Thames College to offer MBA in Tourism Management from Asia e University

Thames College, the leader in hospitality and tourism management education in Sri Lanka, has formalised its collaboration with Asia e University (AeU) in Malaysia to offer MBA in Tourism Management. It is a milestone in six-year history of Thames College to offer such a program in Sri Lanka for the first time thus maintaining its leadership position as an innovator in this field. AeU is a unique collaborative multinational university established in 2007 under the auspices of 34 Asia Cooperation Dialogue (ACD) including Sri Lanka. The ACD member countries leverage on AeU’s e-education platform to increase higher education accessibility for all and narrow the digital divide. AeU delivers programmes that are imbued with the goals of flexibility, quality and relevance to provide a truly personalised and lifelong learning for the masses.

The representatives of Asia e University arrived in the country last week for the signing-in ceremony of the agreement between the two institutions. President/CEO Prof. Dato’ Dr. Ansary Ahmed, Head of Commercial Department of AeU Mohamed Rahimee Bin Ibrahim, CEO/Head of Academics Sanju Dissanayake and Directors of Thames College attended the ceremony.After the signing-in ceremony the special seminar was held where prospective students were able to meet the Academics and the governing body of the University with a view to ascertain the uniqueness of the MBA in Tourism Management. The duration of the MBA program will be 18 months and will have its first intake of students in January 2017. The MBA is delivered using flexible study modes including fully lecture based, blended learning and online based programmes which is ideal for both hospitality and tourism professionals in the industry who are seeking knowledge to improve their businesses and as well as for the government University degree holders looking for specialisation in this field. This MBA program will be delivered by a well experienced lecture panel who are academically sound and experts in the related subject areas. This MBA in Tourism Management is designed to provide greater emphasis on the development of hospitality and tourism business managers to understand “how the real hospitality and tourism business world works”. The program is developed to provide students with the content knowledge, analytical knowledge and the specialised knowledge which will enhance their competencies and provide them with greater opportunities to develop and advance their careers. “As we continue to witness exponential economic growth there is a growing demand for trained professionals in the hospitality and tourism industry. The main objective of Thames College is to provide knowledgebased training in this sector and AeU is one of the leading Universities globally, and we are therefore very pleased that both local and international students will be able to benefit from their renowned expertise and know-how.

An understanding of the way the industry works within a global context is a vital ingredient of the program as the country’s service industry is becoming increasingly important,” stated Dissanayake. She added: “Sri Lanka is poised for dramatic expansion in the hospitality and tourism industry. As the Sri Lankan middle class grows, domestic hotels and allied establishments are building local and international brands by expanding into the country. Tourism Management specialised MBA graduates will find employment opportunities including leisure and recreation, restaurants, event planning and tourism. Also the graduates may stand a better chance of utilising their skills base with larger companies and major enterprises that place a higher value on advanced training. AeU is one of the better known universities in the world, making it a perfect counterpart for our first MBA degree in Tourism Management in Sri Lanka.”