The perception of strathmore community on hospitality and tourism programmes 

 

 

Submitted by 

Martha Muthoni Munene 

101125 

 

 

A research project submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirement for the degree of 

Bachelor of Science in Hospitality Management 

 

 

 

School of Tourism and Hospitality  

Strathmore University 

 

 

March 2021 



i 
 

DECLARATION 

 

 

This project is my ORIGINAL work and has not been presented for a degree in any other 

University. 

 

 

SIGNED_________M3__________             DATE ___17th March,2021___ 

 

 

Student name: Martha Muthoni Munene 

Student number: 101125 

 

 

 

 

This project has been submitted for review with my approval as University Supervisor. 

 

 

SIGNED__________________________          DATE_____________________________ 

 

 

 

 

Supervisor’s Name: Dr David Chiawo 

 

Senior Lecturer 

School of Tourism and Hospitality 

Strathmore University 

 

 



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ACKNOWLEDGEMENT   

 I thank the High Deity for instilling me with dedication, determination, learning spirit, purpose 

to help my classmates, energy and utmost good health in this research journey. To my proactive 

Supervisor Dr David Chiawo, I sincerely express my gratitude for your constant and consistent 

advice, guide, follow up, patience and corrections towards the successful writing of this 

research proposal. I would like to acknowledge my family, my mentor Dr Lucy Gikonyo and 

friends who acted as my God-sent driving force in every step of this remarkable project writing. 

I recognize the tremendous efforts and all-round the clock assistance made by the School of 

Hospitality and Tourism Faculty in availing me with all the essential resources to do my 

project. May God bless you all abundantly. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 



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ABSTRACT 

In over  83% of the world’s countries, the tourism and hospitality sectors are in the leading five 

brackets of Gross Distribution Profit contributors. Globally the employment status of the 

tourism and hospitality sector accounts for above 100 million jobs and is predicted to grow 

rapidly. Despite being a leading employment industry and generating highly to the GDP of 

both developed and developing countries worldwide, hospitality and tourism graduates are 

constantly opting to work in other industries. This study adopted a descriptive research design 

to examine the perception of the Strathmore community on hospitality and tourism 

programmes. A questionnaire was used to collect data using the stratified random sampling 

method from a sample size of 108 undergraduates and 27 staff from the Strathmore community. 

Means, content analysis and percentages were adopted in analysing the collected data for this 

research to help the community at large to embrace a true and correct perspective on hospitality 

and tourism programmes. Parents and siblings influence the selection of Hospitality and 

Tourism programmes. Society is drifting from the mindset that these programmes ‘only cook’. 

The main standing negative impression is that they are easy programmes done by students who 

failed in High school. The graduates’ diversity of skills set the pace for them securing jobs after 

graduation and employment mobility attracts them to the industry. 

 

 

  



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TABLE OF CONTENTS 

DECLARATION ................................................................................................................... i 

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT ..................................................................................................... ii 

ABSTRACT ........................................................................................................................ iii 

TABLE OF CONTENTS ..................................................................................................... iv 

LIST OF FIGURES .............................................................. Error! Bookmark not defined. 

LIST OF TABLES ............................................................................................................. viii 

CHAPTER ONE ................................................................................................................... 1 

INTRODUCTION ................................................................................................................ 1 

1.1. Background Information ......................................................................................... 1 

1.2. Problem statement ................................................................................................... 3 

1.3. General Objective ................................................................................................... 4 

1.4. Specific Objectives ................................................................................................. 4 

1.5. Research Questions ................................................................................................. 5 

1.6. Justification ............................................................................................................. 5 

CHAPTER TWO .................................................................................................................. 6 

LITERATURE REVIEW ...................................................................................................... 6 

2.1.Theoretical Review ...................................................................................................... 6 

2.1.1.Push-Pull Theory ...................................................................................................... 6 

2.1.2.The Cognitive Evaluation Theory ............................................................................. 7 

2.2.Empirical Review ........................................................................................................ 8 

2.2.1.Motivators of hospitality and tourism career choices ................................................. 8 

2.2.2.Competitiveness of hospitality and tourism programmes ........................................... 9 

2.2.3.Career importance of hospitality and tourism programmes ........................................ 9 

2.2.4.The intensity of hospitality and tourism programmes .............................................. 10 

2.2.5.The learning experience of hospitality and tourism programmes ............................. 11 

2.2.6.Industry exposure to hospitality and tourism programmes ....................................... 11 

2.2.7.The employability of hospitality and tourism graduates. .......................................... 12 



v 
 

2.2.8.Job attractiveness of hospitality and tourism industry .............................................. 13 

2.2.9.Global mobility of hospitality and tourism graduates............................................... 15 

2.3.Research gap.............................................................................................................. 16 

2.4.Conceptual Framework .............................................................................................. 16 

CHAPTER THREE ............................................................................................................. 17 

METHODOLOGY.............................................................................................................. 17 

3.1. Type of research design......................................................................................... 17 

3.2. Methods of data collection .................................................................................... 17 

3.3. Population ............................................................................................................. 17 

3.4. Sampling design .................................................................................................... 18 

3.5. Data analysis ......................................................................................................... 18 

CHAPTER 4 ....................................................................................................................... 19 

DATA ANALYSIS AND FINDINGS ................................................................................. 19 

4.1.Introduction ............................................................................................................... 19 

4.2.Background Information of the Respondents .............................................................. 19 

4.2.1.Category in Strathmore community ......................................................................... 19 

4.2.2.School/ Faculty or Department at Strathmore University ......................................... 20 

4.2.3.Learnt Strathmore offers Hospitality and Tourism programmes............................... 20 

4.3.Perception of Hospitality and Tourism Programmes as career choices........................ 21 

4.3.1.Source of motivation to choose these programmes .................................................. 21 

 ........................................................................................................................................ 21 

4.3.2.Career competitiveness amidst other careers ........................................................... 21 

4.3.3.Negative and positive perception about Hospitality and Tourism students ............... 22 

4.3.4.Career importance ................................................................................................... 23 

4.4.Perception of learning activities and experiences of Hospitality and Tourism 

programmes ..................................................................................................................... 23 

4.4.1.Intensity of learning these programmes ................................................................... 23 



vi 
 

4.4.2.The learning framework .......................................................................................... 24 

4.4.3.Attachment duration of these programmes .............................................................. 25 

4.5.Perception of the competitiveness of Hospitality and Tourism graduates .................... 25 

4.5.1.Securing employment ............................................................................................. 25 

4.5.2.Attraction to the Hospitality and Tourism sector ..................................................... 26 

4.5.3.Seeking opportunities abroad .................................................................................. 26 

CHAPTER 5 ....................................................................................................................... 27 

DISCUSSION, CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATION ........................................... 27 

5.1.Introduction ................................................................. Error! Bookmark not defined. 

5.2.Discussion ................................................................................................................. 27 

5.3.Conclusion ................................................................................................................. 29 

5.4.Recommendation ....................................................................................................... 29 

5.5.Limitations of the study ............................................................................................. 29 

5.6.Suggestions for further study ..................................................................................... 29 

REFERENCES .................................................................................................................. 30 

APPENDIX 1...................................................................................................................... 37 

QUESTIONNAIRE ............................................................................................................ 37 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 



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LIST OF FIGURES 

Figure 1: A Conceptual Framework on factors influencing Perception towards Hospitality 

and Tourism Programmes.................................................................................................... 16 

Figure 2:Categories of the sample size ................................................................................ 19 

Figure 3: Learnt that Strathmore University offers Hospitality and Tourism Programmes .... 20 

Figure 4: The perception of the source of motivation of career selection.............................. 21 

Figure 5: The perception of the  Hospitality and Tourism competitiveness amidst other 

careers choices .................................................................................................................... 21 

Figure 6: The perception of the Career Importance of Hospitality and Tourism Programmes23 

Figure 7: The perception of the learning intensity of Hospitality and Tourism programmes . 24 

Figure 8: The perception of the learning framework of Hospitality and Tourism programmes

 ........................................................................................................................................... 24 

Figure 9: The perception of the attachment duration ............................................................ 25 

Figure 10: The perception of the factor that scores a graduate highly in securing a job ........ 25 

Figure 11: The perception of what attracts graduates to the Hospitality and Tourism sector . 26 

Figure 12: The perception of why graduates seek opportunities abroad................................ 26 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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LIST OF TABLES 

Table 1:School/ Faculty/ Department .................................................................................. 20 



 

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CHAPTER ONE 

INTRODUCTION 

1.1.Background Information 

In over  83% of the world’s countries, the tourism and hospitality sectors are in the leading five 

brackets of Gross Distribution Profit contributors (Hafsa, 2020). The United States of America, 

the United Kingdom, Italy, and France are widely identified to do quite well in these sectors, 

and neither have the developing countries such as India, Thailand, Singapore, Bangladesh, and 

Malaysia been left behind. These sectors attract a large pool of labour due to their rich work 

diversity. In 2013, tourism rated at 9.5% to the global GDP and overall employment of 8.9% 

which equated to about 266 million jobs (Aynalem, Birhanu, & Tesefay, 2016).  With the 

extensive globalization impact, individuals in the world have been able to secure job 

opportunities and have their businesses facilitated through the hospitality and tourism sector 

(Holston-Okae, 2018).  

