BTEC Tech Award Level 1 and Level 2 – Travel and Tourism 

The BTEC Tech Award in Travel and Tourism will give you the chance to develop knowledge and skills that are suitable for working in the travel and tourism sector, in careers such as tour management, air cabin crew, hotel management, event management as well as marketing and sales careers. Travel and Tourism provides the opportunity to learn and merge key geographical concepts with select concepts from Business Studies. By combining the two, it allows for a much broader understanding of how the tourist industry operates.  

Why learn about it?   

The travel and tourism sector is the UK’s third largest employer, with almost 10% of UK jobs being linked to travel and tourism. Tourism is an especially crucial area and is one of the UK’s fastest-expanding sectors, with almost 3 million people working in these types of careers. Across the world 292 million people are working in the travel and tourism sector – and rising, the future of the industry is robust with people looking to spend their money on experiences rather than material objects, so it seems that it will continue to lead the way in creating wealth and employment for the foreseeable future.  

What will I learn?   

The course is divided into 3 units:   

• Component 1: Travel and Tourism Organisations and Destinations (internally assessed 30% by one overall piece of coursework broken down into 5 sections) – investigating travel and tourism organisation, what they’re aiming to do and how they work together. You will look at different types of travel and tourism and what makes different destinations appealing to different people.

• Component 2: Customer Needs in Travel and Tourism (internally assessed 30% by coursework also broken down into 5 smaller sections) – you will explore how organisations use market research to identify travel and tourism trends, and customer needs and preferences – including how to select appropriate products and services as well as planning a holiday to meet customer needs and preferences. 

• Component 3: Influences on Global Travel and Tourism (externally assessed 40% by two-hour exam) – looking at factors that can affect global travel and tourism, and what various organisations do to respond to these factors. You will examine the possible affect that tourism can have on global destinations and how these destinations can manage these effects to achieve sustainable tourism. 

The first and second components will be assessed internally. You will be required to complete a number of assignments which could include a variety of tasks – for example written reports, presentations, podcasts, extended writing, customer information packs or holiday plans. These will, in the main, be completed during lesson time - however independent study is encouraged outside of lesson hours. Homework set will be in the form of individual research. Each assignment is marked by the subject teacher and then the result is internally verified by another member of the Faculty team. A sample may be sent to be externally moderated by an external verifier to ensure the assignments meet the assessment criteria.  

The remaining component will be assessed by a controlled assessment which will be completed under exam conditions. This will take the format of a mixture of multiple choice and short-answer questions, as well as extended writing sections.  

Other information  

This course is worth 1 GCSE  

Who would this course suit?  

This course would be ideal for those who want to study Geography and/or Business Studies but want more of a broader overview with much simpler concepts compared to GCSE Geography so would make an excellent alternative.  

This course will allow pupils to progress onto a Level 3 course at college or to commence entry level training in the Travel and Tourism industry.