The University of the South Pacific (USP) was recently awarded by the International Centre of Excellence in Tourism and Hospitality Education (THE-ICE).

The award recognises Excellence for attaining the number one ranking on THE-ICE i-graduate International Student Satisfaction Global Index 2023 in the categories of ‘Recommendation’ and ‘Employability’.

In 2023, THE International Student Barometer and Student Barometer (ISBSB) was completed by 118,402 international students and 71,587 domestic students from 150 universities in 25 countries.

Overall, USP was ranked number one by students for ‘Recommendation’ to others thinking of applying and also ranked first for ‘Employability’, indicating students agreed that USP provided them with employability skills to join the workforce.

This award is an accurate indication that USP’s THE-ICE accredited programmes foster desirable employability attributes in all graduates, in accordance with USP’s Strategic Plan 2022-2024, and that USP is a premier institution.

THE-ICE is a global organisation for accreditation, benchmarking, and quality enhancement in tourism, hospitality, events, and culinary arts (TH&E) education, with a network of 35 members in 19 countries across four continents.

THE-ICE partnered with i-graduate in 2007 to conduct the annual THE-ICE ISBSB Student Satisfaction Survey, monitoring and benchmarking international (ISB) and domestic (SB) student expectations and satisfaction at THE-ICE accredited member institutions.

The Discipline of Tourism and Hospitality Management has been administering the ISB-SB survey since prior to 2018, when USP became a full member of THE-ICE. Participation in this student satisfaction research is mandatory for accredited members of THE-ICE and is completed by tourism and hospitality students across all levels and all years of study.

There are 10 tourism and hospitality programmes from certificate level to a PhD within the Discipline of Tourism and Hospitality Management and four at Pacific Technical & Further Education (Pacific TAFE), College for Continuing Vocational Education and Training that are accredited by THE-ICE.

Upon completion of their THE-ICE accredited programmes, students can request THE-ICE Diploma Supplement, which is a new initiative that encourages our students to promote the immense efforts USP has undertaken to become accredited by THE-ICE successfully.

THE-ICE Diploma Supplement affirms that the student has completed an internationally accredited programme at an internationally accredited institution. Students may also use THE-ICE Diploma Supplement to elevate their applications for postgraduate employment.

Dr Craig Thompson, THE-ICE Chief Executive Officer, said he is delighted and impressed by USP’s achievements, stating, “This award is a testament to the quality of THE programmes offered by USP, from the perspective of the most discerning and important stakeholders, students themselves.”

Professor Gurmeet Singh, Head of the School of Business and Management, said, ‘This is a proud moment for SBM and the discipline of Tourism and Hospitality Management, including Pacific TAFE. After THE and Shanghai ranking, this is another amazing news for the USP Discipline of Tourism and Hospitality Management. Our SBM and PTAFE staff members are working hard, and this result is another evidence of that.”

For more information, visit www.the-ice.org and www.usp.ac.fj