The backbone of a prosperous hospitality and tourism industry entirely depends on what 

motivates the students to choose these courses and the aftermath choices after completion  

(Njoroge, 2015). The Higher Education of Hospitality courses commenced in 1983 at Ecole 

Hoteliere de Lausanne, in Switzerland until 1922 when the United States pioneered the first-

degree program at Cornell University (Hsu, Xiao, & Chen, 2017). The United Kingdom was 

the foremost education exporter country among the European countries. Through its Higher 

National Diploma programmes such as hospitality and tourism business-oriented courses, have 

attracted and increased the popularity of international students around the globe (Rahimi & 

Akgunduz, 2017). 

Some hospitality students have extrinsic motivation whereby their decisions are controlled by 

their family, social groups, and education. Whereas others are internally motivated by interest 

and enjoyment of what their career offers (Njoroge, 2015). There have been seen efforts to 

oppose hospitality courses being in higher education but rather to have them as vocational 

subjects (Lugosi & Jameson, 2017). In Italy, residents support and appreciate aspects to do 

with tourism if the traditional leisure pursuits are not lost and if it brings sustainable 

developments to their livelihoods (Brida, Osti, & Faccioli, 2011)Where more positive aspects 

of tourism are felt, a positive attitude was developed by residents and high losses lead to a 

negative attitude (Kieti, 2013). Dharavi in Mumbai, the biggest slum in Asia, with more than 

1,000,000 people had over the last decades benefited from slum tourism (Dyson, 2012). Slum 



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tourism was a niche in tourism whereby tourists purposely travel to stretch out their 

philanthropic hand to the poor livelihoods like in India, Ethiopia and where natural calamities 

have recently occurred such as in Louisiana after it was struck by a hurricane (Kieti, 2013). 

Mekawy (2014) highlights that Cairo in Egypt conducts half-day slums tours which have 

improved the locals’ livelihood. From the biggest slum in South Africa, Soweto to Kenya’s 

Kibera slum most inhabitants is assertive that this type of tourism impacted their economy 

(Kieti, 2013).  

Hospitality and tourism education systems have immensely attracted students and drawn 

interest in research in the industry on the onset provision of these programmes in American 

institutions such as Cornell University (Hsu et al., 2017).In Europe especially in United 

Kingdom institutions, it was realized that hotel and catering graduates are motivated in pursing 

Management in hospitality programmes (Grobelna & Dolot, 2018).In China the drive behind 

the educational system in the hospitality and tourism workforce was identified with 33.2% 

acquired high school diplomas, 32.3% partook associate degrees, 17.4% went through 

secondary institutions, and the remaining 17.1% possess a bachelor degree or higher (Kotera, 

Adhikari, & Van Gordon, 2018).In Nigeria, hospitality and tourism institutions have impacted 

a rich competitive environment of high-quality productive frontline employees who are in close 

contact with the industry’s guests (Karatepe & Olugbade, 2016). 

In Nigeria, there had been a drastic drop of 2.5% from 2005 to 2014 of tourism contribution to 

employment. The negative impact on employment slowed down the returns on the tourism and 

hospitality sector (Yusuff & Akinde, 2015). This clearly shows how adequate employees leads 

to a successful return on the GDP. Kenya was reported to have 68 global hotel brands. Besides, 

by 2018, 14 more hotel brands were set to open in 2019 (Tourism Research Institute, 2018). 

This led to combined efforts of institutions like the Utalii College in collaboration with other 

Kenyan universities to reinforce and broaden the hospitality and tourism curricula to facilitate 

and meet the labour demand (Njoroge, 2015). 

Unfortunately, despite the tremendous benefits of the hospitality and tourism sector, its success 

was adversely affected by inadequate labour supply (Bamford, 2012; Grobelna, 2017; Grobelna 

& Dolot, 2018).In the UK an average turnover of 180% bar operations employees and 30% of 

frontline managers were revealed  (Kotera et al., 2018). With the dependency of younger 

generations to join the hospitality and tourism workforce, only 61% of the graduates remain in 

the industry for 5 years (Richardson & Thomas, 2012).In 2013, over 25 million US hospitality 

and tourism personnel resigned from their acting positions (Holston-Okae, 2018). It is also 



3 
 

noted that in the UK due to the turn-over rates of front-line employees, the cost of replacing 

them amounts to 1000 dollars (Kotera et al., 2018). Being a high labour-oriented industry, it is 

faced with high job turnovers which affect the retention of its highly skilled staff (Holston-

Okae, 2018). This was because many have the misconception of the industry being 

characterized by deficient working conditions, unskilled employees, below par remuneration, 

and minimal career progression (Daskin, 2016). These misguided narratives have led to a sector 

crowded with unskilled employees. This trembled the retention of hospitality and tourism 

graduates. Changes in the working environment have caused a gap in what the learning 

institutions offer versus what recruiters need. All these are greatly reliant on students’ 

perspectives, how competent and how they are to adapt to changes (Zaitseva, Goncharova, & 

Androsenko, 2016). 

To enhance thriving hospitality and tourism careers, the learning framework needs to be 

constantly reviewed and improvements made accordingly which goes hand in and with 

enlightening the society about the integral scope of the industry (Njoroge, 2015). The future of 

hospitality and tourism was dependent on the current and continuous follow up on 

recommendations made by academic professionals and industry practitioners (Daskin, 2016). 

Instilling confidence in students by letting them know what the industry needs are to absorb 

enthusiastic, disciplined, self-motivated, qualified and skilled employees (Richardson & 

Thomas, 2012). Therefore, this study sets the pace in understanding why there is a chain of 

poor regards towards the hospitality and tourism career choices.  

1.2.Problem statement 

Globally, the employment status of the tourism and hospitality sector accounts for above 100 

million jobs and was predicted to grow rapidly (Grobelna, 2017). In the United States in 2010, 

188 billion US dollars were used to meet the wages and salaries of an estimated 7.4 million 

tourism employees (Richardson & Thomas, 2012). In Bangladesh, proceeds from international 

tourism amounted to 1 billion in 2014 (Hafsa, 2020). In Asia in 2010, 1 in every 15.9 jobs in 

employment accounted for tourism jobs (Pang, 2010). In  Ethiopia 2014, its hospitality and 

tourism industry made up 8.5% of the country’s total employment which accumulated for 

2,291,500 jobs (Aynalem et al., 2016).In 2017, Kenya accounted for 1,137,000 direct, indirect 

and induced employment from the hospitality and tourism industry (AFDB, 2018). 

The irony was, despite being a leading employment industry and generating highly to the GDP 

of both developed and developing countries worldwide, hospitality and tourism graduates are 

constantly opting to work in other industries (Daskin, 2016). Moreover, high school leavers 



4 
 

shy away from selecting courses relating to this industry. Out of the many secondary school 

leavers, only 16.1% select these courses as first choices and 64.6% select them as a potential 

course (Schoffstall, 2013). Research indicates that 46% of the graduates seek employment in 

other industries and 61% of the graduates opt to leave to other industries after working for 

some years (Richardson & Thomas, 2012). The two-fold problems have caused tension in the 

employment sector leading to high turn-over of well-trained excellent employees in the 

industry (Aynalem et al., 2016). 

