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What is 'tourism studies?'

This is a question asked by most prospective undergraduate students from British schools and colleges, and those coming to Britain to study from the European Union and elsewhere. Tourism studies is a comparatively new subject on the curriculum of British higher education institutions - degree courses were first introduced in the 1970s, with a postgraduate programme at the University of Surrey in 1972, and an undergraduate course at Bournemouth introduced in 1986.

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The short answer to the question, 'What is tourism studies?' is that it is a multi-disciplinary subject, drawing from social sciences and management studies. For example, students both from overseas and the UK may join a tourism studies programme having studied any one or more of the following subjects at school, college or university: sociology, social anthropology, psychology, economics, public relations, and geography.

However, the debate about what constitutes tourism studies is more complex than tracing its multi-disciplinary base. What tourism studies is can best be understood by briefly examining the response of British higher education in the 1980s to changing political and economic forces dominant at that time. Under the Conservative Government of Mrs Thatcher, academic institutions were encouraged to respond to the market place by making their subjects more relevant to the creation of economic growth and prosperity. Tourism as a growing economic activity, both in Britain and in the less developed countries of the world, was seen as one of the best methods of economic development. Consequently, the study of tourism became a focus of interest for anthropologist, economists, geographers, management analyst and sociologists. Today in British colleges and universities, tourism studies degree programmes mirror this history in their titles.

The National Liaison Group for Higher Education in Tourism (NLG), established in 1994, exists to 'promote tourism as a subject in the UK.' It encourages standards in course provision, and provides information about qualification (Leisure Opportunities 1995). The NLG found in a recent study (Airey and Johnson 1998) that of the 51 degrees in tourism being offered in the UK, 20% included tourism management in their title. Other popular titles are Tourism, Leisure and Tourism Management, and Tourism Studies. Just over one third of the degree courses offered had no common title, with subject combinations ranging from International Tourism, Tourism with Heritage, Tourism with Languages, Tourism and Social Responsibility, to Sociology and Anthropology of Travel and Tourism.

To give a flavour of the structure which underlies tourism degree programmes currently on offer in the UK, the following is a summary of the curriculum of the very different courses currently available at higher education institutions in Britain. A typical Tourism Management programme of study is likely to include pathways in the topics such as tourism and the environment, tourism planning and management, tourism research methods, and business case studies. Tourism Management degrees usually include substantive study of Business Management, including financial management, human resource management, business and organisation management and marketing. The study of a European language for business is sometimes provided as an optional area of study, as the type of programme reflects the dominant course programmes available in the UK.

Alternative programmes of study offer a social science perspective on tourism, and are concerned with the cultural impact of the industry as well as economic growth. Leisure and Tourism Studies programmes usually offer students this alternative and more critical approach. Students are able to choose between a range of modules which provide a foundation to the historical development of leisure and tourism. At the advanced level, a theoretical underpinning is provided for both subjects, stressing the important link between the social sciences and understanding leisure and tourism as a social processes. Specialist modules in tourism studies reflect the concerns facing those developing tourism as a business today. Popular topics of study are sustainable tourism, tourism, language and culture in the European Union, and international perspectives on tourism policy and practice. For students coming to Britain with a relevant degree in another subject, there are a range of postgraduate courses in tourism. For students wishing to follow a business-based course, an MBA in Tourism could offer an attractive route. For example, one London University has just launched a part-time course, covering the management of tourism services, people, strategic management and information technology applications appropriate to tourism.

For those postgraduate students wishing to take a critical approach to tourism development, there are a small number of specialist programmes. One programme offered by the College of St Mark and St John, in Plymouth focuses on tourism and social responsibility - a unique programme of study within Europe.

With so much to offer the student wishing to come to Britain to study tourism, the important question on the lips of every applicant is, 'What does a qualification in tourism studies offer on completion?' Career opportunities are as varied as the programmes of study. However, there are three main graduate destinations, private sector travel companies and carriers, research and teaching of tourism in higher education and the management of tourism resources in the public sector.

Authors

Dr Michael Ireland & Ian Gilhespy
College of St Mark and St John
Plymouth