Welcomgroup Graduate School of Hotel Administration was established as a unit of the Dr TMA Pai Foundation. In 1987, the foundation joined hands with Welcomgroup, the hotel division of ITC Ltd. to set up the WGSHA institute.

The training and development program of WGSHA is recognised by the International Hotel Association, Paris. It is a constituent college of Manipal Academy of Higher Education since July 2003.

The college has been securing a majority of the top university rankings over the years and its alumni have found positions in leading hotel chains, airlines, travel agencies and other organisations like Citibank, Blue Dart Couriers, GE Capital and International Services.

WGSHA has been consistently ranked as the No. 1 institute in the country for hotel management studies.