_{Whether you’re currently a part of the tourism workforce or have any previous work experience at all (regardless of if it’s from the Tourism industry, or not), chances are that you’ll already have some of the key skills that tourism employers look for in new hires. The skills required by tourism employers can be developed through many channels and the most desirable traits are often transferrable from other professions or life experiences. Great news!}

Although further education is not always required by industry employers (who often hire for personality and train for skills), if you’ve had the added benefit of studying Tourism at secondary or tertiary level, you should be in an even better position to be able to identify the skills desired by tourism employers and demonstrate them during the hiring process.

Most jobseekers, who haven’t done their research, mistakenly assume that the skills most desired by tourism employers are:

1. Practical skills 

2. Relevant work experience

3. Confidence

But, in fact, good tourism employers look for a much wider range of experience and an all-round demonstration of hybrid and transferrable skills, rather than just a list of what similar jobs you’ve done.

The top skills tourism employers actually take into consideration when hiring includes this variety of soft and hard skills (in order of most essential):

1. Adaptability at work

2. Work ethic

3. Customer service skills

4. Team working skills

5. Attention to detail

In addition to the skills listed above, employers also expect the following skills to be learnt by tourism graduates, whilst at university:

1. Problem solving

2. Written communication

3. Computer skills 

4. Oral communication

Compared to those that have not completed tertiary study, employers do expect tourism graduates to have developed the majority of skills listed with a higher level of depth and complexity, throughout the course of their study. Graduates shouldn’t worry about added pressure in interviews though, tourism employers will often invest in training less-experienced candidates, if they perceive them to possess the right personality for the role and company. Additionally, many tourism employers have a positive perception about the value of tourism degrees and believe that study can be good preparation for working in the industry.

Those who have not completed further study are not necessarily at a disadvantage when applying for roles in the industry, though. Statistics from Victoria University of Wellington show that many employers are not more likely to hire an applicant with a university tourism degree over other candidates with comparable skills and experience.

Despite global disruptions to the workforce and economy over the past 24 months, the types of skills that employers look for when hiring has not significantly changed. Tourism employers do, however, now recognise the importance for job seekers to additionally be able to demonstrate resilience, adaptability and potential ability to work remotely, order to perform effectively in the post-covid COVID-19 work environment.

Now that you know some of the skills that employers look for, check out our other article How To Build Your Tourism Skillset for tips on improving your employability.