Truckee Meadows Community College students can apply for a new degree starting this fall.
On Thursday, representatives announced a new Associate of Arts, Hospitality and Tourism Management degree.
“With a robust and flourishing hospitality sector, and increased development of international travel to Nevada, hiring for tourism-related jobs will greatly expand,” said TMCC President Karin Hilgersom, Ph.D. “Leaders in the region’s hospitality and tourism industry strongly support the new TMCC degree, with many community stakeholders serving on a well-represented community advisory board.”
TMCC Hospitality and Tourism program coordinator Vanina Coudriet agrees. “Hospitality is a huge part of Nevada’s economy, and even with diversification, hospitality will continue to be strong — it’s one of the key industries in this region,” she said. “As the manufacturing sector grows, hospitality will grow right along with it.”
She added that careers in hospitality and tourism will also increase in tandem with manufacturing, as it continues its strong hiring trend, and new firms locate to the Tahoe Reno Industrial Center east of Sparks.
“The more we grow, the more hospitality will grow right along with other sectors,” Coudriet said.
In addition, national markets are doing well.
“It’s a good economic climate so people are excited to travel, explore, and spend a little more on recreation and tourism,” she added.
Careers in hospitality and tourism include, but are not limited to:
Airline industry positions
Arts or entertainment management
Events management
Food service management
Ground transportation positions
Hotel management
Hotel operations
Outdoor recreation and leadership
Resort and ski resort management
Sustainable tourism
Destination management
Hospitality and Tourism Program students may also seamlessly transfer to bachelor’s programs at Sierra Nevada College (SNC) and the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV).
“Students may go out into the industry after receiving their associate degree or continue on into a great bachelor’s program at SNC or UNLV,” Coudriet said. “UNLV has one of the top hospitality programs in the world. The SNC degree can be completed in this region.”
Thursday's formal announcement included representatives from TMCC, Travel Nevada, The Chamber of Commerce and the Reno-Sparks Convention and Visitors Authority.
(Truckee Meadows Community College contributed to this report.)
