Rosen College students Stephanie Adkison, Yanique Bryan, Ryan Dowling, Bertram Jacques, Fernando Pasos, Eily Ridge, Michael Skinner, Barbara Tyler and Donald Warren are among the first at UCF to earn a Certification in Hotel Industry Analytics.
The Certification in Hotel Industry Analytics (CHIA) is being offered globally to undergraduate and graduate students through a joint effort between the American Hotel & Lodging Association’s Educational Institute (EI), the International Council on Hotel, Restaurant and Institutional Education (ICHRIE), and Smith Travel Research (STR). EI, ICHRIE and STR describe this certification as the leading hotel-related certification for university students graduating from hospitality and tourism programs throughout the world.
In 2012, UCF’s Rosen College partnered with STR to join its SHARE Center. Through this partnership, Rosen College students can earn a CHIA and take HFT4468 Revenue Management for the Hospitality Industry to prepare for the exam.
CHIA recipients can “do the math” and interpret the results, as well as analyze various types of hotel industry data and make strategic recommendations. Certification also confirms a comprehensive understanding of benchmarking and performance reports, in addition to the current landscape of the global hotel industry.
The CHIA is based upon four core content areas:
1. Hotel Industry Analytical Foundations,
2. Hotel Math Fundamentals – the metrics used by the hotel industry,
3. Property Level Benchmarking (STAR Reports),
4. Hotel Industry Performance Reports (Trends, P&L, Pipeline and Destination Reports)
According to Dr. Amy Gregory [1], a Rosen College assistant professor in the Department of Foodservice & Lodging Management, hiring companies value CHIA and ask for students with these qualifications, which is why it has been incorporated into coursework. In today’s progressively dynamic and competitive environment, all segments of the hospitality industry are increasingly reliant on revenue management strategies to improve profitability in multiple business areas. The ability to obtain this in-demand certification provides Rosen College students with an opportunity to further differentiate themselves in a saturated job market.
“I chose to get the Certification in Hotel Industry Analytics not only because it shows prospective employers that I’m able to understand and grasp important industry-related data, but also because it makes me more confident in my skills knowing that I have a foundation of knowledge in one of the most important sources of information in the hotel industry,” said Michael Skinner, a senior majoring in hospitality management.
The CHIA will continue to be offered as part of HFT 4468 Revenue Management in the Hospitality Industry at Rosen College.
For more information about hospitality management education at Rosen College, please visit hospitality.ucf.edu [2].