Designing the ideal undergraduate program in tourism: expectations from industry and educators

Globally, there are numerous undergraduate programs available in tourism that differ in content aims and scope. It is hard to judge which programs are preferable and on what criteria to base choice. Thus, this article provides a content analysis of 64 bachelor programs taught in English. The actual programs are compared to indicators identified in literature review. Furthermore, an adaptive conjoint analysis identifies the importance and utilities of different subject areas and themes that can compose a tourism program. The population is specified in a broad manner, including academics as well as industry professionals from both the private and public sectors. Results show that there are discrepancies between existing programs and what academics and industry professionals perceive as being important. The research offers recommendations on which topics and issues should be included in a tourism curriculum and provokes discussion on adaptation of existing curricula for the future