SETU launches 3.5-year hospitality and tourism degree

SETU officially launched the Bachelor of Business in Hospitality and Tourism Management on Monday, November 2: a three-and-a-half-year, Level 7 route for hospitality and tourism workers to qualify without leaving their jobs. The degree combines academic study with work-integrated learning, or WIL, to build career progression, leadership and workforce skills across Ireland’s hospitality and tourism sector.

Peter Burke TD, Minister for Enterprise, Tourism and Employment, formally launched the programme at SETU. Industry representatives, education partners, employers and students attended the event.

How is the programme structured?

The programme uses blended delivery over three academic years and includes three work-integrated learning placements.

• Three-and-a-half years, delivered across three academic years.
• 14 online Mondays and 14 in-person Mondays each academic year: 28 Monday sessions.
• Three work-integrated learning placements.

SETU calls the format a flexible joint pathway to a university degree for people already working in hospitality and tourism. The university says industry and government agencies collaborated closely on its development.

Who designed the degree?

Extensive employer consultation shaped the programme, with contributions from SETU’s Department of Culinary Arts, Hospitality and Tourism Industry Advisory Board and industry partners.

Jacinta Greene-Beatty, SETU lecturer and programme leader, said the programme was shaped by the External Advisory Board for the Department of Culinary Arts and Hospitality. Cyril Mc Aree launched that board the previous year, and Mark Dunne, general manager of Mount Juliet Estate, serves as co-chair.

On November 2, the same day as SETU’s launch, Mount Juliet Estate won Best Resort in UK and Ireland at the Condé Nast Traveler Readers’ Choice Awards in London. Two other contributors were Gerald Lawless, former chair of the World Travel and Tourism Council and former CEO of Jumeirah Hotels Dubai, and Dr Sonia Ferns, a work-integrated learning expert at Curtin University Perth.

Greene-Beatty said combining academic learning with workplace experience gives employees a flexible opportunity to develop skills, progress into leadership roles and support continued sector growth. She also thanked the industry partners who helped bring the programme to fruition.

The launch also featured an industry panel with representatives from Skillnet Ireland, the Irish Hotels Federation, Fáilte Ireland and the External Advisory Board. Students Ewoyn Kennedy of the Brandon House Hotel in New Ross and Kieran Mc Mahon of Trump International Hotel in Doonbeg shared their experiences.

Why does the government support the launch?

Peter Burke, TD, Minister for Enterprise, Tourism and Employment, said:

I warmly welcome the launch of SETU’s Bachelor of Business in Hospitality and Tourism Management, which will be a significant addition to Ireland’s hospitality and tourism education offering.

This new programme represents an important contribution to the objectives set out in our national tourism policy ‘A New Era for Irish Tourism’. It reflects strong collaboration between academia and industry and has been co-designed to respond directly to the skills and workforce needs of the tourism and hospitality sector.

Professor Veronica Campbell, president of SETU, added:

Courses such as this play a vital role in positioning tourism as a career of choice, supporting individuals to enter, progress and thrive within the profession while helping businesses access the talent needed for continued growth.

Hospitality and tourism are central to the economic, social and cultural life of the south east. They create employment, sustain communities, and showcase the very best of our region to visitors from across the world.

But the continued success of these industries depends, above all, on people, on their skills, professionalism, creativity and leadership. This programme is lifelong learning in action, creating opportunities for people to develop professionally without having to step away from their careers.

It demonstrates how meaningful collaboration between higher education and industry can deliver real benefits for individuals, businesses, and communities.

What does this change for hospitality operators?

Skillnet Ireland covers 40%, or roughly two-fifths, of capitation and tuition fees for the majority of students. That reduces the amount each supported participant pays. The announcement gives no total fee amount and identifies no separate employer contribution.

Aisling O’Connor, County Wexford Chamber Skillnet Manager, and Neil Quinlan, SETU’s Head of Adult Education, both played key roles in developing the programme.

For operators, the change is a more structured route to develop employees already on the payroll and prepare them for leadership roles. Three placements put classroom learning into working environments, while the fee contribution lowers the immediate cost for supported participants. The announcement does not attach wage commitments, guaranteed promotions or productivity targets to the degree.

It also does not quantify employer savings. The practical measure will be whether employers can retain more experienced staff and fill leadership gaps through this route.

When can workers apply?

An Expression of Interest is open now. Applications open directly through SETU on January 4 and close on June 1, 2026.

SETU presents the programme as part of its commitment to regional enterprise, wider access to higher education and the changing skills needs of industry. The next test is whether this blended model turns that collaboration into stronger retention and leadership development for Irish hospitality businesses.