According to Schoffstall (2013), the problem roots up from the perceptions held about 

hospitality and tourism courses globally that shake up the absorption of students in hospitality 

and tourism institutions and the absorption of the graduates in the industry which immensely 

affects the employment sector (Daskin, 2016). Positive perspectives have been derived from 

individuals who have already worked in the industry (Richardson & Thomas, 2012). 

Unfortunately, the industry has had rising negative perspectives from individuals who’ve not 

had any experience in the industry where it was viewed as a low-paying, have poor recruitment 

processes, gender employee gaps and unattractive employer (Maxwell, Ogden, & Broadbridge, 

2010). Bahcelerli & Sucuoglu (2015) highlighted negative attitudes are scaring away potential 

practitioners for the industry such as international chain hotels which fetch foreign currency 

and contribute to the country’s GDP (Chand, 2016). 
1.3.General Objective 

To examine the perception of the Strathmore community on hospitality and tourism 

programmes. 

1.4.Specific Objectives 

i. To analyse the perception of the Strathmore community on hospitality and tourism 

programmes as career choices. 

ii. To determine the perception of the Strathmore community on learning activities and 

experiences of hospitality and tourism programmes. 

iii. To establish the perception of the Strathmore community on the competitiveness of 

hospitality and tourism graduates. 

 

 

 

 



5 
 

1.5.Research Questions 

i. What is the perception of the Strathmore community on hospitality and tourism 

programmes as career choices? 

ii. How does the Strathmore community perceive the learning activities and experiences 

in hospitality and tourism programmes? 

iii. What is the perception of the Strathmore community on the competitiveness of 

hospitality and tourism graduates? 

1.6.Justification 

This study seeks to explore and analyse the perspective that society holds towards hospitality 

and tourism programmes (Grobelna, 2017). This was dependent on the factor that it was a 

leading factor in the poor selection of these courses at only 16.1% as the first major choices in 

higher institutions of learning by secondary school leavers (Schoffstall, 2013). It was indicated 

that most tourism and hospitality graduates opt to work in other industries other than tourism 

(Daskin, 2016). Examining the perception held by these graduates helps to translate a positive 

angle to each shortcoming that deterred graduates’ motivation to work for the industry 

(Richardson & Thomas, 2012). Using this as feedback to enhance the experience and change 

any negative perception in the community to fully support the hospitality and tourism 

programmes (Kieti, 2013). Therefore this study sets the pace to examine the perception of the 

Strathmore community on hospitality and tourism programmes. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 



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CHAPTER TWO 

LITERATURE REVIEW 

2.1.Theoretical Review  

The selection of courses was driven by the motivations of individual students (Njoroge, 2015). 

The word motivation was stemmed from the Latin term movere, meaning to move. Therefore, 

theories of motivation help to elaborate on why students and graduates have a great inclination 

towards hospitality and tourism programmes and industry (Rahimi & Akgunduz, 2017). It 

further shows whenever potential hospitality and tourism students have prior exposure to the 

career, it boosts their pursue of these courses (Shroder, 2020). 

2.1.1.Push-Pull Theory 

This theory was first mentioned in 1966 by Everett Lee which mainly identified factors that 

forced natives to migrate to foreign lands (Aquino, Tuazon, Yap, & David, 2017). Mr Lee 

further classified it into push and pull factors. These factors help to explain what influenced 

migrants to desire to change their residences. So pushing people out of one area and pulling 

them into another. 

A Push and Pull motivation theory enable the understanding of which country hospitality and 

tourism students opt to study from, and graduates opt or seek opportunities to work. According 

to Rahimi & Akgunduz (2017), there are more educational and job opportunities for every 

individual abroad. Many practitioners in the industry are motivated and are willing to work 

abroad because these hospitality and tourism programmes are globally connected (Aquino et 

al., 2017). It clearly shows that students are motivated by different life aspects to go to study 

in foreign countries rather than their own (Kuo & Wong, 2019). 

Push factors are characterised by the differences in the country’s political, economic and social 

statuses (Rahimi & Akgunduz, 2017). Push factors are also identified with gauging if the 

mother country’s economy has the potential to meet the needs of aspiring hospitality and 

tourism students such as securing job opportunities (Wang, Hung, & Huang, 2019). The 

student's decision to study overseas was provoked by family members, determined by the entry 

grades and eagerness for a new exposure (Kuo & Wong, 2019). Whereas, according to Rahimi 

& Akgunduz (2017) pull factors features that students are imposed by attractive education 

opportunities such as abroad scholarships. The motivation of hospitality and tourism students 

to study in countries with fewer crimes rates, suitable weather conditions act as other 

underlying factors (Kuo & Wong, 2019). Moreover, personal satisfaction and the ability to 



7 
 

adapt to new community exposure (Rahimi & Akgunduz, 2017). Therefore, Push and Pull 

Theory sets pace as a background of where or institutions that potential hospitality and tourism 

students choose to study these programmes.  
2.1.2.The Cognitive Evaluation Theory 

According to Hendijani, Bischak, Arvai, & Dugar (2016), Mr Edward  Deci and Richard M. 

Ryan came up with the Cognitive Evaluation Theory in 1985. It was further divided into 

intrinsic and extrinsic motivators. The inspirers sought to evaluate the effect of external forces 

on internal self-drive and how the intrinsic and extrinsic forces shape our character and 

behaviour.  

Cognitive Evaluation Theory was further broken into intrinsic and extrinsic systems of 

motivations (Njoroge, 2015). This theory encompasses a gradual boost of the active 

participation and engagement of the students and the graduates in the hospitality and tourism 

industry (Putra, Cho, & Liu, 2017). A learning institution that encompasses the badging merit 

methods and credit stickers for students as rewards, pushes their motivation to even excel better 

in their studies  (Hendijani et al., 2016). Excessive availability of external sources of motivation 

may overpower the students’ or graduates innate desire to make self-driven decisions in line 

with their career (Shi, Connelly, & Hoskisson, 2017). 

 The intrinsic ones are characterised by personal awareness, self-esteem, and self-dares out of 

comfort zones whereas extrinsic motivation rewards like satisfactory scores, good 

remuneration, promotion opportunities and conducive working conditions (Hendijani et al., 

2016). Students feel more fulfilled in their decision-making process if at all insights were first 

felt intrinsically (Shi et al., 2017). A great distinction is intrinsic motivation originates from an 

individual whereas extrinsic motivation is influenced by third parties such as family and allies 

(Njoroge, 2015). Intrinsic cognitive needs are as well influenced by personal beliefs and the 

experiences gained and extrinsic cognitive needs are determined by the prevailing 

environmental changes (Wang et al., 2019).In summary, Cognitive Evaluation Theory acts as 

an internal or external underlying factor why potential students choose to study hospitality and 

tourism programmes. 

 

 

 

 



8 
 

2.2.Empirical Review 

The term perception originates from ‘perceptio’ in Latin which is elaborated as the 

understanding of our senses to interpret our neighbouring environment. The backbone of 

understanding the perceptions surrounding hospitality and tourism career choices goes way 

back as potential students decide on their career paths until they are absorbed in the industry. 

2.2.1.Motivators of hospitality and tourism career choices 

Assessing why hospitality and tourism students desire to pursue these courses was essential in 

drawing an effective learning framework (Njoroge, 2015). Most hospitality and tourism 

students choose to take these programmes from an intrinsic level without being obliged by third 

parties such as parents and friends (Qiu, Dooley, & Palkar, 2017). There was an extended 

impact on the role of advertising the diverse career choices. If an institution or an organisation 

designs a detailed captivating advertisement that captures the attention of potential subjects for 

the industry, more applicants show interest in the positions offered because they have a glimpse 

of the career offer (Chang & Tanford, 2018). 

Some students take a long route by first exploring what other courses offer before arriving at a 

final decision, which involves a grown-up mindset and a critical thought-process (Njoroge, 

2015). The availability of advanced studying opportunities such as scholarships for hospitality 

and tourism students either locally or foreign, motivates them to take up the career decision 

(Rahimi & Akgunduz, 2017). Others choose the tourism and hospitality courses after giving 

advice that comes from their families, relatives, mentors, teachers and close friends (Njoroge, 

2015). 

