JWU Charlotte Hospitality Ranked Top in the World

2023 Update: JWU Charlotte has ranked #3 in CEOWORLD Magazine’s 2023 list of the “Best Hospitality And Hotel Management Schools In The World.” 

JWU has a reputation as one of the best career-focused universities. With excellent professors and curriculum, JWU has prepared students for careers in a multitude of job fields since 1914.

One notable program: Hospitality management has consistently been recognized as one of the best hospitality and hotel management programs in the world.

Student presenting to audience

Most recently, JWU Charlotte’s College of Hospitality Management has been ranked number four Best Hospitality and Hotel Management Schools In The World in 2022 and number six in 2021.

In 2021, JWU’s Providence Campus was given the same honor and was ranked number seven on the list. This is a great accomplishment for both campuses and shows that no matter which JWU campus you choose to attend, you will be getting an outstanding education.

Why Earn Your Hospitality Degree

Sunil Atreya, CHE, associate professor and department chair, explains that hospitality management starts with how you view the world. He said, “Being hospitable is an empathetic mindset that involves having a set of traits, skills and aptitudes to make another person feel truly welcomed and valued. Hospitality management is a career field in which the focus is on addressing the intangible experiences of the customer alongside the tangible elements.”

Being hospitable is an empathetic mindset that involves having a set of traits, skills and aptitudes to make another person feel truly welcomed and valued.

Hospitality is a multibillion-dollar industry and careers are endless. Atreya says, “In addition to the classroom learning of the practical aspects of running a hospitality-related business, the core values of hospitality can only be learned by experiencing it. This occurs by having students go on-site visits to area hospitality-related businesses to see firsthand how they treat their customers. We also have industry professionals come into the classroom and speak to the core value of their own organizations, work in the industry as a part of internships and be treated as internal customers by their faculty and staff at JWU. This starts, however, with the College of Hospitality Management setting the standard of empathy, respect and a commitment to serve the needs of our students and our community.”

JWU student presenting at event

As a student at JWU Charlotte, you can choose from a variety of bachelor’s degrees in hospitality management.

Learn Hospitality Management from the Best

Johnson & Wales has talented professors preparing you for a career in hospitality management. These professors have years of experience both working professionally as well as teaching. They know what they are doing and will make sure that you will be ready to get a job in the field once you graduate.

Collage of Professors Atreya, Malik, and Longo

Some notable professors that teach in JWU Charlotte’s Hospitality program are Sarah Malik and Jeff Longo. Malik is an associate professor in the College of Hospitality who teaches Wine Studies. She strives to help people gain a deeper understanding of wine through her teaching. She loves what she teaches and has years of experience in her craft, including serving as food and beverage manager for Hilton International. She has also earned her Sommelier Diploma from the International Sommelier Guild in 2009. Malik is one of the few prominent female sommeliers in the world.

Malik teaching wine studies class

You can also learn from associate professor Jeff Longo, who teaches for JWU’s Sports, Entertainment, Event – Management program (SEEM). What Longo loves most about JWU is the students., “They’re curious, they’re intentional, they’re hard-working. Many students on our campus are working in addition to being students and learning to juggle that, not just to get it done, but to get it done well; that’s a real strength of our student population. That’s part of the Johnson & Wales’ brand — we’re experiential education in every way.”

Longo teaching in classroom
Longo along with his colleague, James Patrick Stack, founded a nonprofit program for high school students interested in pursuing sports management as a career. The program is called Sports Biz Camps and the idea of the program is to introduce the high schoolers to the industry early to see if it is right for them with the idea that by the time they get to college they’ll have a better understanding of the industry.


More about the Hospitality Program at JWU

In JWU’s hospitality and hotel management programs, you can explore many types of career paths in the hospitality industry from resort management to sports management. The possibilities are limitless for JWU students.

As a student in JWU’s College of Hospitality, you will have the advantage of being at one of the best hospitality schools in the world. If you join the Hospitality Management program you will be able to take courses in ecotourism, International Exhibitions & Events, and Managing the Hotel Guest Experience. Courses like these will help prepare you for a future in hospitality or hotel management. Expect hands-on learning; You won’t be stuck in a classroom all four years. You’ll get real experience that you may not get somewhere else.

Students prepping for a concert that they're in charge of putting on

Professor Atreya sums up the JWU difference: “[We have] a strong curriculum that places importance on experiential education and faculty commitment, [which] sets our students up for success as leaders of tomorrow.”