ABSTRACT
Tourism education has expanded rapidly over the last few decades reflecting the growing recognition of tourism (and the travel industry that serves it) as one of the world's most significant economic, social, and environmental forces (Evans, 2000). Education and training has been developed at various levels, ranging from highly vocational courses through to higher research degrees. The growth reflects the widely held belief that one of the major challenges the industry faces is to recruit, develop, and retain employees and managers with appropriate educational backgrounds. Although this rapid growth of university programs in tourism is not without critics (Evans, 1993), the trend is generally recognized for its merits (Ryan, 1995).