Career expectation of future job placements to have characteristics that Generation Y identify 

with and accommodate them. They were born in an era of advanced communication, therefore, 

sink in information rapidly, efficient multitaskers and instil the need for freedom of expression 

(Grobelna, 2017). The elaborate provision of hospitality and tourism courses in the four 

advanced curricula dimensions in offering certificates, diploma, degree and masters courses 

has attracted a vast number of applicants (Daskin, 2016). The anticipation to attain lucrative 

future job titles in the industry such as general managers has triggered an inspiration to pursue 

these programmes (Grobelna, 2017). 

 

 

 



9 
 

2.2.2.Competitiveness of hospitality and tourism programmes 

There was great interdependence between the hospitality and tourism curricula and the success 

of the industry (Daskin, 2016). The hospitality and tourism curricula have been enhanced four 

times over the past decades with a gradual shift from emphasizing practical training, to further 

diversification to other disciplines, then an upgrade of the courses to degree levels and finally 

the inclusivity of social sciences in the programmes (Hsu et al., 2017). The consecutive edition 

of disciplines surrounding these programmes has made the students stand out as an effective 

target for career appraisals amidst other programmes (Ring, Dickinger, & Wöber, 2009). 

However, the students are affected by the negative perspectives held by society and this deters 

them from shinning in their current career choices. These programmes are mainly associated 

with the female gender which ends up chasing away the potential male students and was 

associated with poor skills (Grobelna, 2017). The negative picture of poor labour supply that 

affects the labour-intensive industry, stirs up confusion in students on the need to learn in such 

a delicate industry (Daskin, 2016). Moreover, the industry was viewed as a non-serious 

occupation as its workforce was filled with part-timers, exploitation of students on internships, 

high turn-over of its employees and long working hours with poor pay (Richardson, 2009).  

The characteristics of the industry scare away the youthful generation who look forward to 

flexible working schedules, free weekends, work-family balance and non-repetitive jobs 

(Grobelna, 2017). Employers have identified employees as a competitive edge which has 

fostered the hospitality and tourism industry investing in a qualified skilled employee (Francis 

& Alagas, 2017). Whenever the students understand the characteristics of hospitality and 

tourism propel the continuity of the industry, then they begin to see the positive angle of these 

programmes despite societal negativity (Daskin, 2016). 

2.2.3.Career importance of hospitality and tourism programmes 

The support of the institutions offering hospitality and tourism courses has enhanced 

satisfaction and boosted the anticipation of students to work in the industry which in turn has 

raised a positive first impression by their employers (Stansbie & Nash, 2016). The current 

course enrichment of intertwining with multi-disciplinaries such as information technology, 

history and inclusion of social sciences has led to multi-skilled and knowledgeable students 

(Ring et al., 2009). Hospitality and tourism programmes are the basis of direct employment 

such as travel, destination booking, hotel and restaurants oriented occupations, and indirect 

employment for graduates through infrastructure, manufacturing, and accounting services 

occupations (Aynalem et al., 2016). 



10 
 

Depending on the levels of institutions whether diploma or degree that hospitality and tourism 

students took up, influenced their line of career preferences. Most dread working in the airlines 

and others to work in the hotel industry to attain monetary independence and career progression 

(Njoroge, 2015). The curricula educators have helped to effortlessly integrate the students into 

the working hospitality and tourism industry by walking them through the trends (Abou-Shouk, 

Abdelhakim, & Hewedi, 2014). The learning framework of the hospitality and tourism course 

gives a touch on the standards being embraced worldwide so that the students can have a sense 

of understanding of global hotel brands (Bouchon, Daya, & Ragavan, 2016). 

The hospitality and tourism institutions have led to the nurturing of a workforce that well 

rounded in the vocational, operational and management levels in the industry (Bouchon et al., 

2016). Besides, it has shaped students to acquire soft skills when relating to guests, solve 

industry-related problems and be better leaders of teams (Abou-Shouk et al., 2014). These 

aspects have led to reduced turnover rates and even encouraging employee retention in the field 

(Stansbie & Nash, 2016). 

2.2.4.The intensity of hospitality and tourism programmes 

The rapid expansion of tourism and hospitality in the entire globe has led to extensive 

competitiveness between institutions, expansion of faculties and advancement of the curricula 

(Abou-Shouk et al., 2014). The constant complaint by the industry practitioners of the 

mismatch of the hospitality and tourism curriculum and the industry trends has affected the 

delivery of the learning to the students (Zaitseva et al., 2016). This was a result of the 

programmes being highly technical rather than theoretical and the materials are inadequate in 

geographical distribution (Hsu et al., 2017). 

A thriving tourism and hospitality curricula were a result of combined efforts between the 

industry practitioners and the institutions (Daskin, 2016)A deficiency between the two, has led 

to the progressive failure of students in the courses which has resulted in limited success and 

limited research funding in the industry (Hsu et al., 2017). There was a mismatch learning 

perspective of the diploma level graduates as more technical than the degree graduates which 

has led to an ‘overqualified attitude’ among the degree level graduates (Njoroge, 2015). 

The hospitality and tourism programmes are accused of settling on training the technical aspect 

only which has created a deficiency in bringing a whole-rounded society graduate (Ring et al., 

2009). It was because of these misconceptions, there has been a rise of wasted learning 

opportunities for graduates who opt to choose other career paths other than the tourism and 



11 
 

hospitality courses (Grobelna, 2017).On the other end, it has led to a misinterpretation by the 

employers on what the graduates are likely to bring to the workplace (Njoroge, 2015). 

2.2.5.The learning experience of hospitality and tourism programmes 

Active learning methods where students are allowed to pass knowledge or lead their classmates 

as result they identify their strengths and flaws, as it was more oriented on discovering the 

potential of every single student (Chau & Cheung, 2017). This method was efficient for 

Generation Y who are passionate to learn from mistakes and being challenged out of their 

comfort zones (Grobelna, 2017). Learning based on the problem-solving, virtual and team-

oriented framework has had a tremendous impact on the individual students and has enhanced 

an active class interaction (Hsu et al., 2017). 

The vocational training helps the students to identify with what happens in the industry and 

therefore be more accustomed to the operating technical standards of the industry(Bouchon et 

al., 2016). Following a mixed strategy of passing knowledge to students such as integrating the 

curricula with internships, has boosted the morale of students and has, as a result, promoted the 

retention of staff in the industry (Stansbie & Nash, 2016). The specialization of hospitality and 

tourism programmes has enhanced the students’ decision to settle on areas they comfortable 

and passionate in like housekeeping, front office, service or marketing (Abou-Shouk et al., 

2014). 

It was from the practical learning experiences that students are nurtured to acquire managerial 

skills and exercise what the industry offers (Marinakou, 2013). There has been a consideration 

on the availability of students to take up the curricula whereby there has been inclusivity of 

part-time students apart from on full-time basis (Abou-Shouk et al., 2014). There are provisions 

for students to give overall feedback on all the curricula experience and complaints aired out 

are addressed for the sake of the success of future practitioners (Putra et al., 2017). 

2.2.6.Industry exposure to hospitality and tourism programmes 

Internships are a motivational source of students’ learning gratification for their career 

development (Marinakou, 2013). The student’s interactions with hospitality and tourism 

working environments when still pursuing these courses boosts their overall student 

experience. This aspect positively impacts their future working experiences in the industry and 

encouraged their retention (Shroder, 2020). Internship’s opportunities complement the 

institution’s learnt scope of hospitality and tourism programmes. This helps the student connect 



12 
 

between the aspects learnt in school and the reality in the workplace which facilitates industry 

capabilities (Stansbie & Nash, 2016). 

The internships are designed to benefit a three-fold system, the hosting industry, the student 

and the institution and therefore it results in a winning situation for the parties involved 

(Stansbie & Nash, 2016). These industry exposures leave an emotional connection of the 

industry on the student which has influenced their work engagement as future employees (Putra 

et al., 2017). Sometimes the internships are eye-opening opportunities as they help the students 

to identify the gaps in their curricula (Abou-Shouk et al., 2014). 

