If you’re looking to get into the tourism industry, then taking the right SHS strand for tourism can help set the academic glide path for your future career!
Choosing your courses as early as Senior High School is the stepping stone to your goals as a professional in the tourism industry. Equipped with the right High School strand, you get to maximize your opportunity as you progress through your early career.
Taking the right strand of tourism courses can help open the best opportunities for you as you move forward with your studies, or even if you then decide to start building your work experience right after senior high.
But before we get into what you should expect in the strand for tourism, let’s first discuss what it is.
What is Tourism?
When you think about tourism, the first thought that comes to mind is touring visitors that want to experience local or foreign cultures like food, recreational activities, visiting popular establishments, and more. While this is technically correct, there is so much more to that!
Tourism is a type of service industry that caters to the enrichment of social, cultural, and economic experiences. This industry focuses on the movement of people outside of their environment to experience other places.
In this industry, you deal with a lot of visitors and so hospitality is a big part of it. In fact, tourism is directly related to hospitality as it is part of socialization and customer satisfaction.
Here in the Philippines, there are a lot of different opportunities in the tourism industry. In 2022 alone, there was a massive 2,465% increase in revenue in the industry compared to 2021. This means that as the tourism industry continues to grow, there are a lot more job opportunities to open.
So, now that you have an idea of what tourism is, let’s talk about the different senior high school strands that you can choose to enroll in to eventually land a career in tourism.
The Tourism Strand in Senior High
In learning more about what the tourism strand is in senior high, you will see that there are three tracks that you can take: the Accounting, Business, and Management (ABM), the Humanities and Social Sciences Track (HUMSS), and the General Academics Strand (GAS) strands.
Accounting, Business, and Management (ABM) Track
The ABM track is the best option if you want to learn about the management side of tourism as you take up subjects about business administration, human resources, hotel and restaurant management, accounting, marketing, real estate, entrepreneurship, and export management.
This is the route to take if you prefer to learn about the business side of the tourism industry. With the ABM strand, you are equipped to take on jobs such as:
- Hotel and Resort General Manager
- Travel Agent, Coordinator, or Consultant
- Client Services Manager
- Reservations Manager
- Hotel Sales Coordinator
- Hotel and Resort Marketing Coordinator
The good thing about the ABM Track is that it teaches you the fundamentals of business and how it operates. You will learn the introduction to entrepreneurship––which gives you an advantage as you study in college.
Humanities and Social Sciences (HUMSS) Track
On the other hand, the Humanities and Social Sciences (HUMSS) strand is another option for you to take in senior high school to prepare you for a career in tourism. This track offers courses that will teach you about different cultures, societal ideologies, and will educate you in-depth about communication.
Some subjects under HUMSS are introductions to culture, society, politics, human philosophy, art, entrepreneurship, and more. While these classes are in line with the social sciences, this can be directly related to tourism since it’s a career that services people and culture.
With the HUMSS track, you are equipped to take on a variety of roles, such as:
- Journalist
- Writer
- Doctor
- Counselor
- Therapist
- Psychologist
- Travel Coordinator
- Tour Guide
- Concierge
The advantage of the HUMSS strand is that you’re able to get an insight into the humanities side of tourism. A career in this industry entails a future in hospitality, and learning about humanities and social sciences will give you an edge in that sense.
General Academic Strand (GAS)
The GAS strand is the route to take if you want more freedom to choose your courses as you move on to the tertiary level of studies. Taking the general academic strand means that you will only be taking non-specialized classes during your senior high school to open more opportunities with other majors.
A few of the subjects in the GAS strand that you might encounter are general mathematics, general sciences, basics of entrepreneurship, contemporary art, and organization and management. The classes you take here can teach you the fundamentals of subjects that can be related to the different parts of tourism.
In the GAS strand, you can take on job roles such as:
- Lawyers
- Designers
- Writers
- Entrepreneurs
- Doctors
- Hotel Managers
- Travel Agent
- Tour Coordinator
The benefit of taking the GAS strand is that it can prepare you for the different facets of tourism be it in communication, social sciences, management, and more.
Further Studies with a Bachelor of Science in Tourism
Whether you take the ABM track, the HUMSS track, or the GAS track, you can continue your studies at the collegiate level and pursue a degree in tourism. Your takeaways from senior high school will give you an advantage as you start your introductory classes.
A degree in tourism typically takes four years of training that will qualify you to be highly skilled in the industry. It will teach you about entrepreneurship and management, and the classes will focus on the cultural aspects of the field like travel, language, and history.
Of course, getting a bachelor’s degree gives you more in-depth knowledge about your field of study. The on-the-job training or internship programs included in the tourism course will expose and equip you with basic experience in working in the industry. This will be beneficial when you start working after graduation.
Studying with OEd will give you a holistic learning experience as their online senior high school education complements college courses especially in Bachelor of Science in Tourism Management or if you are interested in Bachelor of Science in Hospitality Management. You will be receiving the same values aiming for academic excellence and career advancements upon graduation.
What Job Opportunities are Available After Taking Tourism?
Finishing the tourism strand in senior high school or completing a degree in BS Tourism can open a lot of job opportunities for you.
Some examples of places you can work for are travel agencies, ticketing offices, event-organizing companies, and related businesses.
The jobs that will be available to you are:
- Travel Agency Clerk
- Tour Coordinator or Consultant
- Travel Agent
- Local Tourism Staff
- Hotel and Resort General Manager
- Hotel and Resort Marketing Coordinator
- Travel Account Manager
- Tourism Officer
- Event Planner
- Conference and Event Manager
Ultimately, your interest, skillset, and knowledge base will determine which job role you are qualified to work for.
Take Charge of your Future with OEd Senior High School
Now that you know what the tourism strand is and the opportunities it can offer, you can take the next steps in pursuing your education!
Preparing for your future can be an enriching task, especially with the right partners at your side. Jumpstart your journey of career success in tourism through academic excellence with the right senior high school track.
Here at OEd Senior High School, you get to leverage world-class, self-paced online learning in the Philippines. Whether you decide to take the ABM, HUMSS, or GAS track, you are sure to receive good quality education to prepare you for your career.
If you have any inquiries about our course offerings, you can check out our website or contact us now!
