2008 Woodie Awards
Teaching Theme Park Management in the Classroom
Rochelle Siegel
Issue date: 11/13/06 Section: News
Students who are interested in the business of theme parks or want to know more on how to manage guests can now take courses at the University of Central Florida, which offers theme park and attraction management courses. The University of Central Florida is in fact the only school in the United States that offers courses such as these.
Professors at the University of Central Florida have taken sabbaticals to Disney World in order to gain research for the articles they later wrote. Theme park management is a quick growing study field. Many of the scholarly articles written dealt with managing lines.
It is a fact that if people are standing in line they are not spending money, and theme parks are in business to make money. There seems to be an actual science to moving people through the lines and with experience at Disney a professor can easily relay the information to students.
Not only do students in these classes learn about managing lines but they also learn the different jargons used in the theme park world. When a person says working in front of the "house" they mean working in the front of the amusement park. Delivering a spiel means to deliver a scripted speech. Guests in RV's are those guests in ride vehicles. And DAK stands for Disney's Animal Kingdom, whereas IOA stands for Universal's Islands of Adventure.
Students are also given a challenge: they must come up with a mission statement for the attraction they will design for their final project.
Orlando is the best place for this program to be considering it is the tourism capital. Theme-park industry executives have helped create the curriculum at the University of Central Florida. Therefore, students will not get too much uncertainty when it comes to the theme park industry itself.
The end of the term calls for an examination, but this examination is much different than the average college exam. Students are expected to be able to explain how fireworks are used as a form of entertainment and how to accommodate celebrity guests.
Students also have the opportunity to get hands on in making their own theme park using the computer game Roller Coaster Tycoon. With this game they are able to learn about the different aspects that are needed to successfully run a theme park, such as scheduling employee, marketing, technology, and how to have guests return to the park.
The good thing about being part of this program at the University of Central Florida is that while in the program students intern and work at the parks which gives them more opportunities in the theme park business after graduation.
Professors at the University of Central Florida have taken sabbaticals to Disney World in order to gain research for the articles they later wrote. Theme park management is a quick growing study field. Many of the scholarly articles written dealt with managing lines.
It is a fact that if people are standing in line they are not spending money, and theme parks are in business to make money. There seems to be an actual science to moving people through the lines and with experience at Disney a professor can easily relay the information to students.
Not only do students in these classes learn about managing lines but they also learn the different jargons used in the theme park world. When a person says working in front of the "house" they mean working in the front of the amusement park. Delivering a spiel means to deliver a scripted speech. Guests in RV's are those guests in ride vehicles. And DAK stands for Disney's Animal Kingdom, whereas IOA stands for Universal's Islands of Adventure.
Students are also given a challenge: they must come up with a mission statement for the attraction they will design for their final project.
Orlando is the best place for this program to be considering it is the tourism capital. Theme-park industry executives have helped create the curriculum at the University of Central Florida. Therefore, students will not get too much uncertainty when it comes to the theme park industry itself.
The end of the term calls for an examination, but this examination is much different than the average college exam. Students are expected to be able to explain how fireworks are used as a form of entertainment and how to accommodate celebrity guests.
Students also have the opportunity to get hands on in making their own theme park using the computer game Roller Coaster Tycoon. With this game they are able to learn about the different aspects that are needed to successfully run a theme park, such as scheduling employee, marketing, technology, and how to have guests return to the park.
The good thing about being part of this program at the University of Central Florida is that while in the program students intern and work at the parks which gives them more opportunities in the theme park business after graduation.
Viewing Comments 1 - 1 of 1
Manas
posted 4/01/08 @ 12:28 PM EST
It's good tht U.C.F has introduced course as we kno tht there are rarely any institute tht provide proper guidance to students who want to join this industry. (Continued…)
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