An encouragement to students to pursue a specific area of operation during their internship has 

an excellent outcome on career motivation (Stansbie & Nash, 2016). Successful internships are 

inclined to the use of outstanding qualified trainers to enhance a satisfactory learning and 

working environment for the students (Marinakou, 2013). Pre-career opportunities encourage 

career awareness, fill in the curricula niches, doubled up the student’s learning morale and 

ability to fit in the future industry (Shroder, 2020). 

2.2.7.The employability of hospitality and tourism graduates. 

The integrative element of perfect service in the hospitality and tourism industry was the 

employee and therefore was the backbone of a successful industry (Grobelna, 2017). However, 

the industry faces the challenge of attracting retaining graduates who study for these courses 

(Daskin, 2016). This entirely because the industry was associated with inflexible working 

hours, non-interactive working conditions and the industry has been severally viewed to have 

monotonous routines (Maxwell et al., 2010).In yet another study the industry was generally 

seen as an only female industry and was attributed to low entry skills for its employees 

(Bahcelerli & Sucuoglu, 2015). All these aspects collide with the expectations that graduates 

have especially Generation Y graduates who want a working experience that gives a balance 

to all life aspects such as career growth, friendships, family and gradual raise in their monetary 

positions (Grobelna, 2017). 

Being equipped with knowledge of the core units and the ability to professionally exercise the 

skills in communication are the two main elements that qualify graduates to be the best fit for 

the industry (Abou-Shouk et al., 2014). There was a further opportunity for the graduates to be 

taken back by the hospitality and tourism employers where they did their internships due to the 

already accustomed standards of the industry (Stansbie & Nash, 2016). Whenever the graduates 

at diploma or degree levels are unlucky to secure jobs in the formal sector, they opt to pursue 



13 
 

self-employment (Njoroge, 2015). Nevertheless, the hospitality and tourism industry has a 

wide scope of both indirect and direct employment for its employees which led to an assurance 

of graduates settling for great career opportunities, growth and exposure (Aynalem et al., 2016). 

Africa was renowned for its growing economies, with Nigeria, Egypt and South Africa leading, 

in the tourism industry which accumulated 24.6 million jobs in 2019 (WTTC, 2020). Moreover, 

by 2019, the growth rate of Tunisia’s travel and tourism sector grew by 12.9%, Rwanda had a 

remarkable 10.9% growth and Kenya had expanded by 4.9% (WTTC, 2020). Africa was 

anticipated by 2030, by UNWTO (United Nations World Tourism Organisation), to have an 

overall growth of up to 134 million tourist arrivals which translates to high job opportunities, 

over the years, for the graduates (AFDB, 2018; United Nations, 2018).  
From a recent study, it was highlighted that hospitality and tourism students who have 

undergone these programmes over a higher duration of four years, serve as are a quick target 

for employers (Fathoni et al., 2019). With the advancement in the curricula, the new stream of 

graduates to the industry was exercising a blend of technical skills and general knowledge in 

their interactions with guests (Adeyinka-Ojo, 2018). There are developing pipelines of 

international hotels chains with an anticipated opening of  113 hotels with a total of  21,430 

rooms in the upcoming years (AFDB, 2018). Marriott International brand sets the pace in high 

confidence of opening more than 200 hotels with 37,000 rooms or in the pipeline by 2026 

(AFDB, 2018). This explains why there was a good lead of over 80% of the hospitality and 

tourism graduates securing job opportunities in the industry after 6 months (Chand, 2016). 

2.2.8.Job attractiveness of hospitality and tourism industry 

The attractiveness of hospitality and tourism graduates means the likelihood of them being 

attracted to the industry right after completion of their studies (Adeyinka-Ojo, 2018). The 

industry always looks forward to absorbing graduates due to the high rates of staff turnover 

(Grobelna, 2017). Moreover, the industry was widely characterised by youthful employees who 

had prior exposure to the industry through internship opportunities in the hospitality and 

tourism industry (Stansbie & Nash, 2016). The industry was as well characterized by 

employment mobility which was by nature what aided employees to adjust according to their 

work-life circumstances (Cassel, Thulemark, & Tara, 2018). Information Communication 

Technologies was one of the driving forces in the industry and the transit to e-tourism has 

improved job productivity and attracted new applicants into the industry (Bekteshi & Bekteshi, 

2017). Sheresheva & Kopiski (2016) highlight that the hospitality and tourism employees have 



14 
 

an added advantage to get trained, retrained, advanced training and the industry was in constant 

contact with higher institutions of learning. 

A considerate human resource department in the industry that understands the nature of the 

millennials and Generation Y, has positively attracted graduates through posing favourable 

working environments (Grobelna, 2017). Graduates who are looking forward to career 

progression and experience without much emphasis on the unrealistic start-up salaries, tend to 

have a great work attraction which leads to their retention in the industry (Chand, 2016). 

Moreover, with the improvement in the human resource, recognition of employee after a job 

well done, a created sense of belonging and good remuneration attract graduates (Grobelna, 

2017).  

Generation Y falls under 1977 to 1994 years of birth (Cho, Bonn, & Han, 2018). They account 

for over 10% of the overall employment in the world(Yin, Li, Pui, & Kong, 2016). They are 

less attracted by monetary gains but rather by working for an industry that shows genuine 

concern for the community (Frye, Kang, Huh, & Lee, 2020). Generation Y prefers leisure time 

and needs additional job enrichment and value to boost their motivation(Brown & Thomas, 

Nicholas Bosselman, 2015). Moreover, Generation Y was attracted by well-defined individual 

roles, conducive working conditions and favourable vertical and horizontal organizational 

relations (Brown & Thomas, Nicholas Bosselman, 2015; Frye et al., 2020) 

Frye, Kang, Huh, & Lee (2020) highlight Generation Z synonymously as Millennials, who 

represent individuals born between the 1990s to 2000s (Cho et al., 2018). Generation Z was 

identified with a higher spirit of entrepreneurship of 17% than Generation Y at 11% (Cho et 

al., 2018). For this group to regulate the stress degree of their jobs and to have an 

accommodative work-life balance, they hop from one job to another and job mobility was well 

embraced in the hospitality and tourism industry (Cassel et al., 2018). This generation was 

closely associated with digitalization prefer convenience when working, social working 

environments and due to their short-lived attention span prefer speedy access to the relevant 

data (Elzen, 2019). With the new adoption of technology into the industry, hospitality and 

tourism graduates are aware that, they are looked upon as the ‘new blood’ to bring forth (ICT) 

Information Communication Technologies skills learnt (Bekteshi & Bekteshi, 2017). 

There exists a ‘struggle for the fittest ‘ hustle when seeking job opportunities in the hospitality 

and tourism industry whereby, entrepreneurs are in search of the best-qualified candidates and 

the lucky few, are heavily compensated and are assured of job security (Chand, 2016). A lot of 



15 
 

competition standouts amongst employees as a result of the graduate’s exposure to diverse 

working environments and impacted prior knowledge (Abas & Yustika, 2016). The attraction 

of job opportunities was reliant on the measures taken up by the human resource in absorbing 

and moulding graduates to reinforce a more stable industry free of labour shortages (Ismail & 

Daud, 2019).In the orientation stages of new employees to tourism and hospitality, ethical 

standards are embedded in them and this has greatly enhanced suitable job positioning and 

therefore enhanced attractive working conditions (Goh & Jie, 2019). For potential hospitality 

and tourism employee, their job security was dependent on the skills they possess which 

increases their chances of being employed (Cassel et al., 2018).  

2.2.9.Global mobility of hospitality and tourism graduates 

Mobility was identified with a shift between jobs, organisation or institutions within the same 

or far off geographical area rather than the initial residential location (Shroder, 2020). 

According to, the industry practitioners have posed their employees ‘exchange from one job to 

another as normal (Cassel et al., 2018)Through the aid of foreign hospitality and tourism 

scholarships, students have been enrichened to the global exposure which has, in turn, led to 

global partnerships and exchange programs between different nationalities (Rahimi & 

Akgunduz, 2017). The hospitality and tourism sector has been identified to be one of the 

leading employment contributors to the youthful generation, women and migrants from the 

entire globe (Aynalem et al., 2016). 

