Master in International Tourism
LATEST NEWS!
Starting from the 2024-2025 Academic Year, a double degree agreement is in effect between Università della Svizzera italiana (Lugano, Switzerland) and UNISG – University of Gastronomic Sciences (Pollenzo, Italy).
USI students enrolled in the Master in International Tourism who spend their third semester at UNISG can obtain:
- a Master of Arts in International Tourism, issued by USI
- a Master of Science in Food Industry Management, issued by UNISG
The global tourism industry urgently needs skilled and creative professionals who can:
- Tackle the complex challenges of sustainability and digital transformation – including generative Artificial Intelligence (genAI) – and understand their societal impact;
- Apply diverse forms of critical thinking to solve real-world problems;
- Lead sustainable change by integrating the perspectives of residents, tourists, and service providers.
… to create a sustainable and resilient future of travel and tourism. Not just in Switzerland, but worldwide.
During your degree in tourism, you will learn to master insights and toolkits from the scientific fields that are key to finding creative and innovative solutions to major issues in tourism:
- Economics and Management (of tourism, tourism businesses, culture, territory, and the natural environment);
- Communication (in tourism, tourism marketing, information technologies and new media, smart tourism, and human sciences);
- Politics, Institutions, and International Relations
The USI Master in International Tourism is deeply involved in USI’s UNESCO Chair in ICT to develop and promote Sustainable Tourism in World Heritage Sites – hosted at our university – and the Tourism Observatory (O-Tur) through teaching, applied research projects, Master thesis opportunities, and internships offered to our Master in International Tourism students.
Become part of our USI Master in International Tourism family to co-create the sustainable future of travel and tourism!
Key facts:
Interdisciplinary Master: Jointly offered by the Faculty of Communication, Culture and Society and the Faculty of Economics (from the A.Y. 2022/23)
Degree Awarded: Master of Arts in International Tourism.
Optional double-degree in Food Industry Management at UNISG – University of Gastronomic Sciences in Pollenzo, Italy.
Minors offered: Minor in eTourism and Minor in Sustainability
Format: Full-time Degree recognised by the Swiss government
Language: English
Location: Lugano, Switzerland
Duration: 24 months (2 years)
ECTS: 120 ECTS
Intake: September and February
Class profile: More than 350 students from over 60 countries since 2003
Career Prospects: 96% of USI graduates are employed within 1 year after graduation*
Get inspired by the Career Stories of our Master in International Tourism Alumni
*Source: USI Alumni Placement Survey 2022
Expand All
-
Are the degrees issued by USI recognised internationally?
Università della Svizzera italiana (USI) is a recognised or accredited Swiss university. Academic qualifications obtained at USI Faculties are therefore also recognised abroad, on the basis of international conventions.
- The mutual recognition of academic qualifications, i.e. the diplomas awarded by universities and universities of applied sciences, that enables students to continue with their studies is governed by the Lisbon Convention of 11 April 1997 and other international conventions with Germany, Italy, Austria and France.
With regard to relations with ITALY, in particular:
Accordo tra il Governo della Repubblica Italiana ed il Consiglio Federale Svizzero sul reciproco riconoscimento delle equivalenze nel settore universitario. (Agreement between the Government the Italian Republic and the Swiss Federal Council on the mutual recognition of academic qualifications)
The agreement establishes the principle of equal treatment of Italian and Swiss students. Mutual recognition applies to university degrees and diplomas, exam performance and the equivalence of study periods, taking into account the ECTS credits system. Degrees awarded by a university that authorises the holder to continue his/her studies or to undertake the next course of studies at a university in one of the two Contracting States, without additional examinations, shall confer the same right in the other Contracting State.
In addition, the holder of a degree awarded by a university in one of the two Contracting States shall be entitled to make use of that degree in the other State in the form provided for by the legislation of the State in which it was awarded.
Professional rights shall not be directly linked to the right to make use of a university degree. - The recognition of the professional qualifications of Swiss and EU/EFTA nationals wishing to pursue a regulated profession is governed by the Agreement on the free movement of persons and the EFTA Convention.
With regard to accessing professional practice in Italy for those who have obtained their university degree at USI, paragraph 1 letter d) of Presidential Decree 189/2009 applies, according to which it is required to submit the documents indicated in the Presidential Decree to the professional association, which, in turn, transmits them to the MIUR (Ministero dell'Università e della Ricerca) which recognizes the validity of the foreign qualification for access to professional practice.
Useful links:
Procedures for the recognition of foreign qualifications in Italy (http://www.cimea.it/en)
Procedures for the certification of the authenticity of USI diplomas (In Italian only) (https://www4.ti.ch/decs/dcsu/ucsu)
Information on the recognition of foreign qualifications and competent recognition authorities in Switzerland (https://www.sbfi.admin.ch/sbfi/en/home/education/recognition-of-foreign-qualifications/recognition-procedure-on-establishment/agencies-responsible-for-the-recognition-of-foreign-qualificatio.html)
Recognised or accredited Swiss universities (www.swissuniversities.ch) - The mutual recognition of academic qualifications, i.e. the diplomas awarded by universities and universities of applied sciences, that enables students to continue with their studies is governed by the Lisbon Convention of 11 April 1997 and other international conventions with Germany, Italy, Austria and France.
