One of the most challenging an satisfying careers today is in the field of tourism.  Everyone is traveling...from the corporate executive to the retiree who has saves a lifetime for a European holiday.  We're a society on the move and we depend on travel agencies to get us where we're going.

Career Opportunities

Tourism is one of the fastest growing retail industries in the country with a projected increase in employment of 62% between 1990 and 2005.  There were 5.9 million directly-related jobs in tourism in the United States in 1990, and that year it was a $290 billion business.  In 1992 it climbed to an estimated $295 billion! 

As the industry has grown in size and complexity, there has been an increased trend toward professionalism in the field, including emphasis on formal training an education as well as licensing by state governments and credentialling of travel agents.  more than 60 North American colleges and universities now offer degree programs in the field, including associate, baccalaureate and even a few master degree programs.

Almost 200 travel agencies, numerous attractions and amusement parks offer employment opportunities in the area served by Lakeland.  The demands is great for well educated and ambitious personnel!  The many, varied career opportunities in the field provide the chance to meet new people and visit exciting places.  It is a rewarding career with great flexibility and job control plus the excitement of sending travelers to exotic Pacific islands, European castles or the pyramids of Egypt.

Program

Lakeland's tourism program is designed to train students for entry level positions in the industry and provide the knowledge and skills to meet the industry's basic requirements.  Persons who meet the demand for employees with associate degrees can move into corporate travel planning, the hotel and motel industry and even own their own travel agencies.  Lakeland's tourism graduates hold an associate of applied business degree, assuring them a well grounded background in business principles and procedures.