Travel Agents Essay, Research Paper
Travel Agents
Travel agents make travel arrangements for individuals or
groups. They plan itineraries, make reservations for hotels,
transportation, or tours. Also, prepare tickets, suggest places to go,
give brochures, and gives all the information to the person traveling.
In this job you have to atlears have a high school diploma. Many
vocational schools offer 6-12 week full-time travel agent programs. A
few colleges offer a bachelor?s and master?s degree in travel and
tourism. The skills needed would have to do with operating word
processors, selling products or services, giving information on events
and procedures, and waiting on customers. Some high level skills
would be planning, giving information, computing, and totaling
charges. The salary for travel agents is anywhere between
$20,000-$40,000. It usually depends how long you work there. The
longer you work the more money you make.
The working conditions are usually sitting at a desk in an office.
The have a computer to use for reservations. They can talk to
customers in person or on the phone. Travel agents have a stressful
job sometimes because they may have to deal with airline delays,
weather emergencies, incorrect information, or computer failure.
travel agents have very different schedules. They may work
forty-hour weeks, but also work evenings and Saturdays. Also, a lot
of overtime work may be expected.
There?s a very small number of job openings for this job. A total
of 6,628 annual job openings is expected between 1996 and 2006.
The outlook is increasing. The employment change from 1996 and
2006 is estimated to be +33.5%. This is a small occupation in the
United States, employing 119,856 workers in 1996.
The typical tasks connected with this job would be to describe,
plan, arrange, and sell travel packages offered by different travel
carriers. Also, mostly anything to do with knowing direction,countries,
cities, states, and a
organized; otherwise, your job will not be successful.
The aptitudes that I may need to learn would be things like
General learning ability, Numerical perception, Eye-hand
coordination, Finger dexterity, and Manual dexterity. Some of the
significant Aptitudes for this job would be Verbal and Clerical
perception. This job doesn?t require any physical abilities.
This job satisfies my primary and secondary needs and wants
by helping me realize ideas for what to do for a job. My primary
needs are things I need to help me live which means that this will
fulfill my life. It will help me make enough money to live. My
secondary wants would be things to make me happy. I would like this
job to be close by, not too far away.
Two or three related jobs that I would consider going into if
necessary would be something with business, information,
management, and marketing. Travel agents use these three things.
These are just other choices incase the travel agent doesn?t work for
me.
When I used the surveys given in class, they told me I was a
people person. You need that when you become a travel agent,
because you need to talk to people and help them understand what
they need to know. Also, you need reading, writing, computer
understanding, and typing skills, which either I have now or could
learn more in college.
I would like to pursue this career choice. I think this job is right
for me in different ways. It is right because all the interests or
aptitudes follow what I have to get a job. I took surveys, they told me
the same thing. There weren?t any surprises. There were some
things I didn?t know, but now I do. I think the positive factors include
salary, the outlook, and skills. The negative factor is that computers
have almost taken over everything including travel agents. For
example they do plane tickets over the Internet. I could see myself
doing this in 10-15 even 20 years from now.