2023-2024 Undergraduate Bulletin

Hospitality Management

Office:  Joy Burns Center, Room 320
Mail Code:  2044 E. Evans Ave. Denver, CO 80208
Phone:  303-871-4427
Email: lauren.sepulveda@du.edu
Web Site: http://daniels.du.edu/academic-programs/undergraduate/majors-minors/hospitality-management/

The Fritz Knoebel School of Hospitality Management (Fritz Knoebel) has been preparing industry leaders since 1946. As part of the Daniels College of Business, Fritz Knoebel has been recognized nationally and internationally for its tradition of quality instruction, including the 2013 award for Best Educational Innovation at the Worldwide Hospitality Awards. The hospitality management program has as its foundation the core business discipline classes in the Daniels College. Within the major students select a concentration from Event Sales & Management, Lodging Real Estate,  Restaurant/Food & Beverage Management, and Strategic Lodging Management.

Hospitality Management

Bachelor of Science in Business Administration Major Requirements

(185 credits required for the degree)

Minimum of 45 credits.  Requirements include:

Required Courses
HOSP 1100Exploring Hospitality Mgmt2
HOSP 1200Industry Work Experience0
HOSP 2201International Experience0
HOSP 2202Management Intern Program0
HOSP 2360Managing a Restaurant Business4
HOSP 2401Hotel and Resort Management4
HOSP 2402Revenue Management4
HOSP 2501Managing Human Capital in Hospitality4
HOSP 2502Hospitality Cost Management4
HOSP 2504Hospitality Technology and Analytics4
HOSP 3120Distinguished Lecture Series1
Select 1 Concentration from the following - Lodging Real Estate, Restaurant/Food & Beverage Management, Event Sales and Management, Strategic Lodging Management18
Electives: Select 2-6 elective credits of major elective as required for each concentration.

Students are required to study abroad, typically for a semester, and complete 1000 hours of work split between the work experience and internship requirements.

Event Sales and Management Concentration Requirements

HOSP 2506Hospitality Sales & Marketing4
HOSP 2361Contemporary Cuisine4
or HOSP 3301 Beverage Management
HOSP 3506Special Event Management4

Lodging Real Estate Concentration Requirements

HOSP 3402Hospitality Investments (Rename HOSP 3402 from Asset Management to Hospitality Investments)4
HOSP 3600Lodging Valuation Principles4
HOSP 3601Hotel Development & Feasibility4
REAL 3307Real Estate Finance4

Restaurant/Food & Beverage Concentration Requirements

HOSP 2361Contemporary Cuisine4
HOSP 3301Beverage Management4
HOSP 3360Rest/F&B Concept Devel4

Strategic Lodging Management Concentration

HOSP 2601Environmental Sustainability in Hospitality2
HOSP 2602Hospitality Social Sustainability2
HOSP 3402Hospitality Investments4
HOSP 3501Advanced Hospitality Human Capital Analysis2
HOSP 3800Hospitality Experience Management4
Electives 4

Requirements for Distinction in the Major in Hospitality Management

Upon reaching 90 credit hours completed, students with a 3.50 cumulative GPA or higher, and a 3.85 Daniels GPA or higher, are invited to either create a portfolio of in-depth business experiences or to write a thesis to earn Distinction. See Daniels Undergraduate Programs or faculty in the department for more information. 

Hospitality Management

This course plan is a sample schedule only. Individual course plans will vary based on incoming transfer credit, admission path to Daniels, prerequisites, availability of courses, minors, and other scheduling factors. You must meet with your Daniels academic advisor to develop an individual graduation plan for your specific needs.

First Year
FallCreditsWinterCreditsSpringCredits
First-Year Seminar (FSEM)4WRIT 11224WRIT 11334
MATH 120014INFO 10104INFO 10204
BUS 14404ECON 102034ACTG 22004
BUS 10990HOSP 110042Common Curriculum Course4
Common Curriculum Course24Common Curriculum Course4 
 16 18 16
Second Year
FallCreditsWinterCreditsSpringCredits
ACTG 23004FIN 28004HOSP 24014
MGMT 21004HOSP 23604BUS 30004
LGST 20004MKTG 28004BUS 20990
Common Curriculum Course4INTZ 250151-2Common Curriculum Course4
 Common Curriculum Course4Common Curriculum Course4
 16 17-18 16
Third Year
FallCreditsWinterCreditsSpringCredits
Study Abroad16MGMT 30004BUS 38004
Elective INFO 20204HOSP 25014
 HOSP 24024HOSP 25024
 BUS 30990HOSP 25044
 Common Curriculum Course4 
 16 16 16
Fourth Year
FallCreditsWinterCreditsSpringCredits
HOSP 31201Advanced Seminar (ASEM)4Concentration Class 34
Concentration Class 1 4Concentration Class 24Elective4
HOSP Elective4HOSP Elective4Elective4
Common Curriculum Course4Elective4 
 13 16 12
Total Credits: 188-189
1

 Fulfills Analytical Inquiry: The Natural and Physical World

2

Common Curriculum Requirements

3

Fulfills Scientific Inquiry: Society and Culture

4

 May be taken any quarter within the first year. 

