Bachelor of Science in Business Administration

General Focus

With our Bachelor of Science in Business Administration (BSBA) program, you'll be prepared for a successful career in fields such as accounting, finance, management, marketing, operations management and information systems.

Degree requirements

Transfer path

Emphasis in Hospitality and Tourism Management

The Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration with a Hospitality and Tourism Management emphasis will prepare you for a fast-paced career in a global industry. By pursuing this emphasis, you'll gain specialized skills while completing the essential business courses required of all business majors. With your advanced understanding of the industry's business environment, you'll be ready for a management role in settings such as convention centers, casinos and cruise lines.

The mission of the hospitality and tourism management program is to engage students in developing the foundational knowledge, demonstrated skills and professional attitudes required for contemporary and future practice or advanced study in the fields of hospitality and tourism.

The Bachelor of Science degree in HTM provides a valuable career track for students interested in a variety of jobs in the hospitality and tourism industry. Our courses cover all aspects of the industry including hotel operation, food service management, tourism management and meeting and event management. As an HTM major, you will take courses in general education, business knowledge and hospitality and tourism management.

Our program provides you with extensive management skills and practical work experiences to prepare you for demanding yet rewarding careers. To gain hands-on experience during the course of study, our students:

Operate a dining facility, Ellington's
Work in food service or catering
Gain hotel operation experience in the Holmes Student Center Hotel
Assist in event planning

Knowing that hands-on experience is vital to a student’s career success, all students are required to participate in industry-related internships. With our proximity to Chicago, we can provide you with a diverse range of internships in the hospitality field.

Careers in Hospitality and Tourism Management

The business travel that comes with globalization, along with increased demand for professionally planned meetings and events has contributed to growth in hospitality and tourism careers. Careers in the industry are expected the grow faster than average for all jobs through 2024, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Handbook.

Careers in the field include:

Catering manager
Food and beverage manager
Human resources at hotels, casinos and spas
Lodging manager
Casino manager
Cruise director
Sales manager
Tour manager and guide
Event and meeting planner
Restaurant and commercial food service
Attraction and amusement park manager
Customer service
Airline and other transportation management

NIU alumni can be found working in the following hospitality and tourism organizations:

Aramark
Disney World
Darden Restaurants
Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts
Hilton Hotels and Resorts
Intercontinental Hotels
Global Hyatt Corporation
Lettuce Entertain You Enterprises
Marriott International
MGM Hotels Las Vegas
Six Flags Great America
Rivers Casino
Harrah’s Casino
Expedia Inc.
Sodexo
Wyndam Hotels

Internships

To prepare you for career opportunities, you can take advantage of our extensive internship program. Internships can be tailored to your goals, and are available during the fall, spring and summer semesters. Each spring the school holds a Hospitality Recruitment Day. Hospitality companies visit campus to interview potential interns. Previous participants include Marriot Corporation, Global Hyatt, Darden Restaurants, Professional Sports Catering and Aramark. Internships have included working as a front agent, meeting and event coordinator and picnic supervisor.

Student Learning Outcomes

The Bachelor of Science degree in Hospitality and Tourism Management prepares you for employment in the global hospitality industry. Program graduates demonstrate the ability to:

Demonstrate the ability to develop and examine alternatives to problems in the hospitality and tourism business
Demonstrate effective customer service skills
Demonstrate effective communication skills
Apply leadership principles to manage in a diverse hospitality business environment
Demonstrate the ability to evaluate ethical issues facing the hospitality and tourism industry

Retention Requirements

If you're admitted to NIU, you can declare a major in management. However, to continue as a management major and enroll in 300- or 400-level management courses required by the major, you must meet the following criteria.

You must complete MGMT 335, FINA 320, MKTG 310 and OMIS 338 with a C or better grade.
You must submit a completed transcript review form to the Department of Management during the semester in which you're enrolled in MGMT 335. This form is separate from the NIU admission form and is available in the Department of Management office or online. You are responsible for providing all transcript information to the Office of Admissions.
- Completed forms must be submitted by the deadline to:
  - The Department of Management
    Northern Illinois University
    DeKalb, IL 60115
    Fax: 815-753-6198
You must meet the cumulative GPA requirement set by the Department of Management to enroll in required 300- and 400-level courses. With a cumulative GPA of 2.50 or higher, students who complete the transcript review process and meet prerequisites will be able to enroll.
Meeting the department requirements to be retained as a management major does not declare your major.

McHenry County College Partnership

You can now earn your B.S. in business administration from NIU at McHenry County College.

Beginning fall 2024, you will have onsite and convenient access to expert faculty, dedicated support resources, services and a state-of-the-art learning environment — right in your own backyard!

For questions about this program, please contact Steph Horgan, academic advisor, at mgmt@niu.edu.

Learn more about the program.