Kick start your exciting career in events planning with a unique Events Management degree from the University of Essex. Graduates of this programme could go onto careers working on weddings, sporting events, festivals, fashion shows, corporate events or conferences.

With a student experience unlike any other, it may come as no surprise that 95% of Edge Hotel School graduates are in employment or further education (Graduate Outcomes Survey 2024)

You will develop your industry knowledge and professional skills by working within Wivenhoe House, a luxury hotel, alongside your studies. You will gain experience in the different departments of the hotel including the kitchen, front office, restaurant as well as an extended period of time in the events department. These shifts may involve some late finishes on occasion, as well as weekend work, so that you get to see all aspects of the different events the hotel offers such as weddings, meetings, tribute acts, baby showers, conferences and more.

As well as spending time in the luxury Wivenhoe House Hotel, some of our high performing Events Management students have in past had the unforgettable opportunity to work at big name events and venues like the BRIT awards, the O2 arena and the Royal Ascot.

The Events Management degree prepares you for the fast-paced world of planning and managing events. You will learn alongside lecturers who have worked on worldwide and high profile events while gaining experience of real weddings, conferences and private functions alongside your studies. Throughout the course you will study topics including:

Event planning and logistics

Winning an event contract and proposal design

Business innovation

Contemporary management practice

Cultural events, festivals and weddings

Human resources management

Digital marketing

The Edge Hotel School experience is unlike any other student experience. Based on the University of Essex Colchester campus, not only will you graduate from a leading university you will also develop your industry knowledge and professional skills by working within it.

Final Year Entry

For those who already have a level 5 qualification or sufficient experience within the industry, there is also the option to join us for just the final year of the BA degree. Joining the existing cohort of final year Events Management students, you will have a few weeks of placement in the Wivenhoe House hotel, with the majority of the year will be spent on the live consultancy project, working on preparing and delivering an event for one of our industry partners.

Study abroad

Your education extends beyond the university campus. We support you in expanding your education through offering the opportunity to spend a year or a term studying abroad at one of our partner universities. The four-year version of our degree allows you to spend the third year studying or employed on a placement abroad, while otherwise remaining identical to the three-year course.

Placement year

Students that wish to broaden their experience in different types of events will also be given the option to swap a rotation in our Events and Conference team for an external work experience during Level 5 (Year 2) of this course. This experience will last 4 weeks, and needs to be instigated by you. The Placement team at the University of Essex and staff of the Edge Hotel School will assist you in sourcing opportunities as well as improving your interview and CV-writing skills. This external work experience will be assessed in the same as your rotations in Wivenhoe House hotel and is a chance for you to experience a broad set of events that you might wish to pursue within your career.