Importance of practical work for students in the field of tourism

Contemporary trends in tourism in recent decades are leading to a constant increase in tourism activity worldwide. This unique phenomenon leads to expansion of tourist movements and opening of businesses that are directly or indirectly associated with it. Because of the rapid pace of development of tourism there is a critical need for professional staff in this field. Higher education institutions are places where students acquire knowledge and skills in a particular area. Besides theoretical background, curriculum also contains practical work. The practical work is a system for training and preparing students for their future profession. There are many types of practical work defined under various criteria, but the criteria for the division of different types of practical work are subject to constant change due to the rapid development of industry, information techniques and technologies, globalization and many other factors. The practical work is very important for students in terms of their personal and professional development. Often, the practical work is introduced through joint initiatives by the public sector, universities, faculties, student unions, high schools and chambers of commerce. The objectives of the practical work should be set in relation to competence expected of the students and they should comply with the legitimate expectations of the training. The practical work is widely recognized student activity in the European countries, in the US and worldwide. In this paper, a comparative analysis of the practical work and its place in curriculum in selected faculties of tourism in the Republic of Macedonia was conducted. The main method used in this paper is an analysis of the content of curriculum using official web pages of selected institutions. The research that was done for the purposes of this paper points to the fact that in the Republic of Macedonia, the universities that offers tourism programs pay serious attention to practical work