever they have learned in the theory term, they have opportunities to implement that knowledge immediately in the second half when they do their internship. These internships will be certified by the respective companies and by the time, they complete their course, our students will have nearly 2 years of work experience which increases their employability. Owing to the fact that our students are doing paid internships, they can also pay-off nearly half the course fees with just their internship earnings", says David Hailstones, CEO and Chief Cultural Officer, SWISS IM&H.
Another unique feature that separates SWISS IM&H from the rest is the fact that their students will receive a separate certificate for every year until the completion of their course. Talking about this aspect of their programs, Amin Ahmmed Khandaker, Chief Academic Officer (CAO), SWISS IM&H, adds, "œIn our college, each year, we have an individual degree and the student enrolled for the bachelor program after the first year will get a certificate named, certificate of hospitality management, after second year they will get diploma in hospitality management, in third year it will be higher diploma in hospitality management, and in the final year they will get the degree. In the masters, students will receive the postgraduate diploma certificate in hospitality management in the first year and in the second year they will receive the MBA certificate." While the practical aspect of learning is taken care of by the internships, the theoretical part of learning is also vibrant, effective, and futuristic in nature. The students are taught in the classrooms using state of the art facilities and SWISS IM&H is even using VR and 3D animations to train their students.
"SWISS IM&H acts as a portal between aspiring students and a world full of opportunities in not just the hospitality industry, but all the other luxury services domains too"
A Notch above the Rest
SWISS IM&H is a boutique educational institution and owing to the fact that they are small, the institute is very agile and they are quick to adapt to the changing
industry trends and technological advancements. One of the strong-points of SWISS IM&H is their team of experienced faculty members and to make sure that they are always on top of their game, SWISS IM&H conducts regular faculty development programs and workshops. To make the international students feel at home, SWISS IM&H conducts weekly cultural evenings so that the students can get to know each other better and this also increases the students' cross-cultural learning. In this ultra-competitive world, offering first-rate education isn't enough and talking about the additional benefits the students at SWISS IM&H receives, Hailstones includes, "œIn Switzerland, the students are going to learn what is required in the industry and the key objectives needed to become an expert. We have got calibrations with lots of hotel groups in the Middle East and we also have affiliations with Canada University, and then we are growing the alumni network which would also be a bridge for future jobs as well."
Operating with the five pillars of excellence that includes, education, sustainability, career-centered, digitalization, and wellbeing, SWISS IM&H makes sure they guide each and every one of their students towards success both in the personal and professional front. To expand their operations for the future, the institute is moving into a bigger and better facility in the next year and they will continue to provide the best value for money education that anyone can offer.
David Hailstones has been working with leading hotels for over 15 years of his career and in the next 15 years, he has been into hospitality education. Hailstones have been working as the director of operations for over 10 years in various hotel schools. He has been the CEO and Chief Cultural Officer of SWISS IM&H since 2019.
Prior to joining the SWISS IM&H in 2012, Amin Ahmmed Khandaker has proven experience working in various reputed institutions. His decision making and management skills have been a key factor that has been fueling the growth of the SWISS IM&H.