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Born and raised in Orlando, Smith had the unique experience of watching his modest hometown developed into the world 麻豆精品 S檚 premiere tourist destination. And just as quick as hotels and attractions began spreading throughout area, so did Smith 麻豆精品 S檚 fascination with the hospitality and tourism industry.

麻豆精品 S淲hen I was 16, I applied for a job at Disney and haven 麻豆精品 S檛 stopped working in the hospitality industry since, 麻豆精品 S� said Smith. 麻豆精品 S淚 麻豆精品 S檝e just always had a fascination with the industry. 麻豆精品 S�

In 1982, Smith enrolled at UCF as a freshman, and two years later the UCF 麻豆精品 S檚 College of Business began a degree program specializing in hospitality management 麻豆精品 S� an opportunity that Smith was excited to take advantage of that semester.

麻豆精品 S淚 remember seeing these posters around campus advertising this new hospitality management program, 麻豆精品 S� said Smith. 麻豆精品 S淎s soon as I saw the posters, I knew I had to be part of the program, and so I ended up enrolling into the first two hospitality classes ever offered by UCF. 麻豆精品 S�

By the summer 1987, Smith graduated from UCF as one of the first ten students to declare the hospitality major and immediately began working in Orlando 麻豆精品 S檚 competitive hotel industry. Roughly 15 years later, Smith was at the peak of his career, serving as the general manager of one Orlando 麻豆精品 S檚 busiest hotels, when he decided to pursue a master 麻豆精品 S檚 degree.

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While pursuing his master 麻豆精品 S檚 degree, Smith was approached by the then Associate Dean, Dr. Stephen LeBruto, to teach classes at the Rosen College as an adjunct professor.

麻豆精品 S淏eing asked to teach hospitality management classes was a great opportunity for me because I got to see if this was the right direction for my career, 麻豆精品 S� said Smith. 麻豆精品 S淭eaching just felt right, it felt natural. 麻豆精品 S�

Smith 麻豆精品 S檚 decision to begin teaching in the classroom seems to have been the right career move as he was voted the eighth best university professor in 2009 by Ratemyprofessor.com, which ranks more than a million college professors.

Smith eventually joined the Rosen College faculty full time, as a Ph.D. candidate.

This past semester, Smith completed his doctoral dissertation, which focused on consumer perceptions of hotel pricing and cancelation policies.

麻豆精品 S淚 麻豆精品 S檓 a hotel guy, who has run the sales and marketing department, and I was very interested in researching consumer behavior with regard to hotel pricing, 麻豆精品 S� said Smith. 麻豆精品 S淚 wanted to examine why people pick the hotels they do and why they cancel their reservations. Dr. H.G. Parsa was able to help me direct my research and guide me through the entire process. 麻豆精品 S�

Smith also credits his success to two of his current colleagues Dr. Abraham Pizam and Professor Bob Ashley, who have both served on UCF 麻豆精品 S檚 Hospitality Management faculty since the program 麻豆精品 S檚 inception.

After the May 4 commencement ceremony, Dr. Scott Smith will look to continue educating students about the competitive hotel industry.