Portrait

Today’s Swiss School of Tourism and Hospitality Ltd. (formerly known as SSH Swiss School of Hotel and Tourism Management Chur), is now known as SSTH. The school started operational activities in 1967 as a hotel secretarial school, although the company itself was in fact founded by Dr. Markus Christoffel in 1966.

Under the company name of SSTH we offer education in five different departments at different educational levels (vocational training, higher professional education, further education, degree level). The SSTH campus comprises two locations, in Chur and nearby in Passugg, and the focus for most SSTH programs is on hospitality and gastronomy. The portfolio of SSTH is completed with the department of consulting services for hotel and school projects.

SSTH education programs are regularly controlled against ISO Norm 9001, Eduqua and
3Q to guarantee up to date quality standards in all departments of the company.

Swiss School of Tourism and Hospitality is a limited company registered in the commercial register in Switzerland. The registered business address location of the company is Chur.

Overview of Schools and Departments

Vocational Training

The GFG Gastgewerbliche Fachschule Graubünden was launched in 1993, as a pilot project. The aim was to offer students an attractive professional qualification, aimed at employment in middle and small companies, as an alternative to the offers of national and international hotel associations. On 1st January 1996 GFG was officially accredited by the canton of Graubünden. Since 2003, in addition to the cantonal certificate, students on this program can achieve a Swiss diploma as Restaurationsfachfrau/-fachmann.
The language of instruction on the program is German.

Handels- und Touristikschule
In 1979 a new commercial and tourism program was established. Successful students are awarded a Swiss diploma, and the commercial diploma of the Association of
Swiss Commercial Schools. Since 2004 the H+T Handels- and Touristikschule has
also offered a tailor-made commercial program for junior athletes under training.

Colleges of Applied Science

Hotel- und Touristikfachschule

By 1969 a new program had been introduced for students who had achieved a higher level of entry qualifications. One year later international students were accepted onto
the hotel management program. The diploma of the Hotel- and Touristikfachschule
was recognised in 1989 as a cantonal diploma, giving graduates the legal right to run a gastronomy company. In 1990 the Federal Office for Professional Education and Technology OPET accredited this program, officially giving recognition as a college of applied science. Graduates of the HTF Hotel- und Touristikfachschule receive the protected title “dipl. Hôtelier-Restaurateur HF” / “dipl. Hôtelière-Restauratrice HF”.
Autumn 2009 saw the HTF become the first Swiss Hotel Management School in Switzerland teaching according the new federal regulations regarding the core curriculum and qualification procedures.

In 1989 SSTH established a short-course further education program for hotel management students from Eastern-Europe, in co-operation with the Federal
Department of Foreign Affairs. This course still runs successfully, and continues to
bring 100 hotel management students each year to SSTH from Slovakia, the Czech Republic, Hungary, and the Ukraine. These students undertake a practical experience training period in Switzerland, following an introductory two week course at SSTH.

Swiss School of Hotel and Tourism Management

In 1970 the first international students were accepted onto the hotel management program, and at first the students followed the program in the German language. Subsequently, and continuing to date, the program has been offered in the English language, following the same three-year curriculum as that in the German language division.
Since 2004 SSTH has successfully offered a Postgraduate Diploma, for students with
a university degree from another discipline. A Language Preparation Course (mainly English, but with some elementary German included) broadened the educational offer
in 2006. Since 2008 a Bachelor of Arts degree has been offered on the campus in Passugg, in co-operation with Queen Margaret University in Edinburgh, Scotland. This university program is open to students from both the English and German division, and is fully taught in English. Also, for more than 15 years, an exchange program has been in place with the University of Delaware in the United States of America. Every year students from the University of Delaware spend a semester of their degree program at SSTH in Passugg, while students from SSTH have the opportunity to complete their study program, with one extra year, to earn a Bachelor Degree in the USA.

Further Education

SSTH took over the activities of the KSG Kaderschule Graubünden starting from March 2004. KSG is an evening management school for employed people, and offers commercial and technical programs at the campus location in Chur. In 2009 a new program specializing in the career needs of women was included in the portfolio of the KSG.

Consulting

Consultancy activities have been undertaken by SSTH for many years, and a small separate consultancy company was integrated into SSTH to facilitate this department
in 2004. In regards to the field of SSTH, the consulting services focus is on hospitality, gastronomy, tourism, education and ecology.

School Hotel