Organising safaris for a travel company in Uganda. Gaining experience with a tour operator in Mauritius. Designing your own trip to Croatia with your coursemates. Or going on a study trip to Naples and Reykjavik. Too good to be true? Not if you study at Tio. Stijn, who is in his third year of International Tourism Management at Tio Eindhoven, did it all. And if it’s up to him, this is just the beginning of his international career.
Travel is in Stijn’s blood. He already knew he wanted to do a degree in tourism that would align with his international goals while still in high school. He researched his options, went on open days and compared tourism degrees. All the pieces fell into place at an open day for the International Tourism Management programme at Tio Business School.
A small-scale and personal approach
“At Tio, you do several internships and follow lots of practical projects in the work field. You gain lots of practical international experience and build a network during your studies. That was important to me. Plus, the Tio concept really appealed to me”, Stijn continues. “Small-scale education, with small classes, lecturers with professional experience, lots of interaction and personal attention in lessons. That suits me better than packed lecture halls and impersonal teaching”.
Learning by doing
“I’m now in my third and final year of study because I’m on an accelerated course, and I’m still very happy with my choice”, Stijn says enthusiastically. “The projects are especially fun. Last year, for example, we worked in teams to develop an incentive trip for a business group. The team with the best plan then got to carry out the trip. The process was incredibly informative. In the end, we even won the project. My group got to create the trip we had developed ourselves, taking us to Split in Croatia!”
Organising safaris
Stijn also enjoyed another unforgettable experience. Last summer, he completed an international internship at the safari company Uganda Safari Chapter in Entebbe, Uganda. “I worked there as a safari consultant and was responsible for organising a conference on hydropower with guests from all over the world. Later, I was also given the opportunity to organise safaris myself. That was really cool, and I learned an enormous amount from it. Not only did I learn about conservation and sustainable tourism in Uganda and how to organise safaris, but I also learned about the country itself and how to deal with cultural differences. I’ll take all this with me into my future career”.
The world at your feet
Stijn has already arranged an internship for next summer. In Stockholm, he will focus on negotiating and purchasing travel segments in the procurement department of a tour operator. And then? “After graduation, I want to stay in Sweden for a Master’s in Sustainable Tourism Management. And then I’d like to live and work in Sweden. I don’t know what exactly I want to do yet, but the possibilities are endless. During my studies at Tio, I already gained so much practical experience and got to know people. I’m sure that this will benefit me a lot, for the rest of my life”.