Employment impact on hospitality and tourism students' academic journey: the HBCU students' perspective

Concurrent paid employment and full-time undergraduate studies is inevitable for many hospitality and tourism students. The purpose of this exploratory study was to understand how Historically Black Colleges and Universities' (HBCU) hospitality and tourism students perceived the role of employment in their academic success and timeliness of degree completion. Twelve senior hospitality students at a southeastern HBCU university in the United States who were employed over 20 hours per week participated in this qualitative study. Although students experienced many challenges resulting from concurrent employment and full-time studies, they also experienced significant learning in their various employment positions while enrolled in the hospitality and tourism management undergraduate degree. All students viewed paid employment experiences as a valuable element in their educational journey, worthy of receiving academic credit.