Course Syllabus
Course Prefix / Number: HFT3271
Course Title: Spa Management
Course Credit Hours: 3 credits
Instructor Name and Contact Information: Xuan Tran, Ph.D., M.B.A., C.H.A.; Email: xtran@uwf.edu;
Phone: 850-474-2599
Prerequisites or Co-Requisites: None
Course Description
This course is delivered completely online (except that those who want to take a certification test from
American Hotel Lodging Association must be in Room 209, Building 72, Main Campus UWF at 10:00am
August 2, 2013. If you do not want this certification, you can take the final exam online). You must have
consistent access to the Internet. This course is for those who are interested in examining today’s spa
industry, spa careers, spa director’s perspective, quality of spa experience, industry trend and future
directions. The purpose of this course is to provide students with basic information about how to best serve
people in spa. Students will learn best practices that have proven successful in spa industry.
Course Goals
. To prepare students to understand general concepts of spa and social trends of spa development.
. To describe techniques to create memorable experiences including massage and therapies.
. To describe controlling operating expenses and revenue in spa business.
. To explore the relationships of spa director and guests as well as employees, and summarize theories of
spa management.
Program Goals
The MacQueen Hospitality program of the University of West Florida is accreditted by the Accreditation
Commission for Programs in Hospitality Administration by the Council on Hotel, Restaurant, Institutional
Education (CHRIE) and supported by the Innisfree hotels led by the President and CEO Julian McQueen.
The Online Spa Management course (HFT3271) is one of the courses of this program with 3 credits fitting
into the MacQueen Hospitality Program.
Topics
There are four topics for the course goals. The first topic spans 1.5 weeks of instruction. The second topic
spans 2 weeks of instruction. The third topic spans 1 week of instruction. The last topic spans 1.5 weeks of
instruction.
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o
o
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Topic 1: Spa concepts including philosophy and trends.
Topic 2: Techniques increasing quality of spa.
Topic 3: Techniques controlling expenses and increase revenue in spa.
Topic 4: Management theories in spa.
Student Learning Outcomes (SLOs)
Upon completion of this course, you will be able to:
1. Describe the philosophy of spa, spa-goers, and domains of spa. Identify the emotional responses that spa
professionals and guests have to spas.
2. Describe the importance of water and water rituals. Discuss how religious and political issues affected the
development and popularity of spas in Europe. Identify the people involved in the development of medical
spas in the eighteenth, nineteenth, and early twentieth centuries.
3. Trace the early development of contemporary spa. Describe the transitions that spas made during the
early years of the contemporary period. Identify how spa culture has influenced society, particularly service,
cuisine, medicine, fitness, and hospitality.
4. Explain how key market and social trends affect the spa world, List emerging markets and trends that are
likely to affect the future of the spa world. and explain how developing a future orientation can help spa
professionals manage change and prepare for the future.
5. Explain how to achieve superior service by creating memorable experiences. List the realms of
experience and describe the importance of delivering on the service promise.
6. Describe current spa therapies, massage technique, concept of energy work and how it relates to Asian
massage styles. Identify some of the pioneers in mind-body fitness and movement education and explain
the purpose of various body treatments.
7. Describe various spa revenue centers, spa cost centers, indirect operating expenses and undistributed
operating expenses on financial statements.
8. Identify the advantages and disadvantages of a career in the spa industry. Identify important positions at
all levels of the spa industry and future career trends in the spa industry. Describe the types of
compensation and benefits offered in the spa industry.
9. Identify a spa director’s relationships with employees, guests, and owners/managers and describe typical
points of interaction that occur during a spa director’s day.
10. Outline the http://spamanagement.com/ of management theories and traditional management functions
and skills. Explain why ethical leadership is essential and the specific issues that affect a spa.
Texts / Materials
Required texts:
Spa - A Comprehensive Introduction by E. Johnson and B. Redman. Educational Institute - American Hotel
& Lodging Association. ISBN: 978-0-86612-323-5
Recommended MATERIALs:
In order to understand more best practices of the above 10 SLOs in spa reality, visit the following 10
Internet sites, respectively:
1.
2.
3.
http://spamanagement.com/
http://www.spafinder.com/spalifestyle/spa101/history.jsp
http://www.experienceispa.com/ISPAFoundation/index.cfm/ispafoundation/initiatives/scholarships
4. http://www.spafinder.com/trends2013.htm
5. http://spas.about.com/od/choosingaspa/a/goodspa.htm
6. http://nccam.nih.gov/
7. http://www.experienceispa.com/education-resources/publications-courses-studies/retailmanagement/
8. http://www.spajobs.com/
9. http://www.spas2b.com/
10. http://www2.spatrade.com/knowledge/idx/0/288/article
SCHEDULE
Week 1
June 26-29
Week 2
July 1-5
Philosophy of Spa
Chapter 1
A History of Spa and Spa Cultures
Chapter 2
Contemporary Spa
Chapter 3
Progress Test 1 (Chapter 1, 2, & 3) Online
Week 3
July 8-12
Trend Analysis: Possibilities and Predictions
Chapter 4
The Spa Service Experience
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Traditions, Treatments, and Terms
Progress Test 2 (4, 5, & 6) Online
Week 4
July 15-19
Financial Organization of Spas
Spa Careers, Vacations, and Professions
A Day in the Life of a Spa Director
Week 5
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
July 22-26
Leadership and Ethics
Chapter 10
Progress Test 3 (7, 8, & 9) Online
Week 6
July 29 –
Final Exam Online: Available at 10:00am
on August 2, 2013
August 2
Students who are interested in earning the
AHLA certificate must take the exam in class
using AHLA scantron at Building 72, Room
209 on Friday, August 2, 10:00am-12:00pm,
GRADING EVALUATION
There will be one final and two midterm exams to measure your overall knowledge about this course. In
addition, your understanding concepts in each chapter will be measured through a repeated multiple-choice
quiz and your ability to compare the concepts with their best practices in the Internet through discussing
with your classmates online. You can make up missed quizzes or exams and request to take an exam early.