5

INTZ 2501 Exploring Global Citizenship is required for any student who studies abroad, and may be taken in any quarter within the year prior to studying abroad.

Common Curriculum requirements in the First Year are generally satisfied through the sequential full-year foreign language (FOLA) requirement.

Common Curriculum requirements in the Second Year are generally satisfied through the sequential full-year Scientific Inquiry: Natural requirement. 

HOSP 1100 Exploring Hospitality Mgmt (2 Credits)

This is an introductory course designed to provide students with a broad overview of the hospitality industry and the various segments that comprise the industry. The course focuses particularly on the industry areas captured by the concentrations available to Knoebel students, the elements that make hotels and resorts what they are--food and beverage/restaurants; strategic lodging management, lodging real estate, and event sales and management--and other facets of hospitality.

HOSP 1101 Hip Hotels: Delivering Amazing Guest Experiences (2 Credits)

Through an immersive, behind-the-scenes experience in Denver's hotels, students learn about: The challenges hotel executives face; the interplay between hotel design and service delivery; how to positively influence the guest experience, and the career paths available in the industry.

HOSP 1200 Industry Work Experience (0 Credits)

Faculty supervised work experience. Prerequisites: HOSP 1100 and completion of 500 hours of approved work experience. Advisor will register students for course as needed.

HOSP 2201 International Experience (0 Credits)

Students spend one quarter in an international setting taking courses while touring and observing overseas hospitality operations. Advisor will register students for course as needed.

HOSP 2202 Management Intern Program (0 Credits)

Preferably, this internship is full-time, continuous employment for ten-weeks with a minimum of 400 hours and is designed to allow students to increase their exposure to the hospitality industry and continue to reconcile their classroom learning with industry practice. Advisor will register students for course as needed. Prerequisites: HOSP 1200.

HOSP 2360 Managing a Restaurant Business (4 Credits)

In HOSP 1100, Exploring Hospitality Management, students are introduced to various aspects of restaurant/food and beverage management and basics about them. From here, we advance to a more thorough overview of the management of various food and beverage operations, specifically focusing on restaurants. Topics include safe food and beverage service, product specification and procurement, labor scheduling, revenue control and collection, and other management functions required for success in food and beverage operations. Prerequisite: HOSP 1100.

HOSP 2361 Contemporary Cuisine (4 Credits)

Judging by their high failure rate, restaurants can be one of the most difficult and complex businesses to manage. This course builds on previous food and beverage courses by providing hands-on experience running and managing a restaurant environment. Through the opening and running of two live restaurant operations for a night each, the course enables students to put into practice the managerial aspects of full-service restaurant operation, from menu planning and implementation to financial analysis, including systems, tools and reporting. Prerequisites: HOSP 2360 and HOSP 2401.

HOSP 2401 Hotel and Resort Management (4 Credits)

This course presents an overview of the management of a various lodging properties, specifically focusing on rooms division operations. The perspective taken is strategic, identifying and considering issues of concern to general managers of all types of lodging properties, with a particular focus on profit maximization (yield/revenue management) and distribution channel management. The broader political, economic, social, and technological environments and trends and their impact on lodging operations are considered. The perspective is global and includes considering how lodging operations differ in various parts of the world. Prerequisite: HOSP 1100.

HOSP 2402 Revenue Management (4 Credits)

This course provides an introduction to the basic principles and practices of revenue management in the hotel and restaurant industry. Students acquire the fundamental analytical skills needed to apply revenue management concepts and methods in demand forecasting, pricing, and revenue optimization techniques in hotels and restaurants. The course includes certification in STR tools. Prerequisites: HOSP 2360, HOSP 2401 and ACTG 2200.

HOSP 2501 Managing Human Capital in Hospitality (4 Credits)

People are the heart of any organization and can be a source of competitive advantage, particularly in a hospitality environment. This course prepares students to develop and manage successfully the processes and systems that help hospitality firms develop a competitive advantage through people and build a service culture, including recruiting, selecting, onboarding, and developing employees in order to retain them in both union and non-union environments. Prerequisites: HOSP 2360 and HOSP 2401.

HOSP 2502 Hospitality Cost Management (4 Credits)

The use of industry statistics and a uniform system of accounts for hotels and restaurants to determine an operation's position in the marketplace. Prerequisites: HOSP 2360, HOSP 2401 and ACTG 2300.

