Gogebic Community College in Michigan Trains Future Industry Leaders Through Ski Area Management Program

The ski industry offers numerous jobs and professions and is constantly looking to add qualified members to its staff. From lifties, food, and beverage employees, to management positions, ski resorts have an abundance of positions for people searching for employment. Finding the right job or profession for a particular person at a ski resort can be difficult, but with the proper training and education, working at a ski resort can become a reality. For those looking for an edge and advantage in the ski industry, Gogebic Community College (GCC) offers a program specifically designed for the ski industry.

GCC offers a nationally acclaimed two-year Ski Area Management program at the Mt. Zion Recreational Complex. It is located on campus and provides downhill skiing, cross-country skiing, snowboarding, and a classroom where students get hands-on training. Students learn everything from grooming, snowmaking, maintenance, resort design, lift calculations, lift maintenance, retail, rental tuning, lessons, and much more. Students who complete the program graduate with an associate’s degree in Applied Management. GCC is located in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, with the main campus in Ironwood and its Copper Country Center in Houghton, Michigan. 

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Some concerns for students going to college are the tuition costs and whether they will get a job in their field after graduating. According to Josh Bremer, the Ski Area Management Assistant Director, that is not going to be a problem at all. “We have 100% placement after students graduate the program,” he said. Bremer graduated from the program in 2017 before becoming Assistant Director, and credits the program for where he is now. “I came here right after high school, did it, and I just, yeah, loved it, I cannot think of a place or community I would rather be in,” Bremer said.

In their second year, students do paid internships at ski resorts in the specific niche they want to learn in. According to Bremer, this internship provides the platform for the students to not only understand the ski industry but also to make contacts for future employment. Attending a community college is known for having lower tuition rates than other colleges or universities. GCC’s tuition prices range from just over $7,000 a year to $10,000 for out-of-state students. This makes the two-year program very cost-effective, especially considering students will be participating in a paid internship in their second year. According to Bremer, students looking to move directly into a supervisor or management role in the ski industry after graduating is a very reasonable expectation.

If students are looking to further their education and get a Bachelor’s degree, GCC has an agreement with Northern Michigan University (NMU), which allows all credits from the SAM Program to transfer, and students can complete their Bachelor’s degree. GCC also offers a summer lift class that is open to anyone in the industry. This class runs for three weeks and has three different levels of certifications, each level is a three-week course.

A big advantage students will have attending GCC’s SAM Program is the hands-on training and the small class size. There are no large lecture classes filled with hundreds of students in this program. Instead, students will work in small groups with the instructors, receiving immediate feedback and one-on-one teaching that larger colleges cannot offer. GCC has its mountain manager, the director, and the assistant director, which provides an excellent student-to-teacher ratio. This gives the program that special human touch of working with the faculty and students. “It’s really that hands-on learning, students get one-on-one time with instructors,” Bremer said.

GCC students are also taught area layout, lift installations, cost analysis, snow-making operations, and how to write a 30-page business proposal for the industry. The program balances the hands-on training with the management courses to ensure the students’ success after graduating. “We swap around positions pretty much every day, so everybody gets to learns lifts, ropes, lessons, rentals, tickets, sales systems, and more,” Bremer said.

Another bonus of attending Gogebic Community College is getting access to their very own ski hill. GCC students who are carrying a minimum of six credit hours ski and snowboard for free with their photo student ID card. The ski hill offers:

• 10 slopes and trails
• Snow tubing park
• Cross-country ski trail
• Summer and fall disc golf course
• Quality ski and snowboard rentals
• Snack bar
• 300′ vertical
• Power tilled slope
• Downhill & snowboard racing programs for kids
• Group rates
• Senior citizens age 62+ ski or snowboard free

For people looking to get into the ski industry, this program could be the pathway to making that a reality. According to Bremer, the Ski Area Management Program at GCC is one of the nation’s most comprehensive training programs for individuals interested in pursuing a career in the snow sport industry. Technical and academic study is combined with a practical internship, which is conducted at major resorts throughout the world. “This is a great program and it’s an excellent opportunity for students wanting to get into a supervisor, low management role in the ski industry,” Bremer said.

For more information, visit Gogebic Community College’s website.