Skills Mapping to Scale Up Tourism and Hospitality Management Education at the Tertiary Level

Abstract

The Outcome-Based Education (OBE) approach has become increasingly important, particularly in fields like Tourism and Hospitality Management (THM) education, where practical skills and industry relevance are essential. Although OBE has made significant progress in Bangladesh’s higher education system, its effectiveness in developing programlevel skills remains uncertain. The main objective of this study is to evaluate the current status of OBE, assess industry-required skills, and map these skills for use in teaching and curriculum design. Various generic and specific skills are identified from existing literature and compared with industry needs. These skills are then mapped to the subjects offered by Tourism and Hospitality Management departments in public universities in Bangladesh. The study also assesses the departments’ capacity and proposes a flexible guideline to reduce the existing skills gap. The expected outcome is to help other departments develop outcome-based curricula and teaching practices that enhance skill development.