Industry and Student-Focused Focused Curriculum Changes Taking Shape in HTM and RMM for Fall 2024
Since Fall 2022, the Hospitality & Tourism Management (HTM) and Retail & Merchandising Management (RMM) programs have been working hard to develop substantive industry and student-focused changes to the curriculum of both programs. Beginning in Fall 2024, in addition to the required internship for the program, HTM students will be required to complete a new one-credit course geared to immerse them in the industry and local community. HTM 392 (Community and Industry Engagement) will involve students working short-term as part of a team of volunteers to engage in a hospitality or tourism event within the industry. The Big Ears Festival, the Big Kahuna Wing Festival, and the Smith Travel Research Virtual Student Market Competition are just a few of the examples of the types of events students can engage in to earn credit for the course. In addition, HTM has developed an advanced internship course (HTM 495), where students can build on the initial, required internship in HTM (HTM 492).
For years, RMM students have requested the addition of more fashion-focused courses to the program. In response, the RMM faculty have developed two new courses, RMM 200 (Intro to the Fashion Industry) and 300 (Fashion Trend Analysis & Forecasting), which will debut in Fall 2024 and Spring 2025, respectively. These two courses, in conjunction with other electives, will allow students to earn the new concentration of Fashion Retailing within the major. For those more interested in the merchandising aspects of the industry, a new concentration in Merchandising Analytics will be offered. Our existing courses in category management and space planning (RMM 425) and planning and allocation (RMM 435), both using Blue Yonder software (formerly JDA), will leverage this concentration. In addition, RMM has developed an advanced internship course as a means for students to earn additional internship credit (RMM 423).
Thank you to our alumni and Industry Advisory Board partners for all of the thoughtful and extremely helpful feedback toward modernizing the curriculum for both HTM and RMM!