SDSU's Meeting and Event Planning Certificate Program Prepares Students for Profitable Industry

San Diego has risen to No. 4 in the nation as a destination for meetings and trade shows, in an annual list compiled by Cvent, a technology firm used worldwide by meeting planners for booking conventions.

To prepare students for occupations in this booming industry – which is projected to have a 33.2% increase between now and 2022 according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics – San Diego State University’s College of Extended Studies offers a Professional Certificate in Meeting and Event Planning program.

Now in its 25th year, the popular and ever-evolving program offers students – whether they’re new to the industry or seasoned professionals – the opportunity to expand their knowledge and skills, and prepare for the MPI and ISES exams.

Graduate Leah Sheffield, now the program manager at a national-brand destination management company, credits her SDSU instructors for helping her obtain such a prestigious occupation.

“They know the local industry inside-out,” she said. “That helped me to understand that San Diego is one of the largest hubs in the world for both the private and corporate event sectors.”
Students must complete 10 courses (seven core and three electives) within two years to earn a certificate. The program can be completed in as little as six months.

The demand for event planners continues to increase in San Diego, due to its year-round schedule of conventions, trade shows, and conferences; along with events being staged by local businesses, restaurants, and hotels. According to the San Diego Tourism Authority, more than 527,000 people attended conventions and trade shows at the San Diego Convention Center in 2014, bringing in approximately $593 million in direct spending by convention delegates.

Currently, the convention center is hosting 7,000 delegates at a five-day medical conference through Sept. 21, debuting major advances in drug development and infectious disease research. Such events involve numerous meeting and event planners.

SDSU program graduate Johnny Nguyen, director of events, Qualcomm Institute at UC San Diego, said: “I really like that all the professors are still working in the event industry. This means they have actual experience and great real-life examples of great events and events that went wrong.”

SDSU is offering two courses in its Meeting and Event planning program that start later this month:

Site Selection, Negotiation and Legal Issues, Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday, Sept. 21-24, 6-9 pm; and Saturday, Sept. 26, 8 am-12 pm.
Food and Beverage Planning, Tuesday, Sept. 29 and Thursday, Oct. 1, 6-9 pm.

For more information, visit neverstoplearning.net/meeting, email cesmep@sdsu.edu, or call (619) 594-1138.