Tourism
4–5 years- You study
- Tourism principles, Tour guiding
- Jobs
- Tour guide, Trip coordinator
- Average for the services field · Age 25–29
- Sample too small
For the services field in the Labour Force Survey3.
Forecasts published in other countries for the occupation Tour and travel guides: roughly stable (US Bureau of Labor Statistics, August 2026 (Safar – Rabi' al-Awwal 1448 AH); Employment and Social Development Canada, June 2025 · Dhu al-Hijjah 1446 – Muharram 1447 AH)1,2. They are not a forecast for the Saudi market, nor by DataPulse.
Where is Tourism taught?
Taught at 8 universities: 7 government and 1 private.
Riyadh
- King Saud UniversityGovernment · men and women
Makkah
- King Abdulaziz UniversityGovernment
- Umm Al-Qura UniversityGovernment · men and women
- Jeddah International CollegePrivate
Eastern Province
- Imam Abdulrahman Bin Faisal UniversityGovernment
- King Faisal UniversityGovernment
Asir
- King Khalid UniversityGovernment · men and women
Hail
- University of HailGovernment
From university pages, admission guides and the Ministry’s Study in Saudi platform4. Gender is tagged where the university publishes it per programme.
Compare with…
A side-by-side view, not a judgement that one major is better. Figures are for the broad field, so two majors in one field share the same figures. Figures: bachelor’s, both sexes, 2024 (1445–1446 AH)35
| Tourism | Home economics | Sport science |
|---|---|---|
| Field in the survey | ||
| Services | Services | Services |
| Length of study | ||
| 4–5 years | 4–5 years | 4–5 years |
| Taught at | ||
| 8 universities | 5 universities | 13 universities |
| Men | ||
| Offered | Not found offered | Offered |
| Women | ||
| Offered | Offered | Offered |
| Holders of the field working | ||
| 94.8% | 94.8% | 94.8% |
| Unemployment in the field | ||
| 5.2% | 5.2% | 5.2% |
| Average wage in the field (SAR) | ||
| 16,979 | 16,979 | 16,979 |
| An occupation of its graduates and generative AI | ||
| minimal exposure | not exposed | minimal exposure |
Availability for men and women from university pages and the Ministry’s programmes platform; last checked 24 October 2026 (13 Jumada al-Ula 1448 AH).
What do Tourism students learn?
Studying tourist places, organising trips and serving visitors.
- Tourism principles
- Tour guiding
- Heritage and archaeology
- Travel agencies
In Arabic: السياحة
How many years is Tourism?
4–5 years. The length may differ between universities depending on the foundation year.
What jobs do Tourism graduates do?
Examples of graduates’ jobs, not a full or ranked list. A job is an occupation; the major is one route to it:
- Tour guide
- Trip coordinator
- Travel agency agent
- Tourism office manager
Work with tourists and trips; travel and weekend work.
- Mixed
- Sometimes shifts
- Moderate physical effort
- Lots of travel
Tour guide licence from the Ministry of Tourism.
What do Tourism graduates earn?
GASTAT does not publish pay for each major; this is the average for the “Services” field among Saudi bachelor’s holders, 2024 (1445–1446 AH)3.
What is unemployment in the services field?
Unemployment among Saudi graduates of the field (bachelor’s, all ages)3:
For the whole field, not this major alone. Past measurement, not a forecast.
Official decisions and signals
- Tourism sector: 41 jobs with Saudization of 100%, 70% or 50% by job, with a second stage to come. in force since April 2026 (Shawwal – Dhu al-Qa'dah 1447 AH) (binds firms, not individuals)6
- The job “Tour guide” is only slightly affected by AI. May 2025 (Dhu al-Qa'dah – Dhu al-Hijjah 1446 AH) (occupation, not major)7
References
- US Bureau of Labor Statistics, employment projections for “Tour and travel guides” (BLS 39-7010), 2025–2035 (1446–1457 AH).
- Employment and Social Development Canada, Canadian Occupational Projection System, “Tour and travel guides” (COPS 64320), 2024–2033 (1445–1455 AH).
- General Authority for Statistics (GASTAT), Labour Force Survey: Saudi bachelor’s holders in “Services”, 2024 (1445–1446 AH).
- Programme pages on university websites, last checked 26 October 2026 (15 Jumada al-Ula 1448 AH).
- International Labour Organization, global index of occupational exposure to generative AI, May 2025 (Dhu al-Qa'dah – Dhu al-Hijjah 1446 AH).
- Ministry of Human Resources, 21 April 2025 (23 Shawwal 1446 AH).
- International Labour Organization · occupation code 5113, May 2025 (Dhu al-Qa'dah – Dhu al-Hijjah 1446 AH).