Dear MBA aficionados,

I have been reseraching for over an year now, primarily in Europe, for an MBA that would be a good fit for somebody with prior experience in Tourism Management. I am also looking to stay in Tourism.

My background: Bachelor's in Tourism Management from an Eastern European University, 7 + years of work experience, 3 years as a Director of Operations for a large resort, fluent in English, Spanish, Portuguese, beginner's knowledge of Italian, working knowledge of Russian.

I was ideally looking to do the Mannheim MBA and stay in Germany. The challenges I face would be to learn both German and do the MBA at the same time. I would then be looking to get a job as a Sales Manager, Revenue Manager or even Front Office Manager in a branded hotel in Germany.
My other thought goes to MIP or MIB in Italy and same career goals however in Italy.

Would you please comment on those MBAs and their ''compatibility'' with Tourism Management in general. Counsel on other options would be appreciated!

Obviously you won't learn German to professional fluency while taking a full-time MBA (See Do you need to speak the local language? www.find-mba.com/board/34713).

I don't think roles like the ones you describe typically go to MBAs. I would consider a language course plus a specialist masters, ideally also in the target language.

Dear Duncan,

Thank you for your reply. I see that your knowledge and feedback on MBAs is greatly appreciated by fellow MBA seekers and I am no exception here.

Allow me to elaborate a little bit on my previous post: as a director of operations I have also been involved into budgeting, revenue and cost control, legal issues hence my interest in financial accounting, managerial accounting, law- all that in addition to sales and marketing, revenue management, operations. I see that an MBA program addresses these aspects of company governance and that's why I look at it as a step up into general management.
If I relocate to another country, I would of course be willing to start off with a middle management position after completion of my MBA studies- that's why I mentioned front office manager, sales manager etc. In my experience these are department head positions where knowledge of finance, law, etc would be an asset.
Having said that, wouldn't it then make sense to look into an MBA as a way to relocate to another country and pursue a career in Tourism Management? Your input is of great help, as I am inlcined to think that I may be, in a way, obsessed with the idea of doing an MBA and my judgement may be clouded here.

I think an MBA can help you locate to a country where you speak the business language. So, learn the language first.

I hope you would have the time to answer another question. Yes, I understand the importance of speaking the local language therefore my back-up plan is either Spain, Portugal or Italy.
My choices would be, UC3M, Lisbon MBA, Magellan MBA in Porto, MIP or MIB in Italy.
From what I have gathered, these would be good choices for their respective countries of origin?

I will check linkdin as you suggest, however if I may, would you say these are not tourism management compatible due to their primary focus being ''politecnic''? or an MBA is an MBA ragardless
What if I do ESSEC's MBA and hope that it would yield value in terms of knowledge and language which would be appreciated in say Spain or Italy? Would it be wrong to think that if I do ESEEC's MBA in France I can acquire the MBA knowledge I need plus the added value of studying French to a level which would allow its subsequent use when it comes down to dealing with French tourists in Italy or Spain (even a GM is operationally involved right)

The schools you mention are strong schools for people with the business language in those countries. Their weakness with tourism isn't that they are more or less polytechnical, but that the hospitality industry is not a major hirer of international MBA talent.

The EESEC MBA is great, but student typically have the right language skills for the countries they are targeting. I struggle to think that French will be valued in Italy or Spain much if you do not also speak the domestic language to a level of professional fluency.

In your position, a language course is more useful than an MBA.

Thank you! If I were a hotel owner or shareholder with voting rights or any stakeholder in a hotel investment corporation I would definitely appreciate it if the GM or head of department had that MBA skills and knowledge we are talking about. That's what got me considering an MBA in the first place. The GM I am working with right now has the legal background but does not possess any knowledge of financial management or accounting concepts and I have seen her make irrational management decisions.
Yes, I speak Portuguese and Spanish fluently, having also studied and worked in these countries. I can get my Italian to a very good level in one year and then do MIPs MBA.
Any insight on SDA Boconni's MRE (a master which would appear to be set on MBA foundations?)

I think it's notable that many hospitality managers don't have MBAs. Is it possible that those who hire such managers don't have MBAs, and thus will not pay a premium for MBAs?