HOSP 2504 Hospitality Technology and Analytics (4 Credits)

Hospitality Technology and Analytics serve as an introduction to hospitality technologies and technology-enabled data analytics. This course surveys diverse aspects of consumer-facing hospitality technologies (social media, mobile, distribution channel, sharing economy, etc.) and in-house systems of hospitality operation (event-planning system, property management system, and point-of-sale system, etc.) In addition, this course provides an introduction to the field of business intelligence and data analytics, which has been defined as the extensive use of data, statistical and quantitative analysis, and fact-based management to drive decisions and actions in the hospitality industry. Specifically, the course looks at the managerial aspects associated with the application of hospitality technologies and technology-enabled data analytics to achieve strategic business goals. Prerequisites: HOSP 2360, HOSP 2401.

HOSP 2506 Hospitality Sales & Marketing (4 Credits)

This course addresses all that is involved in hotel and resort sales, including lodging/room group sales and catering sales. Also addressed are negotiation, the production of catered events, trade shows, and meetings, from the perspective of planners, venue salespeople, and event managers. Students learn how to market and sell a venue; produce and respond to requests for proposals; work directly with clients during the booking process and event execution; address risk management and contractual issues; and perform other sales and planning functions. Prerequisites: HOSP 2360, HOSP 2401 and MKTG 2800.

HOSP 2601 Environmental Sustainability in Hospitality (2 Credits)

This course aims to provide students with knowledge of environmental challenges facing the hospitality industry. In addition, students learn best practices in hospitality and the emergence of new environmentally friendly technologies available for hospitality businesses. This course includes hotel operations with reference to energy efficiency, waste management, water conservation, and eco-design and architecture of current hotels or future hotel developments. Another objective of this course is to provide students with an understanding of sustainable food and beverage operations and certification in relation to sustainability in hospitality. The course discusses issues surrounding ethical, organic, local, seasonal, and another type of food often associated with sustainability. Prerequisite: HOSP 2360 and HOSP 2401.

HOSP 2602 Hospitality Social Sustainability (2 Credits)

In addition to environmental sustainability, hotels need to manage their social impact on their internal stakeholders (employees), an issue of increasing importance to their external stakeholders (customers and the community). Issues regarding a living wage, stressors of the working poor in low skill hospitality jobs, the impact of outsourcing hotel functions on the sustainability of employees’ lives, and efforts of unions to organize hotels to fight for better working conditions, wages, and benefits will all be addressed in this course. The focus is on examining how the characteristics of, compensation associated with, and recruitment and retention practices for, low skill, low wage hospitality jobs impact the sustainability of employees’ lives as well as the short-term and long-term profitability of the hotels. Prerequisite: HOSP 2360 and HOSP 2401.

HOSP 3000 Wines of the World (4 Credits)

A survey course of the wines of the world, including old and new world wines; still, sparkling, dessert and fortified wines; viticulture and viniculture. Prerequisite: must be at least 21 years of age. Non-HPM majors only.

HOSP 3120 Distinguished Lecture Series (1 Credit)

This course is the springboard for seniors to transition from a student mindset to that of a professional. It enables personal exploration, values clarification, and the narrowing in on an initial career focus. Hearing from and networking with senior executives from various segments of the hospitality industry who provide students with their insights about competition and challenges within the industry motivate the introspection described above.

HOSP 3301 Beverage Management (4 Credits)

Organization and management of the beverage operation of resorts, restaurants, hotels, clubs and other licensed premises. Emphasis on product knowledge, responsible beverage service, facility design and operational practices. Prerequisites: senior standing in the HPM major.

HOSP 3302 Advanced Beverage Management I: Wine, Spirits & Beer (3 Credits)

This course provides a deep dive into the production of wine, spirits and beer. Students enrolled in this course will sit for the Wine and Spirit Education Trust (WSET) Level 2 Spirit Certification, WSET Level 2 Wine Certification and Cicerone Certification exams. Enrollment is by invitation of the instructor(s).

HOSP 3303 Advanced Beverage Management II: Wine (3 Credits)

The final course in the beverage management sequence, this course is designed to enable you to refine your palate, significantly expand the portfolio of wines you have tasted and take a deep dive into grape varietals, growing regions, production styles, viticulture and viniculture. It rounds out and deepens your preparation to work directly in the beverage space or apply this knowledge in a broader food and beverage role.

HOSP 3360 Rest/F&B Concept Devel (4 Credits)

In previous food and beverage courses you obtained the knowledge and skills to perform the basic management functions required for a successful career in F&B operations, put these skills into practice and opened two “restaurants for a night.” In this course you will acquire the skills required to develop and brand a new restaurant. Prerequisites: Senior standing in the HPM major, HOSP 2361 and HOSP 3301 and restricted to students pursing the Restaurant/Food & Beverage Management Concentration.

