Culinary Arts

Career Outlook

The hospitality industry employs 15 million people nationwide. According to the National Restaurant Association statistics, employment is growing at the rate of eleven percent each year, making this industry one of the fastest growing in the country. The Hospitality Management program enjoys close relationships with the finest hotels, restaurants and tourism partners in the greater Philadelphia area, as well as interaction with professional organizations that represent the industry on a regional, national and international level. These relationships result in over $80,000 a year in scholarship funding for our students.

Typical career paths for graduates include the following:

  • Restaurants and private clubs, which employ over 9 million people in the US
  • Hotels Resorts & Casinos with almost 2.5 million employees
  • Airlines, tour operating companies, travel agencies and tourism consulting
  • Convention, special events, meeting planning, and tourism agencies
  • Cruise lines, the fastest growing segment of the industry
  • Retirement and life-care facilities
  • Food service and beverage brokers, distributors, and suppliers to the industry

Co-Op Opportunities
Drexel University has long been known for its co-operative education/internship programs, which allow students to mix periods of full-time, career-related employment with their studies. All traditional Hospitality Management students pursue the 6-month co-op employment. This six-month experience during the junior year is in a supervisory or managerial capacity. The following hotels, facilities, restaurants and clubs have recently offered co-op positions to Drexel’s Hospitality Management students. Although all of these examples are located in the Philadelphia area, co-op jobs are not limited to any region.

  • Four Seasons Hotel
  • First Union Sport Complex
  • Marriott Hotels and Resorts
  • The Park Hyatt Philadelphia at the Bellevue Hotel
  • Philadelphia Chamber of Commerce
  • Historic Fort Mifflin on the Delaware
  • Le Bec Fin
  • Ritz-Carlton Hotel
  • Union League (private club)

Visit the Drexel Steinbright Career Development Center page for more detailed information on co-op and post-graduate opportunities.