A commerce degree can give you a useful starting point for studying a hospitality business. It does not tell you whether you will enjoy researching service organisations, handling unfamiliar operational questions or building a career in this sector. For an Indian BCom graduate considering BHMS, the useful decision is whether the exact course develops skills you want to use and whether its study plan is workable for you.
This guide concerns the MSc in International Hospitality Business Management. It is an original decision exercise, not an assessment of your admission eligibility or a prediction of employment.
What the current programme page establishes
Checked on 8 October 2026, BHMS’s official programme page describes a one-year, 90 ECTS course and lists Lucerne / Zurich as locations. Its admissions section lists an undergraduate degree in any discipline, or specified BHMS postgraduate qualifications, and IELTS 6.0 or equivalent. The FAQ also refers to a recognised bachelor’s degree and B2 English proficiency. Ask admissions to confirm how your qualification and English evidence satisfy the requirements for your intended intake.
The curriculum combines hospitality analysis, sustainability and financial performance with business subjects, research methods and academic writing. Semester two includes an independent research project; the internship is described as optional. The page also lists optional German communication and dining/service practical support modules.
These details describe the school’s published course plan. They do not establish what a particular class will feel like or how an individual graduate will fare. Campus allocation, timetable, assessment and available options still need confirmation for your offer.
Translate your commerce experience into a learning question
Start with something you already understand, then identify the part you would need to learn. If you enjoyed accounting, you might want to investigate why a service business can show healthy revenue while struggling with costs. If marketing interested you, ask how a guest’s experience affects repeat purchase rather than simply collecting examples of advertising.
Use a small three-column note:
- What I can already demonstrate: a project, assignment or work responsibility, with an example of your own contribution.
- What I want to learn: a specific business problem, rather than a job title alone.
- What would test that learning: an assessment or research task that requires a new capability.
For example, an imaginary applicant has analysed a retailer’s accounts but has never studied a hotel’s operating decisions. Their question might be how to evaluate a service improvement without confusing higher sales with higher profit. That is a starting point for discussing learning fit, not proof that the course teaches their preferred method or leads to a particular role.
Test your interest in hospitality itself
Ask yourself what draws you to this field beyond a Swiss location or an attractive employer name. Do you like investigating service failures, working with different customer expectations and making trade-offs when resources are limited? Would you be willing to learn the operational context before recommending a business change?
A useful exercise is to choose a familiar service encounter and write a short analysis. Describe the customer’s need, the process, one difficulty and the evidence you would need before proposing an improvement. Avoid guessing employees’ motives or using identifiable customer details. Notice whether this exercise makes you more curious. Your response gives you something concrete to discuss when reviewing the curriculum.
Separate research from the optional internship
Keep two plans in your comparison record: the academic work you must complete and any practical experience you hope to undertake. Ask how the research project is supervised and assessed, how internship participation is arranged, and how the two commitments fit together. Request the conditions in writing for the programme and intake you are considering.
Do not treat an internship opportunity as a confirmed employer offer, a right to work in a particular country or a future job. Build a budget that remains workable without assumed internship income. Our full study-budget guide helps you list costs across the entire period, including gaps between scheduled activities.
Gather evidence about support and daily learning
An admissions description and a student’s experience answer different questions. For academic support, ask who gives feedback on early research proposals, what help exists for academic writing and how a student requests assistance. For practical preparation, ask which support options are available to your cohort and whether they carry extra time or cost.
If you speak with a current student, ask about the exact programme, campus and semester they experienced. A helpful answer describes an actual assessment, the feedback received and what happened when they needed support. One person’s account can illuminate a question; it cannot establish a universal teaching-quality score or guarantee that your experience will match.
Make a provisional decision
Use the course comparison worksheet approach to record one learning reason to keep this course, one concern and one unanswered question that could change your decision. Include your degree details, preferred intake, funding limit and research interests in the question record you take to counselling.
Keep the course on your shortlist when the learning tasks interest you and the unresolved conditions can be checked. Pause when the appeal depends mainly on an assumed placement or when your budget only works with unconfirmed income. The next useful step is a precise programme discussion supported by written evidence.
