School News :: School of Archaeology and Tourism

School News

  • 30 - Dec
  • 2012

National Conference for Tourist and Hotel Education

In conjunction with its fiftieth anniversary celebrations: The University of Jordan affirms its leadership in tourism and hotel education through its holding of the National Conference for Tourism and Hotel Education in cooperation with the USAID-funded tourism project Jordan - Amman concluded at the Sheraton Hotel in Amman on December 19th.

Under the patronage of the Minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research HE Dr. Wajih Owais and the Minister of Tourism and Antiquities HE Mr. Nayef Al-Fayez The activities of the National Conference for Tourism and Hotel Education under the title of strategic alliances between higher education and tourism industry: Building links between industry, universities, institutes and colleges in the tourism and hospitality sector, organized by the University of Jordan represented by the Faculty of Archeology and Tourism in Amman and the Faculty of Tourism and Hotels in Aqaba Branch and with the partnership and support of the USAID Tourism Project (USAID).

The conference dealt with a number of issues of concern to higher education and the tourism industry in light of the changes taking place in the Arab region and the growing growth of the demand for qualified cadres to work in the tourism and hotel sectors.

The main sessions included several aspects, including the presentation of the main challenges facing the relationship between tourism and hotel education and the tourism industry.The speakers discussed the relationship between the sectors regulating the tourism and hotel industry and between universities, institutes and colleges related to tourism and hotel education, which produce graduates of human resources involved in the industry, thus opening the door to a number of common interests between the two parties. For example, employers in the tourism and hospitality industry are hoping to acquire trained human resources ready to engage directly in their service sectors, requiring enhancement of their practical and applied skills during their education in academic institutions.

On the other hand, academics are looking to equip students with communication skills and the ability to analyze and solve problems by including them in the curriculum.This enhances the graduate's skill in his future career.

The second session aimed at describing Jordan's position in comparison with the global trends in the strategic partnership, which requires a joint effort to develop - and perhaps innovate - distinct programs to solve common problems.

The third session discussed the prospects of cooperation and partnership between educational institutions and the tourism industry, where tourism industry is one of the main economic sectors that are advancing in the forefront of the emerging industries in Jordan. Innovation and development in the tourism industry is the main pillar in enhancing competitiveness and investing the potential available, and this may intersect with the role of educational institutions in stimulating and creating ideas and practices That may benefit the industry. This is in line with the fact that tourism is an industry based on human resources and its role in enhancing the quality of services provided, which is vital to the success of the economic activity of the industry, hence the development of the skills of graduates oriented to the labor market and their ability to analyze and solve problems is essential.

The fourth session was devoted to drafting a framework for cooperation and strategic partnership by presenting the most successful experiences in cooperation and strategic partnership between educational institutions and tourism industry in Jordan as a basis for the national framework for strategic cooperation and partnership.Six key aspects of strategic cooperation and partnership were identified as a basis for the national framework for strategic cooperation and partnership in key areas including: field training programs for students, student projects, cooperation and exchange of managerial expertise, industry advisory teams, graduate recruitment, research work and consulting.

The University of Jordan aims to strengthen its image as a pioneer in tourism and hotel education and as a leading institution in promoting partnership between educational institutions and the tourism and hotel industry.The fiftieth anniversary of the founding of the University of Jordan, in line with its plans to keep pace with the needs of the labor market of skilled and trained workers.

The conference made a number of recommendations, most notably the call to develop practical training programs in cooperation with tourism institutions and find a mechanism to implement this, and to promote opportunities for academic exchange between universities and encourage joint research, in addition to calling for the provision of support programs for tourism and hotel programs in cooperation with the private tourism sector.