Course overview
Study at Teesside University International Business School
See what it’s like to study at our modern, enterprising and dynamic business school
The tourism industry is constantly changing and has gone through major disruption in recent years. Sustainability is increasingly important, and digital skills are essential for future tourism professionals. This course recognises and responds to these changes, providing you with the skills and knowledge that will be crucial to the industry in the future.
Designed in partnership with local and national employers and industry associations, this course gives you a theoretical and practical understanding of tourism management, preparing you for the world of work. Our expert team has diverse industry and research experience with an international focus, meaning you study about tourism management approaches from around the world. Optional international trips also allow you to gain new experiences and enhance your understanding of diverse cultures.
You can also undertake an optional placement year between your second and third year, boosting your CV. Or you may wish to study abroad, immersing yourself in a new culture. We can also offer alternative shorter work and study placements.
Through our connections with industry, we ensure that you are familiar with the latest trends and impact of digital and AI on business and society.
This course includes a foundation year - ideal if you need additional preparation or if you don't have sufficient grades to join Year 1 of a degree.
Top five reasons to study international tourism management with us:
- Global outlook: explore a diverse range of international case studies of tourism management.
- Real-world experiences: learning is not confined to the classroom, you participate in regular field trips to contextualise your learning.
- International travel: want to see more of the world? Get a global outlook through international study with our partners in Germany, Czech Republic, Spain, China, India, Singapore and UAE.
- Employability and work experience: employability is at the heart of our degree courses. We have a range of work experience opportunities including placements and internships with regional, national and global businesses. Entrepreneurially minded? Our students have created over 500 new business start-ups through Launchpad and Microbiz – a start-up community who provide support and advice for students looking to start a new business venture.
- Digitally empowered graduates: as an Adobe Creative Campus, you have access to a full range of digital tools as well as professional training and support to give you skills that will make you stand out from the crowd.
Talentview Aviation
An employment resource hub for our aviation students to access graduate roles, opportunities and visibility by employers across the UK aviation industry.
Institute for Travel and Tourism (ITT)
We are a member of the Institute for Travel and Tourism (ITT), giving you access to a dedicated ITT Future You Talent Hub, helping to inspire the next generation of travel and tourism experts. As an ITT member you can engage with national and international events and develop your professional network with organisations including British Airways, Advantage, ABTA, Business Travel Association and many more.
Association for Tourism in Higher Education (ATHE)
Teesside University is a member of the Association for Tourism in Higher Education (ATHE). ATHE is the subject association for tourism in higher education in the UK. It represents universities that are leading providers of tourism programmes.
Course details
Year 1 focuses on providing you with the necessary underpinning in terms of broad tourism management knowledge and skills. It introduces key business and management concepts.
Year 2 lets you explore your own interests and deepening your insights as well as having more responsibility for your own learning.
The final year explores more advanced topics within tourism management and you develop your awareness of your own responsibility as a future leader of tourism. Finally, you have the opportunity to put your knowledge into action by undertaking a self-managed independent project through the Independent Project module.
Course structure
Foundation year core modules
Digital transformation is a development that businesses have been aware of for many years. The speed, interactivity, accessibility, convenience and versatility of digital technology has the power to transform organisations. Learn about the variety of digital sources and how to use them in organisations to drive forward operational development.
This is a 30-credit module.
Combining creativity with an enterprising outlook allows helps businesses solve challenges innovatively, by implementing new ideas and practices. In this module, you develop your creative mindset by learning from experienced entrepreneurs and gaining an understanding of enterprise in business organisations.
This is a 30-credit module.
Professional Skills for Business
You consider the skills required to operate successfully in business and develop your abilities and knowledge ready to begin your career.
This is a 30-credit module.
Explore the fundamentals of data collection and analysis, using academic research and practical examples to develop your understanding of the importance of ethical research.
This is a 30-credit module.
Year 1 core modules
Study the circular economy and the business opportunities it presents. Develop your own business idea and create a venture with social impact that's part of the circular economy. Consider the fundamentals of user experience and user interface design, and learn about current, appropriate digital tools to design an app for your business idea.
This is a 30-credit module.
Gain a deeper understanding of the main principles of marketing and their impact on a dynamic and competitive environment. You explore the marketing environment and its effect on organisations and their marketing decisions.
This is a 30-credit module.
Strategies of Tourism Organisations
Develop your understanding of strategic analysis principles. You explore business strategy and enterprise development within tourism's ever-changing business environment. Also, you examine the local, national and international dimensions of strategy and the driving reasons for decision-making in these contexts. Formulating strategic recommendations, you learn to communicate and justify them to clients.
This is a 30-credit module.
You are introduced to the ever-changing world of tourism. Gain a grounding in key concepts and theories, considering tourism not only as an industry, but as a social phenomenon that can be discussed within social, cultural, geographical, historical, political, economic, and environmental contexts.
This is a 30-credit module.
