Dean Christopher Muller, PhD

Let me welcome you to the School of Hospitality Administration here at Boston University. This is a remarkable place.

We offer a combination of attributes which I think is unique in all of hospitality management education.

Other schools and colleges can claim to offer both a small-school intimacy while being part of a large university. SHA is just 450 dedicated undergraduate hospitality students taking classes together at 928 Commonwealth Avenue while another 30,000 Boston University students are just outside our doors. Remember the song, “You wanna be where everyone knows your name”? That’s us, but when it gets a bit too personal, you’ve got plenty of other people to meet for the first time. We’ve got your back, and after you leave to go explore the rest of the campus, we’ll welcome you back when you return.

Other schools may be proud of their urban environment, or their beautiful campus settings. SHA is in the very center of Boston, by all standards the best college city in the country. With hundreds of world-class hotels, over 1,000 great restaurants, and industry-leading convention, event, and meeting spaces, the city of Boston is a thriving global business center. But Boston University, nestled along the Charles River Esplanade, has beautiful tree-lined green spaces, world-class dormitories, easy access to parks, and plenty of bike paths, and is just a few steps from a stunning jewel named Fenway Park. We’ve got urban, and we’ve got beautiful.

Many programs will mention the strength of their faculties, or their practical yet theory-based hospitality curriculum. At SHA every one of the faculty has worked in the segment of the industry that is their teaching specialty, and all of the full-time professors have earned doctorates. Our adjunct faculty members are leading practitioners and executives from the industry. Boston University is committed to creating critical thinkers, so the SHA curriculum has a core liberal arts foundation, but is enhanced by an exceptional management program of study. In addition, each student must complete two 400-hour work experiences. But, because hospitality is a global business, all SHA students must also engage in an international experience. The vast majority of our students spend a study semester abroad in places such as London, Paris, Sydney, Madrid, Hong Kong, Auckland, Dublin, or Geneva. But on top of all that, each semester BU offers more than 1,000 different undergraduate courses right here on campus. We’ve got practical, we’ve got theoretical, and we’ve got really cool.

Of course, other schools will highlight the quality of their current students, and the involvement of industry and alumni. BU is one of the most competitive universities in the world, so you will be taking classes with intelligent, high-achieving, and interesting classmates. All of them have that special something, that “fire in the belly” that makes hospitality people just a little bit different than everyone else on campus. It should be obvious that today’s interesting classmates make tomorrow’s interesting alumni, and many will be your best friends for the rest of your life. The Dean’s Advisory Board is made up of over two dozen leaders from the entire breadth of the hospitality industry, and each semester classes are filled with guest speakers from around the globe. Our corporate recruitment attracts the largest companies and the best new start-ups, all seeking to hire our graduates. We’ve got great students, great alumni, and great industry friends.

What we don’t have is you. So, why don’t you request some additional information through busha@bu.edu? Or better yet, why don’t you come for a visit? We would very much like to show you in person how unique the School of Hospitality Administration at Boston University really is.

Christopher Muller, PhD
Dean