Program Overview

Tourism and Aviation Management with Integrated Foundation Year BSc

Overview

The world tourism and aviation industries have continued to flourish with increased international travel. This course will give you both academic and practical insight into these fascinating sectors and will help to prepare you for a range of related careers.

Why us?

• Course content reflects our close links with employers, and our teaching emphasizes the connections between theories and practice
• Available as a sandwich course where you can engage in a one-year industrial placement
• Our Hospitality, Event Management and Tourism courses are 12th in the UK (Guardian University Guide 2024)

Course structure

A typical week for you will include lectures, seminars, study visits and group work. These are supported by a range of guest speakers from diverse academic and industry backgrounds. Our teaching team are passionate about their subject and leading academics who produce world-leading research.

Your progress will be assessed by essays, presentations, portfolios of evidence and project work which will help you to build a range of skills in support of employability.

Course modules

Year 1 (national level 4)

• Aviation and the Environment (20 credits)
  • Understand the importance of the political, economic, social, regulatory, and technological and environmental factors within the aviation industry.
  • Analyse the environmental challenges affected by the aviation industry, including noise, emissions, and waste management.
• Fundamentals of Aviation (20 credits)
  • Appreciate the growing importance of the aviation industry in the contemporary global economy.
  • Develop your understanding of the scale, scope and structure of the aviation industry.
• Fundamentals of Tourism, Leisure and Hospitality (20 credits)
  • Gain a fundamental understanding of theories and models appropriate to tourism and hospitality management.
  • Analyse definitions, commonalities and distinctions of tourism and hospitality management.
• Global Tourism (20 credits)
  • Profile tourism in various regions and destinations, exploring key issues and impacts associated with the development of tourism via a variety of global case studies.
• Marketing and Business for the Service Sector (20 credits)
  • Get an introduction to the concepts and functions of marketing and business in the context of the service sector.
• Study Skills for the Service Sector (20 credits)
  • Receive training and practice in a range of learning and information skills relating to the service sector.

Year 2 (national level 5)

• Aviation, Safety and Security (20 credits)
  • Discuss the global security threats, the key health and safety regulations affecting the aviation industry, the employers and employees responsibilities in preventing accidents and incidents, and the acts of terrorism involving civil aviation.
• Consultancy for the Visitor Economy (20 credits)
  • Examine and explain aspects of management application from within different organisational contexts.
• Current Issues in Tourism and Hospitality (20 credits)
  • Explore current, important conceptual and practical issues relating to tourism development and management, and gain theoretical context for contemporary debates.
• Research Methods for the Service Sector (20 credits)
  • Gain an understanding of the principles of research design and fieldwork, preparing you for research projects that you will undertake later in your university study.

Optional Modules (choose two)

• Cultural Tourism, Festivals and Events (20 credits)
  • Examine the relationship between tourism and culture, particularly cultural tourism in different spatial and social contexts.
• Branding for the Service Sector (20 credits)
  • Discover the principles and practices of branding for the service sector.
• Exploring Human Resource Management in the Service Sector (20 credits)
  • Gain awareness and knowledge of some of the HR processes, management and resourcing challenges that can be experienced when dealing and managing employees in industry.
• Tourism Fieldwork 2 (20 credits)
  • Travel overseas on a one-week field visit within Europe – visits in recent years have focused on dark tourism in Prague, Krakow and Berlin.
• Tourism Planning and Development (20 credits)
  • Produce a tourism development plan for a specified location/area, integrating the breadth of the course content through a practical exercise.

Final year (national level 6)

• Airline and Airport Commercial Operations (20 credits)
  • Discuss the business strategies for airlines and airports and their key revenue sources.
• Risk and Crisis Management for Tourism and Aviation (20 credits)
  • Risks and crises are an inherent part of all businesses, but within the tourism and aviation sectors these aspects are compounded by the uncertainty derived from products, services, and consumers.

Optional modules (choose 80 credits)

• Digital Technologies in the Visitor Economy (20 credits)
  • Consider the impact technological innovations have had for the visitor economy in the areas of tourism, hospitality, events and aviation.
• Gastronomy (20 credits)
  • Explore the increasingly important area of food and drink tourism for regional economic development and identity formation.
• Leadership and Management for the Service Sector (20 credits)
  • Prepare yourself for a career in industry as an employee, leader or manager.
• Professional Development for the Service Sector (20 credits)
  • Develop your employability and gain an understanding of career pathways in the hospitality, events, aviation and tourism industry.
• Service Quality (20 credits)
  • Explore various theories and principles associated with the management of service quality in tourism, hospitality and events.
• Strategic Planning for Tourism and Leisure (20 credits)
  • Explore the scope and nature of tourism planning from a political, market, environmental and visitor perspective.
• Tourism and Aviation Major Project (60 credits)
  • Design and implement a research proposal in an area of tourism or aviation management of your choice.
• Tourism Fieldwork 3 (20 credits)
  • Travel overseas on a one-week field visit, usually outside of Europe – for the past 12 years students have visited New York to research film-induced tourism and dark tourism.
• Urban Tourism (20 credits)
  • Gain an insight into the characteristics of urban tourism.

Facilities

You’ll be based at The Reg Vardy Centre, on the Sir Tom Cowie Campus at St Peter’s. The Reg Vardy Centre is a modern building with views of the river, and just a short walk from both the coast and Sunderland town centre.

Entry requirements

We don’t currently display entry requirements for Ireland. Please contact the Student Admin team on or .

Fees and finance

The annual fee for this course is £9,535 if you're from the UK/Ireland/EU settled/pre-settled.

Career ready

Graduates from our Tourism, Hospitality and Events courses have progressed onto careers in managerial roles within the tourism and hospitality industry.

Real-life experience

There are a range of embedded activities on the course, including:

• Guest lecturers who share their vast experience and expertise within the industry
• Field-trips which support you in studying and experiencing the industry in action
• Opportunities for a paid work placement