Western Hospitality Institute started in 1988 as a practical (skills) training institution, facilitating students through competency based education and training. The institution’s mandate was to provide training in the discipline areas of hospitality and tourism. As a non-government institution, WHI struggled to have its programmes recognized at the local level, as most of the students who atended WHI at the time did not have the relevant qualifications required to pursue studies in the local government-aided tertiary institutions. WHI sought and acquired articulation agreements with accredited institutions of higher education in the USA and Canada, where students, upon successful completion of their studies at WHI could transfer credits into these institutions and pursue advanced levels of study. The model designed at WHI was called, “The academic bridge building process” and provided opportunities abroad and conversely within the local institution. Students could follow the same process to access degree programmes, conditional to achievement of their occupational certification with a grade of “B” or higher. WHI later sought and atained accreditation through the University Council of Jamaica (UCJ) which resulted in the institution changing some of its acceptance requirements.