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As someone who has worked in fine dining restaurants for many years, I have to say that a BA in hospitality is kind of overkill. All the managers I ever worked with, including one who was on a board of a major chain restaurant, all had an AS in hotel/restaurant management and a BA in business management. I mean, unless you are going to be a chief or a sommelier, there is only so much about restaurants and hospitality that you can learn from a college course, and the rest is all experience.
Keep in mind, that if you never worked in a restaurant, no matter what your education, you will have to start at the bottom.
If you want to focus on hotel and convention management, I would get the four-year degree and get as much work experience as possible during school and internships during the summer. Convention sales and planning and hotel management are more lucrative than most restaurant jobs.
I was in the food business for ten years after receiving my bachelor's degree in liberal arts in 1981.
I would like to tell you to head off to Cornell or UNLV or any number of other schools with good programs. However, you have to be somewhat realistic. If you have to incur $50-100k in debt to get a degree that will earn you in the low $30s when you get out, you are making a mistake.
As much as chains like Marriott have a reputation as one of the "Top 100 Employers," it is NOT an evaluation that is based on what they pay. Their pay might be good in that industry BUT not in the economy as a whole.
Unlike a lot of technical fields, there is a low barrier of entry to get into the hospitality industry. Over the years, I worked for VPs with NO college degree who had worked themselves up from a low level position. I worked for people who had a lot of military experience, but little education. And I have seen some MASSIVE FLOPS among Johnson & Wales and Cornell graduates.
I am not going to dwell on the large number of hours you will be working. However, I had several friends at major hotels who averages one day off per month. Needless to say that they burned out in a year or two.
Personally, I would get a ton of experience in a number of roles to make sure taht this is what you want to do and then proceed slowly on getting your education.
As someone who has worked in fine dining restaurants for many years, I have to say that a BA in hospitality is kind of overkill. All the managers I ever worked with, including one who was on a board of a major chain restaurant, all had an AS in hotel/restaurant management and a BA in business management. I mean, unless you are going to be a chief or a sommelier, there is only so much about restaurants and hospitality that you can learn from a college course, and the rest is all experience.
Keep in mind, that if you never worked in a restaurant, no matter what your education, you will have to start at the bottom.
BA in hospitality isn't necessary, I concur, when it comes to working in event planning and directing, either.
My younger sister became an event coordinator and director for a community civic center, planning and executing conferences, banquets, weddings, various social receptions (wedding, anniversary, business open houses, etc.), career fairs, bridal fairs, etc. She rose to a manamgement position in under a year.
Her educational background was a degree in communications and studio art from a small, well-regarded private liberal arts college. Her degree was fine, but what mattered more in getting the job was the fact that she chaired her campus activities board for three and a half years, booking musical acts and other cultural entertainment and acting as the campus liaison for most student events, and the fact that she interned with several booking agencies. Hands-on experience counted for as much if not more than the degree, although her degree was also very definitely applicable.
You can look at the various courses they have since there are many associated programs here:
Purdue University | Hospitality & Tourism Management (http://www.cfs.purdue.edu/academics/undergraduate/majors/hospitality_tourism_.html - broken link)
If you can do it at a state university where it will cost just as much as any other degree, do it. Otherwise, see above.
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