International Travel Preferences of Graduating Students

Abstract

Graduating students represent a potentially viable segment of international travel. The changing demographics of international travel would indicate that students represent a growing proportion of international travellers. Recent estimates that this segment constitutes 20 percent of all international travellers despite the substantial size and economic significance of the student segment of the international travel industry, little is known about the characteristics of this portion of the industry – the patterns of behaviour and motives of students travelling overseas – or how they plan their travel. A review of the literature has revealed very few studies exist on international travel by students. This paper provides further insights into the discrete market of graduating commerce students. The sample comprised both local and regional students from Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand and Hong Kong.