Did you know that New Zealand was voted the best country in the world by UK’s Telegraph publication last year, making it the fourth time the country has won this prestigious accolade? New Zealand is a country full of magnificent scenery, natural beauty and awesome adventures.

If that’s not reason enough to make you think studying travel and tourism in New Zealand is a great idea, we think these reasons might just swing it…

Booming industry

In 2015, New Zealand welcomed a whopping 3.1 million visitors and, according to the country’s Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment, this number is set to grow to 4.9 million in 2023. New Zealand’s tourism industry is the country’s largest earner of foreign exchange and directly employs 7.5 percent of the country’s workforce according to Tourism Satellite Account 2016. With the government’s strong push to increase its market share in the highly competitive global tourism industry, demand for travel and tourism professionals will increase.

The travel and tourism industry is a huge one, graduates in this field have a wide variety of career options to choose from in New Zealand as well as the world over. You can opt to work in the hospitality industry (a subset of the travel and tourism industry) in hotels, resorts and other tourist attractions. On the other hand, you can also work in the airlines industry, where you can see the world while you’re on the job. Are you a thrill seeker? Then you can always work as an adventure tour operator or organiser. Hate the idea of being office bound? Working on a cruise ship or as a tour guide lets you escape from that drudgery. The options are endless.

Great study programmes in New Zealand

For instance, at the International Travel College of New Zealand, students get to personally experience what it is like to be a tourist in New Zealand. The college lets their students play tourist as part of their programme so they better understand what the country has to offer and how to best market them.

Some, like the Eastern Institute of Technology, have close ties with industry partners, which enable students to gain valuable hands-on experience in a work environment. Similarly, Auckland University of Technology offers a Bachelor of International Tourism management that includes an industry placement in the last semester.

Other institutions offering a degree in tourism include the University of Waikato, and Victoria University. The University of Otago, one of the main centres for tourism research in the Asia-Pacific, offers a Bachelor of Commerce in Tourism and the university’s graduates are known to have been successful in gaining employment within the country and internationally in a range of tourism businesses and organisations. There are also postgraduate tourism programmes offered by universities in New Zealand.

Welcoming culture

New Zealand’s pro-immigration policies makes it a country that is international student-friendly, meaning you can kickstart your career right in one of the most successful tourism industries in the world straight after your studies. There are a number of tour operators based in NZ and plenty of options of jobs for anyone who wants to ensure people visiting get the best experience possible.

Even if you decide to return back home and start your career there, every country has a tourism industry and they are always on the lookout for talented individuals to join them. Plus, a degree in tourism from New Zealand will certainly go down well as it’s commonly known as being a huge industry there.

Meet people from all over the globe

Working in the global travel and tourism industry, is both interesting and exciting. You get to meet and interact with people from all walks of life and from the far corners of the globe. International students frequently head to New Zealand to study and work so you’ll be amongst friends while you learn and you might even make contacts that can open more doors for you and take your career to the next level.

So what are you waiting for? Check out the courses available now.