Studying hospitality can lead to a good job, but it’s your hospitality degree minor that will make you stand out to employers. Every applicant for tourism and service jobs is going to have training in hospitality. The college minor you pick will give you a unique set of skills, but what minor is the best complement for your degree?
Business
How do you balance customer satisfaction with budgetary requirements? Is it better to fire or retrain a difficult employee? These are the types of questions that employers deal with every day, and a business minor will help you find the right answers to these questions. Studying business will teach you management and financial skills, but more importantly, it will help you understand the mindset of employers. Every company wants to hire business minors because mastering those classes means you will be an excellent employee.
Wine Tasting
Whether you’re running a five-star restaurant or a local motel, the hospitality experience is about delivering an experience to guests. Knowing your wines will help you deliver the best possible experience. If you want work in the upper levels of the hospitality field, beverage knowledge is almost required. For example, you can earn six figures as a waiter cum sommelier at a high-class restaurant. Plus, how can you say no to earning college credit for sampling wines?
Foreign Languages
Want to work with an international client base? You need to speak more than just English. A minor in a popular language like Spanish, German or American Sign Language makes you a valuable asset to your future company. You’ll deliver an amazing experience to guests and secure their future business for your employer. Make sure to choose a language that ties in closely to the area where you want to work; French might be a good choice in New Orleans but won’t be as helpful in New Hampshire. With a minor in a foreign language, you have a built-in excuse to study abroad during your undergraduate studies. International travel will solidify your language skills and impress future employers looking for employees who understand diversity.
Anthropology
In the hospitality industry, you will come face-to-face with human variation every day. Why not pursue anthropology, the academic field that focuses on the differences between humans? As a hospitality degree minor, anthropology shows that you respect other cultures and social norms. You don’t want to blow your nose in front of a Japanese visitor or give the a-okay signal to a Brazilian guest because those behaviors are very offensive to international visitors. Anthropology studies will make you more aware and respectful of the cultural differences between countries.
Your minor should reflect your personal interests. Don’t force yourself to study business if your heart is set on learning German, but try to avoid minors that won’t contribute to your career goals. You can be an amazing asset to future employers if you pick the right hospitality studies minor to compliment your degree.