STUDY ABROAD PROGRAM DESTINATION PREFERENCES OF HOSPITALITY STUDENTS: AN ANALYSIS USING TYPOLOGIES

This paper intends to examine the hospitality student choice of study abroad programs as a part of their curriculum. Tourist typology as the conceptual framework guided this research. Students (N= 40) were recruited by means of random sampling from a private university in the northeast. The data were collected via surveys and were analyzed quantitatively using descriptive statistics. Results reflected students’ preference for study abroad program destinations that promoted social involvement with the local people, were already established tourist regions, and had a different culture. This study is significant in facilitating understanding of international study abroad student preferences. It also has the potential to assist faculty to design and develop increasingly effective study abroad programs with respect to student engagement.