WSU HRA Expands Opportunities in Switzerland

PULLMAN, Wash. — Demand for a hospitality degree from Washington State University has prompted WSU administrators to launch an additional start date for students at its Swiss Center for Hotel & Restaurant Administration.

“This year there will be an August as well as a January intake,” explains W. Terry Umbreit, WSU HRA director. “Students can choose between the two and thus gain ultimately greater control over the timing of their internships and graduation dates.”

The summer intake also allows more students than ever to enroll in the popular program located in Brig, Switzerland, where WSU HRA has partnered with the International College of Hospitality Administration and HotelConsult SHCC since 1997. The August intake will add 35 students to the 55 already enrolled there. “Six additional students from the HRA program in Pullman will also be there in a study abroad program,” Umbreit says.

So far, three graduating classes from the European joint venture have enjoyed great placement rates. “Some of our top Swiss graduates are working at the new ‘W’ hotel in New Orleans, at the Broadmoor in Colorado, and at Opryland in Nashvillle,” says Umbreit. “We are very pleased at the success of our Swiss program and that there is a growing demand for a four-year, undergraduate degree from WSU there.”

The WSU HRA program is in its 68th year of operation and consistently ranks among the top five percent of 170 similar programs nationwide. It’s the only four-year degree hospitality program in the Northwest and the only one west of the Mississippi housed within an accredited college of business. With the imminent start of the 2000 fall semester, HRA has 300 majors in Pullman and Switzerland and 30 minors. Students in master’s and doctoral programs at WSU can also concentrate in hospitality.

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