Whenever these graduates seek employment or further education in foreign countries, they 

undergo a cross intercultural change touching on their new living conditions, food changes, 

interactions with new residents and school or job modifications (Bierwiaczonek & Waldzus, 

2016). It was further noted that with the upcoming international brands worldwide, graduates 

are more assured of being exposed to exquisite global aspect as they progress with their career 

(Bouchon et al., 2016). Quick adaptation to international life adjustments by identifying factors 

that favour them, enhances their expatriate experience as graduates (Bierwiaczonek & 

Waldzus, 2016). 

Depending on the opportunities rendered by the host country, more and more social interactions 

are enhanced between the expatriate and the citizens which have led to intermarriages and have 

spurred better relationships amongst their circles of colleagues or even schoolmates 

(Bierwiaczonek & Waldzus, 2016). This mobility has been made successful by the support of 

better transportation systems; airlines and advanced communication technologies; social media 

(Colomer, 2017). International mobility of graduates creates an opportunity for them to 



16 
 

discover and learn from foreign societies and create a base for an added exposure in line with 

the hospitality and tourism sector (Page, 2019). 

2.3.Research gap 

The empirical framework of this study had few research articles as references within the 10 

years difference to to-date. Research papers that matched up with the topic of this study, ranged 

from years 1984 – 2009. Therefore, most of these references did not capture aspects of what 

the community at large perceived of the hospitality and tourism programmes. Most articles 

focused on the perception of hospitality and tourism graduates on their industry and motivation 

of hospitality and tourism employees. This study aims to uncover the perception that the 

community has towards hospitality and tourism programmes and help embrace a true and 

positive perception of these programmes. 

2.4.Conceptual Framework 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

  

Figure 1: A Conceptual Framework on factors influencing 

Perception towards Hospitality and Tourism Programmes 



17 
 

CHAPTER THREE 

METHODOLOGY 

3.1.Type of research design 

This study used a descriptive research design because this paper had few references therefore 

it aided in giving explanations on the missing perception of this study. Moreover, it stood out 

as been the highest adopted research design by most of the research articles referenced in this 

paper. This design employed a qualitative methodology to examine the perception of the 

Strathmore community on hospitality and tourism programmes. The focus was directed on 

collecting primary data from the respondents to get first-hand information. 

3.2.Methods of data collection 

A questionnaire was developed to form survey questions from the specific objectives of this 

study. Google forms were used in drafting the questionnaire. The questionnaire design 

comprised of both open and close-ended structured questions. The answering options were a 

mix of multiple choices, Likert scale and paragraph answers. WhatsApp, a cross-messaging 

platform was being used to distribute and collect self-administered questionnaires to the staff 

and undergraduate students of the Strathmore community. 

3.3.Population 

The target population was the Strathmore community which has a group of individuals found 

in Strathmore University. Strathmore University is a  private university found along Ole 

Sangale road which is 5km away from Nairobi town. It is rich in diversity of students and staff 

and has its education segments classified into schools and faculties namely, School of 

Humanities and Social Sciences, School of Computing and Engineering Science, School of 

Tourism and Hospitality, Strathmore University Institute of Mathematical Sciences, 

Strathmore Law School, Strathmore Institute of Management & Technology and Strathmore 

University Business School. Previously the total population of this study was 5,050 individuals 

which were in two folds, 4,200  undergraduates and 850 staff. Unfortunately, due to the impact 

of COVID-19, the physical population was affected as social distancing became the new norm, 

the staff’s working hours were reduced and online learning was adopted. Therefore to mitigate 

the sample size of  365 undergraduates and 272 staff, a precision of 9.5% was used on the 

students’ population and 19% of the precision on the staff’ population. This change brought a 

sample size of 108 undergraduates and 27 staff. 

 



18 
 

3.4.Sampling design 

A stratified random sampling method was adopted based on the two categories: the 

undergraduates and staff of the Strathmore community. Therefore a sample size of 108 

undergraduates and 27 staff from the Strathmore Community. The different schools and 

faculties the undergraduates belong to and the different departments that the staff serve from 

acting as a second distinguishing aspect. 

3.5.Data analysis 

The specific objectives of this study formed the basis of how the collected data from our target 

population was analysed. To analyse the perception of the Strathmore community on 

hospitality and tourism programmes as career choices, the analysis generated both percentages 

and means for the multiple choices and the Likert scale whereas the open-ended questions used 

the content method of analysis. To determine the perception of the Strathmore community on 

learning activities and experiences of hospitality and tourism programmes, percentages were 

used to analyse the questionnaire responses. To establish the perception of the Strathmore 

community on the competitiveness of hospitality and tourism graduates, the use of mean was 

adopted in the analysis. Therefore, a blend of means, content analysis and percentages were 

adopted in analysing the collected data for this research to help the community at large to 

embrace a true and positive perception of hospitality and tourism programmes. Pie charts, a 

table, a funnel, clustered bars and columns were used for data presentation purposes. 

  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 



19 
 

CHAPTER 4 

FINDINGS 

4.1.Introduction 

Following the distribution of questionnaires through WhatsApp to staff and students of the 

Strathmore community, a 100% response was achieved from the 135-sample size of the target 

audience. Therefore, this chapter sets the pace for the analysis of the primary data and findings 

collected concerning this study. 

4.2.Background Information of the Respondents 

This section of the questionnaire sought the profile of the respondents in terms of the category 

they represented in the Strathmore community, the faculties/schools or departments they 

belonged to and finally when they learnt that Strathmore offers Hospitality and Tourism 

Programmes. 

 

4.2.1.Category in Strathmore community 

A total of 27 staff members and 108 undergraduate students participated in the study.20% of 

the sample size represented the staff and 80% the undergraduates. Figure 2 below showcases 

the results.  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

                              

            

 Figure 2:Categories of the sample size 

 

 

 

Undergraduate Staff



20 
 

4.2.2.School/ Faculty or Department at Strathmore University 

The target audience was requested to indicate the school or faculty or department they identify 

with. The response rate from Strathmore Law school was very poor, with only 2 staff and 3 

undergraduates, because they were inaccessible due to remote learning and the researcher had 

few contact details which affected the distribution of the questionnaires. One staff identified 

belonging to the Admin department. Table 1 below summarizes the findings. 

SCHOOL /FACULTY/DEPARTMENT TOTAL PERCENTAGE 

OTHER 1 1% 

Strathmore Law School 5 4% 

Strathmore Institute of Management & Technology 12 9% 

School of Computing and Engineering Science 15 11% 

Strathmore University Institute of Mathematical Sciences 16 12% 

School of Humanities and Social Sciences 22 16% 

School of Tourism and Hospitality 23 17% 

Strathmore University Business School 41 30% 

Table 1: School/ Faculty/ Department at Strathmore University involved in the study 

4.2.3.Learnt Strathmore offers Hospitality and Tourism programmes 

Both students and staff that responded to this study, were requested to state when they learnt 

that Strathmore University offers Hospitality and Tourism programmes. Most of the 

respondents indicated to have learnt this aspect before joining Strathmore. The overall feedback 

is presented in Figure 3 below. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

49

40

25

15

6

0 10 20 30 40 50 60

Before joining Strathmore

On  joining Strathmore

A shorter period after joining Strathmore

A  longer period after joining Strathmore

Today

TOTALS

W
H

E
N

Figure 3: Learnt that Strathmore University offers Hospitality and Tourism Programmes 



21 
 

4.3.Perception of Hospitality and Tourism Programmes as career choices 

As the second section, this matched the first objective of this study. It sought to acquire 

responses that surround the perception motivators of choosing  Hospitality and Tourism 

programmes as career choices amidst other careers and their career importance. 

