Higher Diploma in Business & Hospitality Management · Year 2
The year hotel school turns commercial.
Revenue management, front office operations, digital marketing and strategic HR — the modules that move you from working in a department to running one. Then your second six-month paid placement.
Where this year sits
Year two of three. Half of it paid.
Year 2 follows the same rhythm as the rest of the path: Semester 3 is academic study on campus, Semester 4 is a six-month internship placement. The academic year carries 60 ECTS, and the placement is your second paid internship — you arrive at it with a year of Swiss hotel school and one placement already behind you, which is usually what changes the kind of role you are offered.
It sits between the Diploma in Year 1 and the BA in Year 3, the dual degree awarded with Robert Gordon University, Aberdeen (UK). Each year is a full exit award, so no year is wasted if your plans change. Across the three years the path comes to 180 ECTS, equivalent to 360 UK credits.
How the internship model works
Year by year
Three years, three awards
| Year | Academic semester | Second semester | Exit award | Fee |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year 1 | Semester 1 on campus · 60 ECTS | Six-month paid internship | Diploma in Business & Hospitality Management | CHF 39'700 |
| Year 2 | Semester 3 on campus · 60 ECTS | Semester 4 — your second paid internship | Higher Diploma in Business & Hospitality Management | CHF 40'700 |
| Year 3 | Semester 5 on campus · 60 ECTS | Six-month paid internship | BA — BHMS + Robert Gordon University, Aberdeen (UK) | CHF 41'700 |
2027 rates from the official BHMS fees flyer. The application fee applies in Years 2 and 3 only for transfer students.
Semester 3 · on campus
What Year 2 covers
The commercial and managerial half of hotel school. Year 1 teaches you how a hotel runs; Year 2 teaches you how it makes money and how it is led — pricing and distribution, the front office as a system, the marketing that fills the rooms, and the HR strategy behind the people who deliver it.
Hotel chains in Switzerland now hold 35.6% of all hotel rooms, yet most Swiss hotels still don't belong to a chain: here's what the 2026 figures mean for your second year.
| Module | Semester |
|---|---|
| Language Elective | Semester 3 — academic |
| Organisational Behaviour Management | Semester 3 — academic |
| Digital Marketing | Semester 3 — academic |
| Front Office Operations Management | Semester 3 — academic |
| Revenue Management | Semester 3 — academic |
| Strategic Human Resource Management | Semester 3 — academic |
| Hospitality Interpersonal Skills | Semester 3 — academic |
| Research Project | Semester 3 — academic |
| Industry placement — your second paid internship | Semester 4 — six months |
The academic year carries 60 ECTS in total. BHMS does not publish a per-module credit or contact-hour breakdown for this year, so none is invented here — the detailed course programme is confirmed at application, and elective courses may substitute or amend the list.
Semester 4 · six months
Your second placement, and what it really pays
BHMS publishes CHF 2'390 per month gross for internship placements in Switzerland. That figure is before deductions for room, board and social insurance, so treat it as the headline rather than what lands in your account.
CHF 2'390 gross · roughly CHF 1'500 net a month where the employer provides accommodation and meals, CHF 800–1,000 in a big city without
Those net figures come from the BHMS FAQ, and they are the honest version. BHMS also notes that placements inside Switzerland depend very much on your German, French or Italian language skills — which is exactly why a Language Elective sits in the Year 2 curriculum. Placements are also available worldwide.
Placements in detail
Award & admission
What you graduate with
Your award
Higher Diploma in Business & Hospitality Management, awarded on completion of Year 2 — the academic semester and the six-month placement together.
The academic year carries 60 ECTS. Continue into Year 3 and the path totals 180 ECTS, equivalent to 360 UK credits, finishing with the dual degree awarded with Robert Gordon University, Aberdeen (UK).
Entry requirements
- Normally completion of Year 1 — the Diploma in Business & Hospitality Management — or an equivalent qualification, assessed case by case
- Minimum age 17 and a high school diploma or equivalent apply to the path as a whole
- English at IELTS level or equivalent — confirm the exact level with admissions: the BA programme page states 5.5, while the central Requirements & Intakes page and the FAQ state 5.0
Intakes: 16 November 2026 · 22 February 2027 · 16 August 2027
Visa processing takes roughly 8–12 weeks for non-EU applicants and 4–6 weeks for EU applicants — count backwards from your intake date.