HOSP 3400 Advanced Revenue Management (4 Credits)

This course provides students with the advanced knowledge, skills, and abilities to make sound business decisions and implement revenue management strategies and solutions to influence consumer behavior and maximize revenue and profits for hotels. Students will acquire the analytical skills to apply revenue management concepts and methods in demand forecasting, pricing, and revenue optimization techniques in hotels. Prerequisites: HOSP 2402, ACTG 2300.

HOSP 3402 Hospitality Investments (4 Credits)

This course exposes students in the lodging real estate concentration to hotel investing and the types of hotel achieve ownership and hotel investment strategies that exist today. Students acquire knowledge in critical lodging investment topics including hotel investment metrics/returns, underwriting a hotel, capital markets (debt/equity), negotiating a hotel management agreement, hotel brands v independent hotels, franchise license agreements, construction and development challenges, asset management, hybrid lodging, and more.

HOSP 3501 Advanced Hospitality Human Capital Analysis (2 Credits)

With demographic and immigration changes, the pool of available workers to fill hospitality jobs is shrinking. Hospitality organizations are faced with critical decisions regarding how to create an experience for their guests, being the most efficient yet effective with their scarce supply of human capital. Hence, deciding to replace labor with technology to fulfill certain tasks has ramifications on the guest experience. This course will examine societal trends leading to an uncertain labor supply; criteria for making labor-replacement technology decisions; and impacts of the human-technology interface on the hospitality guest experience. Prerequisite: HOSP 2501.

HOSP 3506 Special Event Management (4 Credits)

This course addresses all that is involved in the sales and production of catered events, trade shows, and meetings, from the perspectives of planners, venue salespeople, and event managers. Students will learn how to market and sell a venue; produce and respond to requests for proposals; work directly with clients during the booking process and event execution; address risk management and contractual issues; and perform other event and meeting sales and planning functions. Prerequisite: HOSP 2506.

HOSP 3600 Lodging Valuation Principles (4 Credits)

This course introduces students to the basic fundamental analysis of methods and techniques of real estate investment, finance, and valuation as they apply to the lodging industry. The course covers time value of money, basic discounted cash flow techniques, financing instruments, appraisal methods, and valuation techniques for income producing lodging properties. Students utilize computer software and spreadsheets for solving real estate problems. Practical applications provide students with the analytical tools and techniques to make effective real estate investment and financing decisions. Prerequisites: HOSP 2502, HOSP 2504.

HOSP 3601 Hotel Development & Feasibility (4 Credits)

This advanced capstone experiential learning course integrates lodging real estate financial analysis and valuation techniques to emphasize the fundamental concepts and techniques involved in the hotel development process and the various steps involved in performing a market feasibility study of a proposed hotel. Students will propose, establish and refine a concept from inception to completion, perform a market and site analysis, plan the development and construction, estimate the cost, and determine the financial viability of a full-service or limited-service hotel. Additional discussion topics include the regulatory process, financing, and risk management. Guest speakers, site visits, cases, text, practical examples and extensive use of spreadsheet software will provide students with specialized real-world knowledge and enhance their understanding of the complexities and challenges faced in lodging real estate development projects. Prerequisite: HOSP 3600.

HOSP 3602 Facility Layout and Design (4 Credits)

The course is focused on students who are going to become hospitality managers and will inevitably be involved with the design and planning of facilities. They will develop confidence in understanding the design process, reading and understanding plans, how to effectively critique designers to obtain the best results, what it takes to create functional spaces, and the importance of economic balance in creating designs that promise the best potential for financial success. Students will emerge with a heightened vision that will allow them to assess every hospitality experience that they encounter. They will plan a restaurant and a hotel to develop planning skills and to demonstrate creativity.

HOSP 3650 Leadership in Hospitality (3 Credits)

This course provides students with the knowledge, skills, and attitudes necessary to undertake leadership responsibilities in complex organizations. This course applies concepts and methodologies from the social and behavioral sciences in the analysis of leadership behavior in diverse organizational and community settings. Must have senior standing in the HPM major.

HOSP 3700 Topics in Hospitality Management (1-4 Credits)

Exploration of various topics and issues related to the hospitality industry. Prerequisite: HOSP 1100.

HOSP 3800 Hospitality Experience Management (4 Credits)

The evaluation, design, and management of service delivery systems through operations management topics from a service perspective. Included are other related topics such as customer satisfaction and managing organizational change. Must have senior standing in the HPM major.

HOSP 3991 Independent Study (0-10 Credits)

Independent research/study; requires written report. Prerequisite: instructor's permission.

Faculty

David Corsun, Associate Professor and Director, PhD, Cornell University

H.G. Parsa, Professor, PhD, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University

Amrik Singh, Associate Professor, PhD, Pennsylvania State University

Cheri Young, Associate Professor, PhD, Cornell University

Andy Divine, Professor, Emeritus, PhD, University of Washington

Robert Mill, Professor, Emeritus, PhD, Michigan State University

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