Welcome Message

Welcome to the Hospitality and Tourism Unit at the UWI, Mona and a special welcome to our pioneers who are located at the Western Jamaica Campus in the heart of Montego Bay. The Caribbean has been described by some as the world's most tourism dependent region and 2004 statistics indicate that almost 16% of total employment and almost 15% of the Caribbean's GDP came from tourism. The industry is not only growing in value to the region but becoming much more sophisticated and diverse. It will require talented, creative and well trained individuals to coordinate and manage it and your training at the UWI is designed to help prepare you for this task.

We are driven by an action learning focus and you will find that most of your tourism courses have a practical component that requires you to not only learn but demonstrate that learning in very practical ways. Your tourism lecturers all have practical exposure to hospitality and/or tourism and they are well equipped to prepare you for the dynamic world of tourism. This year we are fully introducing our portfolio approach which will allow you to capture your learning and build your resume. Applied learning will also take place outside of the classroom though internships and by your involvement in the Tourism Society. We are also working towards increasing the value of the internship experience for both yourself and your host organization and you will see a new internship handbook to guide you through the process.

We look forward to working with you during your time with us and encourage you to make full use of all of the resources that the Mona campus has to offer to tourism students.

Anne P. Crick

Academic Director – Hospitality and Tourism Management