Fees
CHF 40'700 for Year 2. Everything in.
The year is invoiced as one all-inclusive figure — tuition CHF 30'800 plus operating costs CHF 2'750, living expenses CHF 6'150 and the CHF 1'000 application fee — covering:
- Tuition and career services, including internship and job placement support
- Accommodation in a 2-bed shared apartment on the LakeSide Campus (no kitchen)
- Meals — three a day during the week, two at weekends, on holidays and during term breaks
- Health insurance covering accident, illness and medical treatment
- First airport pickup
- Visa and administrative support
Not included: about CHF 500 a month for personal expenses — laundry, mobile, local travel. The application fee applies in Years 2 and 3 only for transfer students. Swiss citizens and C-permit holders receive a 30% tuition reduction on English-taught programmes of at least 12 months.
Full fees, discounts & the earnings offset
After Year 2
Finish with the dual degree
Year 3 ends with the BA in Hotel & Hospitality Management, awarded jointly by BHMS and Robert Gordon University, Aberdeen (UK) — CHF 41'700 all-inclusive, one more academic semester and one more six-month paid placement. Coming the other way? Year 1 is the Diploma at CHF 39'700.
The final year in detail
Questions
Straight answers
What exactly is the Higher Diploma, and where does it sit?
The Higher Diploma in Business & Hospitality Management is the exit award for Year 2 of the three-year BA path at BHMS. Semester 3 is academic study on campus, Semester 4 is a six-month internship placement, and the academic year carries 60 ECTS. It is a full award in its own right, so the year stands on its own if your plans change — and it feeds straight into Year 3 if they do not.
What do I actually study in Year 2?
Eight modules: Language Elective, Organisational Behaviour Management, Digital Marketing, Front Office Operations Management, Revenue Management, Strategic Human Resource Management, Hospitality Interpersonal Skills and a Research Project. This is the commercial and managerial half of hotel school — pricing, distribution, front-of-house systems and people management rather than departmental routine.
What does Year 2 cost, and what is included?
Year 2 is CHF 40'700 all-inclusive — tuition CHF 30'800 plus operating costs CHF 2'750, living expenses CHF 6'150 and the CHF 1'000 application fee. That covers tuition and career services, accommodation in a 2-bed shared apartment on the LakeSide Campus (no kitchen), meals, health insurance, your first airport pickup and visa support. Budget about CHF 500 a month on top for personal expenses. The application fee applies in Years 2 and 3 only for transfer students.
Is the second internship paid, and what do I keep?
BHMS publishes CHF 2'390 per month gross for placements in Switzerland, before deductions for room, board and social insurance. The BHMS FAQ is candid about the net reality: around CHF 1'500 a month where the employer provides accommodation and meals, and around CHF 800–1,000 a month in a big city where it does not. Placements are also available worldwide.
Do I need German, French or Italian?
Not to study — teaching is in English. But BHMS notes that placements inside Switzerland depend very much on your German, French or Italian language skills, which is one reason a Language Elective sits in the Year 2 curriculum. Placements are also available worldwide if a Swiss placement is not the right fit.
How do I get into Year 2 if I did Year 1 somewhere else?
Entry is normally completion of Year 1 — the Diploma in Business & Hospitality Management — or an equivalent qualification, assessed case by case. Minimum age 17 and a high school diploma or equivalent apply to the path as a whole. On English, BHMS publishes two different figures: the BA programme page states IELTS 5.5 while the central Requirements & Intakes page and the FAQ state IELTS 5.0, so confirm the level for your intake with admissions before you book a test.
Watch
See it for yourself
Next step
Three intakes a year. A degree that pays you back before you graduate.
Next intakes: 16 November 2026 · 22 February 2027 · 16 August 2027 · Lucerne, Switzerland
Every academic semester is followed by a six-month paid internship — CHF 2'390/month gross in Switzerland, three times across the bachelor. How the internship model works →