4.3.1.Source of motivation to choose these programmes 

The respondents were asked to identify in their perspective on what would drive potential 

Hospitality and Tourism students to select these programmes as potential career choices. An 

alternative was provided for respondents to express their thoughts. 7 feedbacks were retrieved 

where respondents associated the motivation to passion, it varied for everyone, others specified 

“Myself ”and another did not know. Figure 4 below presents the data collected. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

4.3.2.Career competitiveness amidst other careers 

In comparison to other career options, the respondents were asked to rate the competitiveness 

of Hospitality and Tourism programmes. Figure 5 below presents the responses. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

7

21

57

32

18

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Not competitive Slightly

competitive

Moderately

competitive

Competitive Very competitive

1 2 3 4 5

Figure 4: The perception of the source of motivation of career selection 

Figure 5: The perception of the  Hospitality and Tourism competitiveness amidst other careers choices 



22 
 

4.3.3.Negative and positive perception about Hospitality and Tourism students 

This was an open-ended section that required the staff and students in the Strathmore 

community to express how they feel about students who take up Hospitality and Tourism 

programmes. The responses had both positive and negative views. Most of the feedback was 

positive.  

The most dominant positive responses were excellent interpersonal and management skills and 

are passionate about what they do. Moreover, the respondents commented that the students 

genuinely care about people, they are keen observers, brave, patient, creative and are 

extroverted. Some respondents highlighted that some of these students are serious and quite 

determined with life and they look good in their diverse uniforms. They have good table 

etiquette, they are hardworking, humble, kind and disciplined. Hospitality and tourism students 

have a wide pool of career options, they have exposure and appreciate art. Several respondents 

expressed that they are people who believe in themselves even after facing discouragement 

from their peers, friends and family. The Hospitality and tourism students are flexible, 

anticipate customer needs, have high emotional intelligence, are good-looking and are 

cooperative. Most students are highly likely to be entrepreneurs, they are likely to secure jobs 

immediately they complete their degree, they are in a competitive market and they are the 

necessary change that is needed to boost the hospitality and tourism sector in Kenya. 

The most dominant negative response was that Hospitality and Tourism students chose these 

programmes because they are easy and the students are lazy. To add, these students only learn 

to cook and clean, it is a course for females, they are learning an unmarketable course, they 

tend to be too easy-going with life and are not highly learned, people. Some of them are less 

vocal, they failed in core subjects in High school such as Mathematics, they can be mean and 

good at the same time. Some students took these programmes as a last option for lack of a 

choice. It is a course for failures, is perceived as easy as compared to other courses and is too 

common and can be done by anyone. There are no jobs for these students in the economy due 

to few opportunities, they do not get off days during holidays and they are accustomed to poor 

pay. 

 

 

 

 



23 
 

4.3.4.Career importance 

Options for only one selection were provided by the researcher that included the basis of future 

employment in the industry, whole-rounded workforce, enrichment from other multi-

disciplinaries, integration to the world, introduction to the new trends or all the choices 

mentioned. They are represented a few of the career importance of Hospitality and Tourism 

Programmes. Figure 6 below showcases the results generated with ‘all the above’ scoring the 

highest selection by 43 respondents. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

4.4.Perception of learning activities and experiences of Hospitality and Tourism 

programmes 

As the third section of acquiring responses, it brought into light how staff and students in 

Strathmore Community gauge the intensity of learning, the learning framework of Hospitality 

and Tourism programmes and how long their attachment lasts. 

4.4.1.Intensity of learning these programmes 

The responses collected were regarding how hard or simple staff and students in Strathmore 

Community view the learning framework of  Hospitality and Tourism programmes. Most of 

the feedback at 67 respondents, perceived the learning intensity of Hospitality and Tourism 

programmes to be of moderate intensity. Only 7 respondents each selected ‘very simple’ and 

‘very hard’ options which contradicted the content analysed under the negative perception held 

against Hospitality and Tourism students. This was because the highest negative feedback 

6

12

15

21

38

43

0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45 50

Introduction to the new trends

Integration to the world

Enrichment from other multi-

disciplinaries such as law, engineering…

Whole-rounded equipped workforce.

Basis of future employment in the

Hospitality and tourism industry

All the above

IM
P

O
R

T
A

N
C

E

Figure 6: The perception of the Career Importance of Hospitality and Tourism Programmes 



24 
 

stated that they were simple and easy programmes. Figure 7 below presents the results 

generated. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

4.4.2.The learning framework  

This explored the mindset of the target audience on what Hospitality and Tourism programmes 

curricula encompassed. The researcher Figure 8 below shows the data findings. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

7
11

67

43

7

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

Very simple Moderately simple Moderate Moderately hard Very hard

1 2 3 4 5

T
O

T
A

L
S

Level of intensity

2

7

23

103

0 20 40 60 80 100 120

Industry attachments

Practicals only

A blend of practicals and theoretical work

A blend of practicals, theoretical work and

industry attachments

TOTALS

Figure 7: The perception of the learning intensity of Hospitality and Tourism programmes 

Figure 8: The perception of the learning framework of Hospitality and Tourism programmes 



25 
 

4.4.3.Attachment duration of these programmes 

As a major requirement for the successful completion of these programmes, attachments are a 

key necessity. The figure below presents the feedback generated from the respondents. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

4.5.Perception of the competitiveness of Hospitality and Tourism graduates 

The last section concentrated on acquiring feedback on the perception of life Hospitality and 

Tourism graduates in terms of them securing jobs, attraction to the career and what motivated 

them to seek opportunities abroad. 

4.5.1.Securing employment 

The clustered bar below indicates the responses generated from the findings concerning what 

factors scores graduates highly in securing a job after graduation. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

  

 

3 Months 6 Months 1 Year

Figure 9: The perception of the attachment duration 

10 11 12

37

65

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

Their

undergraduate's

grades

Existence of local

and international

brands

Their former

industry

attachments

Contact between

the learning

institutions and the

Industry.

Diversity of their

skills

T
O

T
A

L
S

Figure 10: The perception of the factor that scores a graduate highly in securing a job 

 

 

 

 



26 
 

4.5.2.Attraction to the Hospitality and Tourism sector 

Graduates are driven by certain aspects to work in this sector right after completion of their 

programmes. Based on the provision of choices, the figure below presented the findings 

collected. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Figure 11: The perception of what attracts graduates to the Hospitality and Tourism sector 

 

4.5.3.Seeking opportunities abroad 

The target audience was requested to give their perspective on why some graduates seek 

opportunities abroad. Choices were provided in addition to an option to express any thoughts 

that the choices did not meet. Such responses accounted for only 5 that included the need for 

more money, adventure, better salaries, informed by personal interest, better remuneration 

abroad and opportunities for self-development. The clustered column below shows the 

breakdown of the responses as per the findings of this study. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

12

14

24

29

56

0 10 20 30 40 50 60

Extensive training

Career progression

Entrepreneurship

Employment mobility

Exposure

TOTALS

F
A

C
T

O
R

S

1
5

14

37

78

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

Social life changes

such as

intermarriages

Other Scholarship

opportunities

Career progression Need for more

global exposure

T
O

T
A

L
S

Figure 12: The perception of why graduates seek opportunities abroad 



27 
 

CHAPTER 5 

DISCUSSION, CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATION 

5.1.Discussion 

The three main aspects of this study focused on the perception of the selection of these 

programmes, the learning framework and competitiveness of Hospitality and Tourism 

graduates. Selection of these programmes further dived into,  source of motivation of selection, 

the competitive comparison amidst other courses and career importance of these programmes. 

The learning framework identified perception of the intensity of learning these programmes, 

the learning experience and exposure to the industry. The competitiveness of graduates tackled 

the perception of their employability, which attracts them to the industry and their global 

mobility. 

Based on the results, the source of motivation to select these programmes was perceived to be 

from parents and siblings than from the students themselves. This is aspect is confirmed where 

extrinsic cognitive need in making a career choice is influenced by family and friends (Njoroge, 

2015). Whenever the students themselves explore doing these programmes, they take their time 

to critically arrive at the career decision (Njoroge, 2015). It was perceived that Hospitality and 

Tourism programmes were moderately competitive amidst other career choices. The upgrade 

in the Hospitality and Tourism programmes, makes the students stand out from other careers 

and they set a pace in getting career appraisals (Ring et al., 2009). From this study, it was 

recognized that the career importance was greatly appreciated such as the basis of future 

employment in the industry, whole-rounded workforce, enrichment from other multi-

disciplinaries, integration to the world an introduction to the new trends. According to 

Bouchon, Daya, & Ragavan (2016), this career has imposed knowledge on the worldwide 

trends and Stansbie & Nash (2016), expressed the satisfaction of employers by the multi-skilled 

Hospitality and Tourism employees. 