1.
Final Examination (200 points)
The final exam is provided by the International SPA Association Foundation (ISPA Foundation) and the
American Hotel & Lodging Association (AHLA). The final exam consists of 100 multiple choice
questions. All exam questions are taken directly from the text. The final exam will account for 20% of the
final grade.
2.
Progress Tests (3 tests - 150 points each)
There will be 3 progress tests given during the course of the semester. These tests are designed to gauge
students’ knowledge and comprehension in learning the system of spa management. These tests comprise
of problems students have to solve or compute, including similar multiple choice questions on the final
exam. The progress tests will account for 36% of the final grade.
3.
E-Learning Quizzes (10 quizzes – 20 points each)
There will be 10 quizzes (each consisting of 10 randomly selected multiple-choice items). You have
2 opportunities to take the timed quiz (quiz time limit: approximately 30 minutes). Your highest score will be
the one recorded for the test. You will get extra credit for doing these quizzes. The Quizzes will account for
20% of the final grade.
4. Discussion (150 discussions – 15 points each discussion)
Students will be required to answer one question for each chapter discussion (5 points / chapter) and write
a commentary for two other classmates’ answers (10 points / chapter). This interaction will account for 15%
of the final grade.
Points Summary
Final Examination
Progress Tests (3)
E-Learning Quizzes (10)
Discussion (10)
150 points (15%)
200 points (20%)
450 points (45%)
200 points (20%)
----------------------------1000 points (100%)
Total
Letter grades will be assigned as follows:
93% or better
90% to 92%
A
A-
77% to 79%
73% to 76%
C+
C
87% to 89%
83% to 86%
80% to 82%
B+
B
B-
70% to 72%
60% to 69%
50% or less
CD
F
Minimum Technical Skills and Special Technology
Utilized by Students
This course is totally online. All instructional content and interaction takes place over the WWW. In
addition to baseline word processing skills and sending/receiving email with attachments, students will be
expected to search the internet and upload / download files. In addition, students may need one or more of
the following plug-ins:
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Adobe Acrobat Reader: http://www.adobe.com/products/acrobat/readstep2.html
PowerPoint Viewer: http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyID=048DC84014E1-467D-8DCA-19D2A8FD7485&displaylang=en
Windows Media Player: http://windows.microsoft.com/en-US/windows/download-windowsmedia-player
QuickTime Player: http://www.apple.com/quicktime/download/
Real Player: http://www.real.com/realplayer/search
Adobe Flash Player: http://get.adobe.com/flashplayer/
Configure your computer for Online Room (Elluminate Live!)
sessions: http://support.blackboardcollaborate.com/ics/support/default.asp?deptID=8336&task=kn
owledge&questionID=1279
Expectations for Academic Conduct / Plagiarism Policy
Academic Conduct Policy: (Web Site) | (PDF Format) |
UWF Library Online Tutorial: Plagiarism |
Assistance for Students with Disabilities
The University of West Florida supports an inclusive learning environment for all students. If there are
aspects of the instruction or design of this course that hinder your full participation, such as time-limited
exams, inaccessible web content, or the use of non-captioned videos and podcasts, reasonable
accommodations can be arranged. Prior to receiving accommodations, you must register with the Student
Disability Resource Center (SDRC) at http://uwf.edu/sdrc/internal/. Appropriate academic accommodations
will be determined based on the documented needs of the individual. For information regarding the
registration process, e-mail sdrc@uwf.edu or call 850.474.2387.
Accessibility Resources
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Follow this link for information on accessibility features in eLearning.
Follow this link for information on accessibility features in UWF's Learning Management System
(LMS), Desire2Learn.
Weather Emergency Information
In the case of severe weather or other emergency, the campus might be closed and classes cancelled.
Official closures and delays are announced on the UWF website and broadcast on WUWF-FM.
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WUWF-FM (88.1MHz) is the official information source for the university. Any pertinent
information regarding closings, cancellations, and the re-opening of campus will be broadcast.
In the event that hurricane preparation procedures are initiated, the UWF Home Web Page and
Argus will both provide current information regarding hurricane preparation procedures, the status
of classes and the closing of the university.
Emergency plans for the University of West Florida related to weather or other emergencies are available
on the following UWF web pages:
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Information about hurricane preparedness plans is available on the UWF web site:
http://uwfemergency.org/hurricaneprep.cfm
Information about other emergency procedures is available on the UWF web site:
http://uwfemergency.org/