USF Sarasota-Manatee to offer master’s program in hospitality

SARASOTA, Fla. (WWSB) - The University of South Florida is offering online course options plus an accelerated one-year program in Sarasota to help international and part-time students earn a master’s degree in hospitality management.

The changes, some of which began this semester, will enable students to attend classes in person, stream lectures through live video conferencing or watch recorded sessions to keep up with classes.

Additionally, hospitality management students enrolling for the fall term can opt for a traditional two-year master’s degree program or a new accelerated one-year program.

“All of these changes are about providing flexibility to our students,” hospitality Professor Cihan Cobanoglu said. “We recognize that students are busy and that sometimes it’s difficult to juggle school, work and family obligations. These changes are designed to help students find a clearer path to advance their career.”

“We saw that this hybrid approach could be especially helpful to international students who are constricted by time-zone differences and to local students who work and might have a difficult time getting to campus,” said Assistant Professor Trishna G. Mistry, who teaches a master’s degree class in human resources management.

Mistry teaches day and evening classes on the Tampa campus as well as on the Sarasota-Manatee campus, where the School of Hospitality and Tourism Management is based. The hospitality master’s program is offered on all three of the university’s campuses.

While her daytime lectures remain popular with local, traditional students, her evening classes draw a mix of international students and those who work locally during the day.

About half of her students attend class through live video conferencing, which allows the students to ask questions, engage in discussions and take quizzes. Students who miss a lecture can go online to view a recorded session or retrieve assignments, tests and other materials.

Classes for the accelerated, one-year master’s program are offered through the fall, spring and summer.

For more about the master’s degree in hospitality management, visit https://www.usf.edu/business/graduate/masters/hospitality-management/.

To learn more about the USF Sarasota-Manatee campus, visit www.sarasotamanatee.usf.edu.