The Ecotourism profession at the University of Costa Rica: An Analysis from the Perspective of its Graduate Population

Abstract

This article aims at describing the general perception of the graduates of the  Bachelor degree in Ecological Tourism and the Licentiate Degree in Ecotourism Management at the University of Costa Rica about their formation process in this discipline as well as on their professional performance. The methodology addressed a quantitative approach and used a sample of 251 students who graduated from 1995 to 2014. The sampling technique implemented was the stratified probability type, considering the total number of graduates of each academic unit where they obtained their diploma as the sample. A database with contact information of all graduates of the mayor was used as well as a questionnaire, which was applied online. The results show their opinions about their formation, the use of the knowledge acquired, skills and attitudes of their professional profile, the application of sustainable development theory and its application to tourism; In relation to the academic characteristics required to perform better in the job market, to the languages like English, French to German; Among the priority areas of the context where the career should be focused, it is important to support micro-entrepreneurs and vulnerable communities of tourism; And among the mechanisms to strengthen the insertion of professional practice. They are exposed related to the permanence in the labor market and finally, the needs are evidenced and several actions are proposed to improve the academic work of this discipline. The study is relevant and constitutes a reference for the process of improvement of the career in all academic units where it is taught. The difficulty of the investigation was to contact the graduates, a population of difficult access.