Country Business Reports interviews and articles by Discovery Reports Discoveryreports.com Today more than ever, there is a need for educational solutions that balance theoretical and practical learning. Amid the Covid-19 pandemic, education providers could fall back on theory that is easy to teach remotely and forget about practical skills. This is definitely not the case with EHL Hospitality Business School, which was founded in 1893 as Ecole hôtelière de Lausanne and is the world’s best hospitality management university, with campuses in Switzerland and Singapore. The school has nearly 130 years of heritage in experiential learning, or dual education, where theoretical principles are systematically coupled with practical skills. This vision of dual education is applied to hospitality education, where human interactions are key. It is deeply ingrained in the overall Swiss education system, which is acclaimed internationally, thanks to the nation’s very low youth unemployment rate of 3 per cent against the European Union’s 17 per cent average. “Many now understand that the benefits of practical learning respond to economic needs, providing learners with real work responsibilities, which can make them more immediately employable,” says Professor Michel Rochat, CEO of EHL Group. The main driver of experiential learning programmes is therefore the quality of their links to industry. Practical learning educators need to continuously innovate in gathering and applying insights from the field. “In our four-year bachelor programme in International Hospitality Management, there’s no room for us to stand still. We’re in continual contact with employers and alumni members, and our faculty reviews curriculums twice a year to ensure our teaching meets ever-changing student and employer needs,” Rochat says. True to the dual Swiss education system, EHL offers to its bachelor students in Switzerland and Singapore a distinct proximity to the industry. This is achieved through a preparatory year during which students are fully immersed in the world of hospitality with practical courses given by award-winning professionals, along with two sets of six-month compulsory internships, and the Student Business Project which enables students to work on real-life challenges with global companies such as Audemars Piguet, Credit Suisse, InterContinental Hotels Group or the International Committee of the Red Cross. All these practical experiences are accompanied by management classes taught by brilliant faculty members, 50 per cent of whom hold PhDs. Experiential learning also allows the group to roll out the expertise it gains in the development of curriculums to lifelong learning systems. This approach enables professionals to always stay in touch with the new realities of the field. “We continuously innovate the way we gather and apply insights from the industry, and engage employers to be on board at every stage of the development of our educational content,” Rochat says. “We apply new technologies and disruptive business models to continuously remain industry-relevant and ensure students’ maximum employability at the end of the programmes.” As such, EHL believes that the trend towards digitalisation and remote learning is an opportunity for experiential learning to expand its reach. Its students are learning from more experts worldwide as the group develops attractive learning solutions through virtual reality and artificial intelligence. “The dual approach to education will become even more important as industry needs continue to evolve faster, in much shorter cycles,” Rochat says. “As a pioneer in the field, EHL Group is proud to remain at the forefront of education innovation worldwide, servicing an ever more agile global hospitality industry through the lasting power and efficiency of experiential learning.” EHL’s graduate school merges international expertise in hospitality and business Over its 130-year-long history, EHL Hospitality Business School, founded as Ecole hôtelière de Lausanne (EHL), has pushed the boundaries of academic innovation, honing its mastery of service excellence, customer centricity and kind leadership. Upholding its Swiss prestige as the world’s leading hospitality management university, EHL has diversified its portfolio of first-rate programmes to include five graduate degrees. “Being service-driven is in our DNA, but we are not merely a hotel school. We are here to unite cultures and industries with our expertise in hospitality,” says Dr Achim Schmitt, associate dean of graduate programmes. “EHL was always the academic benchmark for the hospitality industry, but now, traditional business schools recognise us as a serious institution where one can obtain a managerial education in a larger service and hospitality domain. We are merging boundaries.” Through EHL’s master of science in Global Hospitality Business programme, enrollees experience a tripartite, world-class education within 16 months. Students begin the course in Lausanne, and then continue their studies at the Hong Kong Polytechnic University and the University of Houston, procuring a holistic overview with a local understanding of different hospitality practices, management styles, business strategies and more. For applicants who have busier schedules and would prefer a part-time programme, EHL’s digitally driven Master of Business Administration in Hospitality (MBA in Hospitality) is the perfect choice. With 80 per cent of the MBA in Hospitality programme delivered online and 20 per cent in-campus, students gain access to networking opportunities and an unrivalled repository of tools to top the hospitality industry. Meanwhile, EHL’s Executive Master of Business Administration (EMBA) course allows working professionals to engage in a part-time course focused on delivering service excellence, managing employees and acquiring business leadership skills. The 18-month-long EMBA programme is delivered online and on-campus in Singapore and Switzerland, and will commence in EHL’s new Lausanne campus beginning September this year. EHL’s full-time, joint master of science in Wine and Hospitality Management programme with KEDGE Business School dips students into the world of wining and dining, producing alumni and expert restaurateurs savvy in the wine industry. While students attend classes in KEDGE business school campuses in Paris and Bordeaux, they will also visit the EHL campus in Lausanne, and complete a series of online components. Partnering with China Europe International Business School (CEIBS), EHL addresses Asia’s growing market need for professional expertise in being customer- and service-oriented through its joint programme with CEIBS, Hospitality Executive Master of Business Administration (HEMBA). HEMBA class schedules are part-time and are taught in Mandarin and English across different locations in Asia. Seeking to equip China’s service sector with skills in hospitality, an HEMBA offers advantageous insights that synergise with a multitude of sectors, be it healthcare, technology, tourism or entertainment – the possibilities are endless. “When it comes to our graduate student portfolio, only 20 per cent come from the hospitality sector, while 80 per cent come from other industries,” Schmitt says. “If we can make you feel comfortable and at home wherever you are, we can adapt this to any industry context. In that sense, our graduate school is about becoming masters of human interaction.” www.ehl.edu