International Management Institute, Lucerne

A forward-thinking hospitality management university started in 1991, IMI educates hoteliers, restaurateurs and specialists in tourism and events. Conceived and maintained as a small-scale yet high achieving establishment with students from more than 50 nations, IMI unites Swiss expertise with a global team of industry experts, access to a vast international network of potential employees and tailored teaching.
The university’s approach is unusual, explains Rachel Staal, regional manager for Europe, although students graduate with a British honours degree validated by Manchester Metropolitan or Oxford Brookes University. After an intense six-month period of study, students embark on their first of two six-month paid internships, carried out from Dubai to Dubrovnik, San Moritz to the Seychelles.