Year 2 core modules
Commodifying Culture and Touring Heritage
A place's culture, traditional and contemporary, is a major pull for tourists looking for an experience. Heritage is also an important driver, even if it is difficult to define it. You consider how culture and heritage are marketed and consumed by tourists, and what this means for the communities who these belong to.
This is a 30-credit module.
Investigating the Visitor Economy
Explore tourism theoretically and conceptually, examining how tourism sites are constructed, how experiences are created and how visitors approach these sites. You analyse and evaluate existing tourism experiences and use this to produce your own design for a tourism experience.
This is a 30-credit module.
Live Event Management and Production
You learn how to create and deliver a live event. Develop your skills in planning, marketing, finance, customer relations, time management, collaborative working and customer experience evaluation.
This is a 30-credit module.
Consider the skills that the tourism industry and other employers are looking for and gain the tools you need to take charge of your professional development. You engage in volunteering activities to develop your communication skills and appreciation of civic responsibility.
This is a 30-credit module.
Optional work placement year
You have the option to spend one year in industry learning and developing your skills. We encourage and support you with applying for a placement, job hunting and networking.
You gain experience favoured by graduate recruiters and develop your technical skillset. You also obtain the transferable skills required in any professional environment, including communication, negotiation, teamwork, leadership, organisation, confidence, self-reliance, problem-solving, being able to work under pressure, and commercial awareness.
Many employers view a placement as a year-long interview, therefore placements are increasingly becoming an essential part of an organisation's pre-selection strategy in their graduate recruitment process. Benefits include:
· improved job prospects
· enhanced employment skills and improved career progression opportunities
· a higher starting salary than your full-time counterparts
· a better degree classification
· a richer CV
· a year's salary before completing your degree
· experience of workplace culture
· the opportunity to design and base your final-year project within a working environment.
If you are unable to secure a work placement with an employer, then you simply continue on a course without the work placement.
Final-year core modules
It is difficult to escape marketing for travel companies. Whether it is a package holiday in Spain, a Caribbean cruise, or a holiday camp in the UK, these communications are everywhere. Tourists, therefore, are customers and consumers of tourism. And to sell tourism, you need to understand the consumers, recognising their diverse characteristics and demographics.
This is a 30-credit module.
Facing Challenges in Global Tourism
Engage with the most critical debates and issues in tourism today, while also looking at the future. Form critical insights and opinions on how tourism can be developed and managed, addressing issues including growth in the industry, climate change, sustainability, demographic change, disasters and other external factors.
This is a 30-credit module.
Conduct a business project related to your subject area, allowing you to demonstrate your capability in undertaking an individual piece of research. This may be an investigation of a practical business issue, a relevant issue of academic interest, or a live problem-solving project.
This is a 30-credit module.
In the wake of climate change and the call for sustainability, you explore the need for an industry-wide re-evaluation of tourism practices for a more positive future. Consider the importance of the tourism industry in the success of the UN's Sustainable Development Goals. You also compare the positive and negative impacts of tourism through a lens of sustainability.
This is a 30-credit module.
Modules offered may vary.
How you learn
Modules are taught by lectures, seminars, practical workshops, work-based activities and group work. Teaching staff adopt a range of web-based technologies to deliver module content, assess, provide feedback and communicate with students. You also have regular opportunities to participate in off-campus visits and trips to contextualise your learning.
How you are assessed
The programme is assessed via a variety of methods including assignments, examinations, group work, presentations and live practical projects.
Our Disability Services team provide an inclusive and empowering learning environment and have specialist staff to support disabled students access any additional tailored resources needed. If you have a specific learning difficulty, mental health condition, autism, sensory impairment, chronic health condition or any other disability please contact a Disability Services as early as possible.
Find out more about our disability services
Find out more about financial support
Find out more about our course related costs
Entry requirements
Entry requirements
A typical offer is 32-64 tariff points from at least two A levels, T level or equivalent.
For general information please see our overview of entry requirements
International applicants can find out what qualifications they need by visiting Your Country
You can gain considerable knowledge from work, volunteering and life. Under recognition of prior learning (RPL) you may be awarded credit for this which can be credited towards the course you want to study.
Find out more about RPL
Employability
Career opportunities
The international tourism management degree is centred around preparing you for the world of work. You learn creative, digital, sustainability and research skills, making you highly employable in a range of sectors.
Throughout your studies, you put your skills into practice through the creation of a professional portfolio and a plan for your future. You also learn how to create and deliver live events.
Studying international tourism management can take you all over the world. The tourism industry is incredibly diverse, and vital to the UK and global economies. You could work as a destination manager, marketing executive or events manager.
Information for international applicants
Qualifications
International applicants - find out what qualifications you need by selecting your country below.
Select your country:
Useful information
Visit our international pages for useful information for non-UK students and applicants.
Our BA (Hons) International Tourism Management degree has achieved recognition from the Tourism Management Institute (TMI) for its industry relevance and focus on graduate prospects.
