As part of the Fooder project, the University of Modena and Reggio Emilia offers a Professional Master’s Program in Food & Wine Tourism, providing advanced training opportunities in both the Food and Wine and the Tourism sectors.
Deadline to apply is November 27, 2025, at 1:00 p.m.
2025/11/27 13:00:00
Interviews: 5 December 2025 – The time will be communicated to admitted students via email
PROGRAM TYPE
I level Master (60 ECTS)
LANGUAGE
English
PART-TIME
Thursday, Friday and Saturday
COST
4.016€ thanks to the Emilia-Romagna Region’s contribution
TEACHING
Hybrid learning: Live-streamed lectures, in-person experiential activities
STUDY TRIP
6 days
Professional Master's Program in Food & Wine Tourism
As part of the FOOD-ER project, the University of Modena and Reggio Emilia offers a Master’s Program in Food & Wine Tourism, providing advanced training opportunities in both the Food and Wine and the Tourism sectors.
The educational program, conducted entirely in English, aims to train new professionals—focusing on guiding recent graduates into the Food and Wine and Tourism sectors—and to enhance the professionalism of those already engaged in the Food and Wine and Tourism industries, who wish to develop new knowledge and skills to create experiential and co-creative tourism packages.
Classes will be streamed via a dedicated platform and starting from January 2026, and will be held on Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays. According to a schedule that will be shared, some visits, and experiences at partner companies will be held in person and will be concentrated in one week, approximately at the end of the online teaching activity. A 6-day educational trip is also planned.
Moreover, students will be able to start an internship period at affiliated partner companies and organizations from April to December 2026. Students already working in the food or tourism sectors can develop a project work within their own company or organization.
The class size will be limited to a maximum of 20 students, who will be selected based on their CVs and other evidence of formal qualifications, followed by an interview with the selection committee and evaluation of English proficiency. The Call for application (available at this link) provides all the necessary information for interested students.
The Food and Wine Tourism Master’s Program is open to applicants holding at least a Bachelor’s degree. Candidates who do not possess the required academic qualification by the application deadline may be conditionally admitted, provided they obtain the necessary qualification by the enrollment deadline.
Tourism is a major economic driver for Italy, employing more than 1.5 million people. In the past two years, the tourism sector in Emilia-Romagna, the heart of Italy’s food and wine culture, has experienced significant growth. This region has welcomed nearly 5 million tourists, including 3.6 million Italians and 1.2 million foreigners. Holidays and Food & Wine experiences have become increasingly popular, with Italy experiencing a 37% increase in food & wine tourism since 2016, welcoming 9.6 million tourists in 2023. As a result, there is a growing need for qualified academic training in Food & Wine tourism, and the Professional Master Programme in Food & Wine Tourism addresses this need.
The Food and Wine Tourism Master’s Program aims to train professionals in designing and managing experiential tourism products related to Food & Wine. The various products designed will have peculiar features to promote tourism and will be used in different types of organizations, such as:
- Tour Operators and Travel Agencies;
- Agri-food consortia and Food & Wine associations that promote the territory and its typical products;
- Agri-food and Food & Wine companies interested in creating immersive experiences around local and national gastronomic and oenological processes and products;
- Institutions and other local bodies responsible for developing policies and promotional activities for territorial tourism;
- Companies that promote tourism and provide support for tourist activities.
Once you complete the Master’s Program in Food & Wine Tourism, you will acquire the necessary skills to:
- Conduct analyses of both territorial and corporate contexts to understand the conditions, opportunities, and potential of the tourism sector in a specific area and business environment.
- Identify and evaluate the most effective tourism products based on the context, resources, and market to implement the most suitable options.
- Create compelling tourist experiences by analyzing local conditions and using specific indicators.
- Manage all aspects of demand, distribution, logistics, and personnel related to the tourism activities offered.
- Collaborate with public and private stakeholders to work together from a network perspective in coordination with the local chain.
- Establish and oversee communication using suitable methods and tools.
- Implement the most effective operational strategy by utilizing modern technologies to support strategic planning and implement careful management control of tourist activities.
Students will acquire skills and knowledge to analyze and evaluate new tourism activities or revise existing ones, focusing on the food and wine industry.
- Theoretical and methodological knowledge and implementation skills for analyzing territorial and corporate contexts;
- Understanding the changing patterns of tourist demand across various segments and the ability to select the best options based on specific conditions;
- Ability to apply concepts and best practices for designing appropriate tourism products;
- Knowledge and expertise in applying methods and tools for planning and managing tourist flows and integrating them at the territorial level;
- Ability to organize personnel involved in the tourism sector;
- Proficiency in essential skills such as teamwork, communication, learning, and English language usage;
- Ability to utilize customer analysis tools and methods, and establish best practices for communication to foster enduring customer relationships;
- Understanding and applying management control tools and interpretative methods.
The Master’s program (for a total of 60 ECTS) is structured as follows:
- 321 hours of lectures
- of which 125 hours of experiential and practical activities
- 6 days of study trip
- 400 hours of internship or project work
- 2 ECTS for the final test
