Comparing Tourism Degree and Diploma
As it is, the tourism industry in Singapore is a whopping 24 billion industry employing approximately 15 million people. It has only continued to develop with increasing influx of foreign visitors by an average of 6% annually since 2014. In 2016, the industry attracted 300,378,921 international tourists, a figure over 5 times larger than the country’s total population. It has now even diversified to include medical, business, and retail tourism as well as many other new developments that have created and increased more new job opportunities for people with specialized knowledge.
And as the industry further expands, with more promising projection in the horizon, it comes as no surprise then that numerous educational institutions have begun offering not only WSQ courses in Singapore but also increased their full baccalaureate degree programs, short basic and advanced tourism training courses or tourism diploma certificates as people rush to increase their employability by meeting the increasing demand of the professionalizing and expanding Singapore tourism industry
How do these courses differ?
A formal degree in tourism in Singapore is usually a Bachelor of Science in Tourism Management. It is formal degree given and earned in a university or tertiary level formal educational institution. A full tourism degree program in Singapore requires completion of a at least 40 units composed of core and major courses in tourism, electives in affiliate fields like accounting, management and foundation general education courses in math, science, language, social science and humanities. These BS degrees offer the same competencies and aptitude development offered by most other basic and advanced short courses or tourism diploma in Singapore including management skills for tour, events, financial or budget operations, strategic planning and program implementation, excellence in hospitality services but also enhances students’ problem-solving, decision-making and leadership skills in addressing other pertinent issues in the tourism and hospitality sector including maintaining service tourism excellence standards, evaluating locations risk, environmental issues, cultural preservation, carrying capacities and economic cost-benefit. Most BS tourism courses in Singapore usually take 4 years to finish although universities offering trimestral schedules often offer it as 3-year program. A four-year tourism year degree, is best for those who want to pursue long-term career in to tourism industry and is not the best option for those looking for quick employment or promotion opportunities, additional advanced training, or a change in career. Since it is a formal degree, BS Tourism Management in Singapore is locally, regionally and internationally acknowledged.
Meanwhile tourism diplomas or diplomas in hospitality management are shorter curricula that are considered on or informal but is also usually offered by formal educational institutions. Often, these diploma courses require full bachelor's degree in tourism, hospitality management or related fields. In most cases any foundation degree will do although students without necessary tourism and hospitality foundations may be required to take additional courses on top of what is prescribed in the curriculum. Subjects under tourism diploma in Singapore include management trainings, staff appraisal and evaluation, staff management including handling of dismissals and resignations, developing and implementing effective business strategies, conducting situational analysis, compliance with legal requirements, developing and implementing budget plans, service operations management, travel operations management, front office or guest services operations management, housekeeping operations management, loss prevention strategies, service excellence training, customer satisfaction and handling meeting, convention and other events. Diploma courses in Singapore usually takes 2 years to finish. Although not a complete baccalaureate degree, it is similar to BS Tourism Management in terms of validity and recognition. Since syllabus and structure of tourism and diploma courses in Singapore are approved and certified by Singapore Workforce Development Agency (WDA) in compliance with global standards, a tourism or hospitality management diploma is also locally, regionally, and internationally recognized and therefore provide similar employment opportunities within Singapore tourism’s industry as well as abroad. The difference of courses is in terms of mobility as BS tourism degree often carry more weight in terms of promotion or career advancement.