Reforming tourism and archaeology education in Palestine to meet industry expectations

ABSTRACT This paper first elaborates on the development of tourism and archaeology in higher education in Palestine over the last five decades. Then, it moves to evaluate the efforts of Palestine’s higher education sector to reform policies and practices related to specialised tourism programmes. An-Najah National University is one educational institution in Palestine that focuses on tourism and archaeology education. Between 2015 and 2017, the World Bank Unit of the Ministry of Higher Education in Palestine provided technical and financial assistance to develop the university’s undergraduate programme in tourism and archaeology. Against this background, the researcher has explored the effect of this project on the tourism and archaeology education programme in terms of meeting the market requirements and expectations. He discussed the relationship between the Palestinian tourism industry and higher education programmes and the challenges and sustainability of future undergraduate programmes and industry–academic relationships. He concluded with several recommendations and suggestions for future development based on past experiences.