The learning intensity of Hospitality and Tourism programmes was gauged to be moderate 

despite the negative feedback that most Hospitality and Tourism students chose the career 

because it is perceived to be easy and is seen as the last standing resort for students who failed 

in core subjects in high school. This ideology of being easy programmes drives to the aspect 

of why there are many unskilled employees in the Hospitality and Tourism sector (Daskin, 

2016). Among the evident identified positive perception with regards to the Hospitality and 

Tourism students were, passion-driven students, they have top-notch managerial skills, soft 

skills, interpersonal skills, artistic skills and are emotionally intelligent individuals. Abou-



28 
 

Shouk, Abdelhakim, & Hewedi (2014), identifies Hospitality students to be efficient leaders, 

proactive problem solvers and soft skills equipped. There was a change in perception on the 

learning framework of Hospitality and Tourism programmes as previously most individuals 

identified it being “a course for only cooking” to a course that provides a blend of practical 

works, theoretical work and industrial attachments. This conflict has dwindled due to the 

gradual shift from practical training to further diversification into multi-disciplinaries that have 

enrichened these programmes (Hsu et al., 2017). Following the perception of how long the 

industrial attachments should run, six months had the strongest vote. Internships act as pre-

career eye-openers that satisfy the curricula gaps that benefit the hosting industry, the student 

and the Hospitality and Tourism institutions (Shroder, 2020; Stansbie & Nash, 2016). 

Among the positive remarks that were given in association with Hospitality and Tourism 

students were most are likely to be entrepreneurs and the majority secure job opportunities 

immediately after graduation. Cho, Bonn, & Han (2018), identifies Generation Z to have a 

higher spirit of entrepreneurship than Generation Y. Over 80% of Hospitality and Tourism 

graduates secure jobs after 6 months (Chand, 2016). The results of this study identified negative 

comments such as they are careers with no holidays, female course and poor pay. According 

to Grobelna (2017), labour intensiveness, no free weekends and holidays and long working 

hours with inadequate pay scare away potential employees to the Hospitality and Tourism 

sector. It is a course that is identified with female students (Bahcelerli & Sucuoglu, 2015; 

Grobelna, 2017). 

The diversity of Hospitality and Tourism graduates’ skills was identified to be a leading factor 

why most graduates secure jobs on completion of their academics. Whenever the graduates are 

equipped with the knowledge of the core units and can practically exercise them professionally 

in the workforce, that guarantees them as the best fit for the industry (Abou-Shouk et al., 2014). 

The leading perception aspect of what attracts the Hospitality and Tourism graduates to the 

industry was exposure followed by employment mobility. According to (Grobelna, 2017), the 

adjustment to life circumstances of most Hospitality and Tourism employees is enhanced by 

the nature of mobility of their employment. Lastly, from the results, the factor that drives most 

graduates to seek opportunities abroad is the need for more global exposure followed by career 

progression. Rahimi & Akgunduz (2017), identify global exposure as a factor that draws 

graduates abroad whereas Bierwiaczonek & Waldzus (2016), believe scholarships or academic 

progression or intermarriages draw graduates abroad. 

 



29 
 

5.2.Conclusion 

Parents and siblings influence the selection of Hospitality and Tourism programmes. Society 

is drifting from the mindset that these programmes ‘only cook’. The main standing negative 

impression is that they are easy programmes done by students who failed in High school. The 

graduates’ diversity of skills set the pace for them securing jobs after graduation and 

employment mobility attracts them to the industry. 

5.4.Recommendation 

This study identified that there was minimal contact between these institutions and the 

secondary institutions which contributed to the low marketability of these programmes and the 

rise of negative perception towards those students who ended up pursuing these programmes. 

The institutions offering these programmes should harness ways of instilling hope and being 

their constant support from the onset of their career choice. 

5.3.Limitations of the study 

During the data collection, the researcher had a challenge in convincing Strathmore staff and 

students to fill in the questionnaire. Most respondents could assume the message and hence 

took a longer time frame to achieve enough responses. This is because they were being 

administered online and the impact of Coronavirus guidelines on social distancing restricted to 

face-to-face follow-up on the target audience. To counter this challenge an adjustment of the 

sample size of the population was made. 

5.4.Suggestions for further study 

There needs to be more research on this study and this research writing focused on two sets of 

individuals, the students and staff of the Strathmore community, which may not have been a 

perfect representation of the diverse groups, generations and mindsets of a community setting. 

  

 

 

 

  



30 
 

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37 
 

APPENDIX 1 

QUESTIONNAIRE 

 

THE PERCEPTION OF STRATHMORE 

COMMUNITY ON HOSPITALITY AND TOURISM PROGRAMMES 

My name is Martha Muthoni Munene, currently, a 4th year Strathmore University student 

pursuing a bachelor’s in hospitality management. Partaking this study fulfils academic 

purposes and upon submission, grants me partial fulfilment of the award of my bachelor’s 

degree. The objective of this study is to examine the perception of the Strathmore 

community on Hospitality and Tourism programmes.  

This study seeks to acquire responses from the Strathmore community, both full-time 

undergraduates and staff of  Strathmore University. The responses from this questionnaire, 

with great assurance, will remain anonymous, confidential and the collected data will only 

seek to fulfil academic research purposes.  

Kindly fill in this questionnaire that will take  4 minutes maximum of your time. 

Thank you! 

* Required 

SECTION A                                                                                          BACKGROUND INFO. 

1. Which category do you belong to in the Strathmore community? * 

Undergraduate  

Staff 

2. Which School/ Faculty or Department at Strathmore University do you identify yourself 

with? * 

School of Humanities and Social Sciences 

School of Computing and Engineering Science 

School of Tourism and Hospitality 

Strathmore University Institute of Mathematical Sciences 

Strathmore Law School 

Strathmore Institute of Management & Technology 

Strathmore University Business 

School Other: 

 



38 
 

3. When did you learn that Strathmore offers Hospitality and Tourism programmes? * 

Before joining Strathmore 

On joining Strathmore 

A shorter period after joining Strathmore 

A longer period after joining Strathmore 

Today 

SECTION  

B  

1. Who are the motivators of the selection of these programmes as career choices? * 

Parents or siblings 

Secondary institutions/ High school 

The students themselves 

Career fairs to Form 4 leavers 

Advertisements on the social 

media Other: 

 
 

2. How would you rate the competitiveness of Hospitality and Tourism programmes amidst 

other career choices? *. 

 1 2 3 4 5 

 

3. What (negative/positive) perspective do you have about students who choose Hospitality 

and Tourism programmes? * 

 

 

 

 

 

  



39 
 

 
4. What career importance do you depict from hospitality and tourism programmes? * 

Basis of future employment in the Hospitality and tourism industry 

Enrichment from other multi-disciplinaries such as law, engineering and 

accounting 

Introduction to the new trends 

Integration to the world 

Whole-rounded equipped workforce. 

All the above 

SECTION 

C 

1. How would you rate the intensity of learning Hospitality and Tourism Programmes? * 

 1 2 3 4 5 

 
 

2. What makes up the learning framework of Hospitality and Tourism programmes? * 

Practicals only 

A blend of practicals and theoretical work 

Industry attachments 

A blend of practicals, theoretical work and industry attachments 

3. For how long do you think the Hospitality and Tourism industry attachments should run? * 

3 Months 

6 Months 

1 Year 

 

 

  

   
 



40 
 

 
1. What SCORES HOSPITALITY AND TOURISM GRADUATES HIGHLY IN 

SUCCESSFULLY SECURING JOBS IN THE EMPLOYMENT SECTOR? *  

Their former industry attachments 

Their undergraduate's grades 

Existence of local and international brands 

Diversity of their skills 

Contact between the learning institutions and the Industry. 

 

2. What makes it attractive to work in the Hospitality and Tourism industry? * 

Exposure 

Extensive training 

Employment mobility 

Career progression 

Entrepreneurship 

3. Why do Hospitality and Tourism graduates seek opportunities abroad? * 

Scholarship opportunities 

Need for more global exposure 

Social life changes such as intermarriages 

Career 

progression 

Other: 

 

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