UCF’s Rosen College of Hospitality Management

I’m currently student at Rosen, I’m entering my junior year and I love it. This is the first time in my life I’ve enjoyed learning in my classes because I’m learning and growing in my service and hospitality skills.
I highly recommend this school if your career focus is hospitality, restaurants, and/​or events. There’s a major for each with a specialized path plus plenty of opportunities for internship and work being located in the tourism heart of Orlando.
The campus is beautiful and small so it’s hard to get lost. It’s designed to look like a resort-​ish hotel so you feel like you’re learning where you’ll be working in the future. I prefer it 10x more than UCF’s main campus. The classes are taught by (mostly) great professors that are knowledgable in the industry and have usually worked in the industry themselves.
I’ve thoroughly enjoyed my time at this school and it gets more exciting as I go because I’m getting into my hand selected hospitality electives. The only complaint I have is that a lot of the core hospitality classes can get somewhat repetitive, but I guess that really drills information into your head.

I found the only worthwhile aspect of this school, to be its location. It is right in the middle of Orlando, FL. Conveniently situated for students behind International Drive’s tourism hub.
The school itself is a third-​rate college when compared to actual top-​rate hospitality programs around the country, which I found to be rather surprising and disillusioning. Classes here for the most part are watered down, resulting in a sense of having wasted your time and $$$ after graduating. Nothing of any true business or hospitality value is actually taught as part of the curriculum. It’s mostly just a pass-​and-​go type of attitude, which is directly visible in most of the student body attending this campus. No one really seems to care about any of it, including the faculty. It quickly becomes obvious why the Rosen College cannot compete with the likes of Cornell, Michigan State, and Glion. The caliber of classes along with expectational standards would have to be raised, considerably.
Sure, the majority of faculty is made up former executives and retired industry veterans, but it’s mostly just a paycheck and ego-​trip for them, and an overall letdown for striving and hopeful students. I saw this to be the case in a majority of classes. Most professors at this campus are fairly outdated in the material they teach, and in their overall demeanor. There is a definite disconnect here between current and upcoming industry trends, and the geriatrics that profess here.
As for parking, it is ridiculous on most days, since the campus outgrew it’s lot years ago. Many students are forced to park outside of the campus limits, behind the Shingle Creek hotel, in a dilapidated parking lot and walk from there. This place is in serious need of a multi-​level parking structure.
The facilities and campus itself are beautiful, with nice landscaping and picturesque buildings but the reality is that this college won’t afford a majority of students with any real opportunities once they enter the workforce, with the exception of mostly minimum wage service jobs. The job fairs I’ve attended would offer $ 8-​$ 10 an hr. positions, I mean seriously, why did I even bother going to college? I’ve been told by recruiters countless times that this what the industry refers to as a «soft» management degree. So do yourself a favor if you’re able to & major in actual Business Management, Accounting, Finance, Engineering, or Information Technology, that is if you seriously desire to be gainfully employed after graduation.
I found the Rosen college to be nothing more than an overpriced, party-​school for posh, rich kids, and/​or very well-​connected students whom are looking to attain a virtually useless degree in order to impress mommy and daddy. If this doesn’t describe you, take your money someplace else, since the value of education relative to cost is simply too low here for a majority of people that are honestly considering enrolling at this school.

The school looks beautiful, it does not look like a college, it looks like the industry it represents… a hotel.
All the professors in the school are industry leaders and very well seasoned, you will have the likely hood of having a professor who is the Darden Chair, or some high up exectutive for Golden Corral, or you will work with one of the innovators behind many of Disney’s programs… Either way, this school is not taught by retired professionals (for the most part) who are teaching antiquated techniques about their field, they are current industry professionals who have a passion for their field.

This is a great school with a great campus! The building and grounds are gorgeous, and everything in the classrooms is brand new.
Located right by all of the major Orlando attractions, this campus is very convenient for the type of student that is attending it, as most of us live and/​or work in the area. Parking is usually okay, but can be hard to find at the beginning of the semester or during exam times. There is a shuttle that runs continuously throughout class hours for those that live by the Main Campus.
The faculty is all great — most all of them industry professionals with a lot of experience. The classrooms are well-​equipped, and there are incredible labs for food prep labs and beer/​wine classes.
The campus has a library and bookstore on site, as well as a café for dining. Overall, this is a wonderful campus to attend!

Great school to get into the hospitality industry. Check out the beer lab.

The Rosen College of Hospitality Management, part of the University of Central Florida, offers degrees in hospitality management and events. It shares its property with Rosen Shingle Creek Resort, whose owner is also the school’s biggest benefactor.
Rosen college is a new campus, with modern facilities and amenities (although it has already outgrown its own parking lot). There is also on-​site dorms for full-​time students. The school’s biggest claim to fame is that it offers its secondary educational programs in the world’s largest hospitality lab – Orlando, Florida. While this may be true, the programs it offers are usually considered second-​rate when compared to the nation’s more established hospitality programs, such as Cornell. At the same time, in-​state residents are going to find value here, and engaged students will get real-​world experience and access to a number of exceptional professors.