Valuing skills for employability in tourism

Cooperation between higher education institutions and stakeholders in the sector

Abstract

This article addresses the relevance of cooperation between the tourism and hospitality industry and higher education institutions offering training in this area. It evaluates how partnerships facilitate the development of employability skills for future professionals in the sector, for which an empirical study was conducted through questionnaire surveys targeting companies/organizations, students and alumni, and department heads of a higher education institution related to the field of tourism. The study revealed that while there is some literature on partnerships between industry and educational institutions, there appear to be few scientific references on this topic within the domain of tourism and hospitality. The article proposes a reflective framework on the enhancement of employability skills within the scope of cooperative relationships between higher education institutions and sector stakeholders, as well as the benefits of strategic partnerships for the development of projects and the sharing of common resources.