DEPARTMENT OF TOUR GUIDING

Profile of the Programme

The Department of Tour Guiding, which began accepting its first students in the 2013-2014 academic year, was established within the Faculty of Tourism at Anadolu University through the Council of Ministers’ Decision (2011/2605) published in the Official Gazette on January 10, 2012. The program admits students through the Higher Education Institutions Exam (YKS) conducted by ÖSYM, based on Foreign Language Scores (English). The language of instruction in the program is Turkish.

The curriculum of the Department covers the courses determined by the Tour Guidance Professional Law No. 6326 and its associated regulations as compulsory courses. In addition, students can take elective and vocational courses to become professional tourist guides and find jobs in travel agencies and other tourism-related businesses.

Students take compulsory English courses for eight semesters and acquire proficiency in a second foreign language—German, French, or Russian—over the same period.

The elective and professional elective courses are designed to help students develop expertise in different areas of tour guidance. Additionally, the program offers elective management, economics, marketing, and administration courses to prepare students for careers in travel agencies, airlines, transportation companies, accommodation businesses, and other tourism enterprises.

Courses help students prepare for the industry through technical trips and field applications related to course content, projects, assignments, and presentations.

To graduate from the Tour Guidance Bachelor’s Program, students must complete a total of 240 ECTS credits over eight semesters and complete a 60-day internship in businesses that meet the requirements outlined in the Anadolu University Faculty of Tourism Internship Directive. Students fulfilling these requirements receive a Bachelor’s Degree in Tour Guidance. To become a licensed tourist guide, they must fulfill the foreign language proficiency requirements specified by the relevant laws and regulations and complete the practical tours.

The Vision of the Tour Guidance Department:

To become a nationally and internationally recognized department that produces scientific knowledge and creates value for the region and the country while adhering to ethical principles, providing innovative, high-quality education, and focusing on lifelong learning.

The Mission of the Tour Guidance Department:

To train qualified human resources with practical knowledge in tourism and tour guidance who can follow developments in the country and the world, contribute to their region and country with their knowledge and experience, and develop original ideas, research, and projects through analytical thinking skills.

Core Values:

To realize its vision and mission, the Department is committed to core values of transparency, accountability, fairness, human-centeredness, innovation, creativity, reliability, and universality.

Program Educational Objectives:

The Tourism Guidance Department aims to train tour guidance experts who:

Can practice the profession of tour guiding either independently or within travel agencies,
Can work in travel, transportation, accommodation, and yacht-marina businesses within the tourism industry,
Can work as a tour guide or in various roles at museums and archaeological sites.