International tourism and hospitality management

Tourism as part of a modern global market and related with it specialized services offered to tourists in tourist destinations has become an economic phenomenon of the twenty-first century. Developing tourist services characterised by constant dynamics respond to the ever-changing needs and expectations of millions of tourists which in turn generates a constant need for a properly educated creative staff.

Within the area of ​​International Tourism, our priority is to educate highly qualified graduates, well prepared to perform various professional roles in workplaces in the tourism and recreation industry, which dynamically develops across the whole EU. The WSG University prides itself for long-standing and highly valued experience in the education market in the field of tourism and it has reached the 3rd place in 2018 in the ranking of ‘Wiadomości Turystyczne’ (transl.: tourism news), the most respected trade magazine on the Polish market. Our most important goal is to provide and develop practical skills and to teach creative approach to work at various positions. We are in a small group of Polish universities with whom the Polish Tourist Organisation has signed an agreement on cooperation in the field of tourism research and the training of professional personnel.

The basic premise of the study program is to move away from the theoretical education and to put a clear emphasis on expertise which comprehensively prepares graduates for employment in broad tourism services sector. In addition, an important aspect of education is to acquire or to improve communication skills in foreign languages ​​with particular focus on the area of ​​industry and the development of a culture of service and professional ethics. Such an approach means to equip a graduate with a range of skills and competencies to be easily tailored to the requirements of the labor market and the expectations of employers in the tourism industry.

During the first year of study, students carry a 5-day sports camp. The camp consists of 32h classes and takes place in a special convention for stationary and extramural forms of education.

Studies in the field of International Tourism have a strong focus on transfer of knowledge and practical skills, which will affect the preparation of graduates for the needs of the tourism industry labour market. Knowledge, profiled interdisciplinary (e.g. of an economic nature - economy, organization and management; of a humanistic nature - psychology, sociology), will enable graduates to develop views on the operations of the tourism industry, including various types of tourist services providers. It will also allow the acquisition of high professional competencies in organizing entities’ activities in order to meet the needs of tourists in the tourist environment. The task of education in the proposed area is to provide comprehensive knowledge of i.e.:

• tourist traffic organization and services (including culture of service and ethics of the profession),
• operations of travel agencies,
• laws in tourism industry,
• accommodation facilities,
• catering establishments,
• transport,
• tour guiding as well as travel insurance,
• tourist services and tourist events planning.

The program will be implemented in correlation with extra modules that expand skills and competencies (e.g. IT services in tourism, economics and law in tourism).

The premise of the study program in the field of International Tourism is to equip graduates with a range of sought labor market skills and competencies which can be easily tailored to the requirements and expectations of employers in the tourism industry. For example:

• acquisition of tourism vocabulary,
• management of a hotel and its various departments,
• preparation and conducttion of tourist events,
• recreational and cultural activities in a variety of hotel facilities,
• recreational sports, etc.,
• guest services,
• hotel recordkeeping,
• tourist offices,
• recreation centers,
• sports facilities, etc.,
• management skills at catering and economy in tourist facilities,
• ability to calculate and settle tourist events,
• skills of developing trade agreements and negotiating with contractors,
• team work,
• conflict resolution, etc.

• Law in tourism and recreation
• Tourist business management
• Basics of tourism
• Basics of recreation
• Tourist geography of the world
• Tourist services
• Economics of tourism
• Basics of hospitality
• Pedagogy of free time
• Fundamentals of Human Nutrition

• IN PRACTICE: 

Visiting Museum of Soap and Dirt in Bydgoszcz:

Visiting a Museum of Land Forces:

Graduates in the field of International Tourism are prepared to work as a tourist traffic manager; to plan and conduct various types of tourist events; at mid-level positions in operations of tourist services at various stages of travel in self-governing institutions, tourist organizations, tourist companies and entities operating in the tourist services market and within their own business related to tourism.

Graduates may take up employment in:

• hotels and other facilities that provide accommodation and other tourist services,
• tourist office, tour operator companies and travel agencies,
• tourist information centers,
• companies providing tourist transport services (airlines, seafaring, coaches)
• conference, convention and trade fair centers,
• tourist organizations and associations which promote the development of tourism, eg. local and regional tourist organizations,
• offices in departments and units of local government and state administration involved in development and promotion of tourism,
• own business in the tourism industry associated with tourist services
• tour guiding as a tour guide or a tour resident.