PhD in Hospitality & Tourism Management

The hospitality and tourism industry lends itself to fascinating and revealing research about society, the economy and the marketplace. Our PhD program in Hotel and Tourism Management (HTM) gives students the time and resources to delve into the industry, to engage in rigorous research, and to publish their findings.

Our PhD graduates become top scholars, professors and researchers at the leading hospitality and tourism programs in the US and abroad. Our graduates are successful because our program offers:

• One-on-one mentoring and advising by renowned faculty. Students will work closely with faculty on multiple research projects. 
• The opportunity to specialize in one focus area. Our concentrations include marketing/consumer behavior, leadership, information technology and social media, operational research and finance.
• Real-world preparation for careers in academia. All candidates teach graduate-level classes at Isenberg and have 100% responsibility in their classrooms.

Additionally, students in our program also graduate with a PhD in Management, making them more marketable in the job field and more knowledgeable in the classroom.

While our program is rigorous and highly selective, our learning environment is collaborative and supportive. We welcome applicants who are self-motivated, committed, and independent initiators and team players.

Irem Onder Neuhofer
Associate Professor and PhD Coordinator

• Ranked in the top 5 of hospitality and tourism management PhD programs in the U.S.
• Access to Berthiaume Behavioral Research Lab with eye-tracking, facial analysis, and GSR technology
• Quality, personalized mentorship with 1:1 student-to-faculty ratio
• Guaranteed graduate assistantship with $40,000+ annual funding & benefits for 5 years
• Opportunities to learn from top scholars, with research faculty bringing diverse expertise
• Application Deadline: December 15

Reach out to PhD Coordinator Irem Onder Neuhofer at ionder@isenberg.umass.edu for more information.

Your roadmap to a PhD—designed to help you make a lasting impact through research and scholarship.

Years 1 & 2: Coursework

• Students complete 45 credits of coursework and milestone exams, building a foundation in hospitality & tourism management theory and research methods
• Flexibility to customize much of the curriculum across the university
• Sample courses include:
  • Research Design
  • Multivariate Analysis
  • Structural Equation Modeling
  • Seminar in Tourism Theory and Research
  • Seminar in Hospitality Research
  • Services Marketing/Management Research
  • Experimental & Causal Inference Methods
  • Regression & Advanced Modeling
  • Predictive Analytics & Machine Learning
  • Qualitative & Mixed Methods

Years 3 & 4 : Dissertation & Teaching

• Focus on dissertation proposal, research, and defense
• Teaching requirement up to three to four courses, gaining valuable classroom experience

Take the next step by contacting our admissions team!

To apply, you'll need: 

• GRE or GMAT scores
• Official transcripts
• Personal statement and resume
• Short essay response
• Letters of recommendation
• English proficiency scores (if applicable)

For questions, contact doctoral_program@isenberg.umass.edu.