Major in Geography - Tourism Program
The tourism program at CCSU was established in the Geography Department in 1982 to recognize and meet the demands of what was seen at the time as a new and potentially large economic development sector in Connecticut, the United States and the world. As such it is one of the oldest tourism programs in the country and the only such public baccalaureate program in Connecticut.
Initial program emphasis is placed on understanding the basic nature and driving forces behind the tourism industry before requiring the student to focus on tourism planning, marketing or management. However all students leave the CCSU program with a basic understanding of all the components and workings of the tourism industry as well having served an internship within the industry such that they have a wide variety of career options within the industry upon graduation.
To date our students have obtained attractive positions in various hotel companies, sports tourism, international companies like Disney Corporation and Royal Caribbean, and Connecticut attractions including the Connecticut Convention Center, the Connecticut Science Center, Lake Compounce, and the Mark Twain House, Lake Compounce.
Dr. Richard Benfield, Dr. Ivan Turnipseed and Dr. John Lee deliver the majority of the tourism classes. Between them they bring to the program over thirty-five years of experience in the tourism business most notably in tourism operations, tourism marketing and destination area management.
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Core Requirements
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Credit Hours
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Geog 110 - Introduction to Geography
Geog 120 - World Regional Geography
Geog 130 - Introduction to Geographic Information Sciences |
9 Credits
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| Planning - G241 Introduction to Planning (see Note 3) |
0 Credit
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| Physical Geography - select any one of the physical geography courses. |
3 Credits
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| Regional - 3 credits from Geog 330 - United States and Canada, 434-Mexico, Central America and the Caribbean,435-Japan and Korea, 436-South America,437-China, 446-Sub-Saharan Africa, 448-Russia and Neighboring Regions,452-European Union,,459-Field Studies in Regional Geography |
3 Credits
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Program Requirements-Select 15 credits from
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Credit Hours
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| Geog. 290 - Geography of Tourism |
3 Credits
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| Geog. 291 - National Parks and World Heritage Sites |
3 Credits
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| Geog. 450 - Tourism Planning |
3 Credits
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| Geog. 451 - Tourism Development in Southern New England |
3 Credits |
| Geog. 453 - Recreation and Resort Planning |
3 Credits |
| Geog. 454 - Geography of Tourism Marketing |
3 Credits
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| Geog. 455 - New Directions in Tourism |
3 Credits |
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Electives
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Credit Hours
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| Hospitality/Tourism Elective (THS) |
3 Credits
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| Geography Elective |
3 Credits
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Internship
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| Geog. 430 - Internship in Geography |
3 Credits
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Total: 39 Credits
Notes:
1. One course acceptable to the student's advisor may be substituted for Geog. 425 or 430
2. Completion of a minor in another discipline is also required. Minors in Marketing, Management or
a Foreign Language are particularly desirable.
3. G241 counts against General Education, not the major
