Top Universities for Hospitality & Leisure Management

Published for the first time in 2017, the hospitality and leisure management subject ranking is part of the QS World University Rankings by Subject. This year’s table ranks the world’s top 51 universities for this subject, based on a methodology which assesses academic and employer reputations, as well as research impact.

If you’re interested in studying a hospitality management degree, here’s a closer look at the highest-ranked universities in each region of the world, or you can click here for the full ranking.

Top universities for hospitality & leisure management in the US & Canada

The United States continues to claim the world’s highest-ranked university for hospitality and leisure management, with University of Nevada - Las Vegas retaining its first-place position. Elsewhere in the country, Cornell University climbed two places to now rank in the top 10, and 13 more US institutions are featured in the ranking, including Pennsylvania State University at 12^th and Purdue University at 13^th.

Meanwhile, the University of Waterloo is the only Canadian institution in the ranking, ranked 19^th this year.

Top universities for hospitality & leisure management in Europe

Of the six European countries represented in the hospitality ranking, the majority are in Switzerland and the UK, which both claim seven representatives – for Switzerland, four of these are in the top 10 listed above, while the UK’s Bournemouth University climbed an impressive eight places in this year’s ranking.

Outside the top 10, the highest-ranked Swiss and UK institutions for hospitality and leisure management are HTMi - Hotel and Tourism Management Institute Switzerland (14^th) and Oxford Brookes University (18^th).

Elsewhere in Europe, the Netherlands’ NHTV Breda University of Applied Sciences climbed 11 positions to now rank 26^th in the world for hospitality, and Russia’s Lomonosov Moscow State University is up two places to rank joint 41^st. Spain and Sweden have both joined the ranking this year, with University College of Hospitality Management Sant Pol de Mar, Barcelona and Lund University sharing 48^th place.

Top universities for hospitality & leisure management in Asia

Nine Asian universities are ranked among the world’s best for hospitality, led by The Hong Kong Polytechnic University in third place. Hong Kong is also represented by the Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK) at joint 41^st.

The next two highest-ranked Asian institutions are Malaysia’s sole entrant, Taylor's University, up eight places this year at 21^st, and Singapore’s Nanyang Technological University, Singapore (NTU) at 25^th.

South Korea has three entrants in the hospitality ranking, led by Sejong University at 33^rd. The special administrative region of Macau has two institutions ranked among the world’s best for studying hospitality degrees: the Institute for Tourism Studies, ranked 30^th, and new entry University of Macau, ranked 46^th.

Top universities for hospitality & leisure management in Australia & New Zealand

Six Australian universities are ranked among the world’s best for studying a hospitality degree, led by Griffith University at 11^th, while The University of Queensland (UQ) is also in the top 20 at 16^th.

New Zealand has three representatives in the ranking, led by the University of Waikato at 27^th. New entry Victoria University of Wellington follows at 28^th, while Auckland University of Technology (AUT) is up 10 places to rank joint 35^th this year.

Top universities for hospitality & leisure management in Latin America

Elsewhere in the world, Latin America is now featured in the hospitality and leisure management ranking for the first time ever. Universidad Externado de Colombia is the new entrant from this region and the Colombian institution is ranked as the 40^th best place in the world for studying a hospitality degree.

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