Intensive Tour Guide Certification Program
PROFESSIONAL TOUR GUIDE CONTINUING EDUCATION PROGRAM The program is designed for graduates of History, Archaeology, Social Anthropology an Folklore Studies (Ethnology). 40 students are chosen from over 150 candidates based on portfolio, foreign language competence and academic record. The program offers special skills and education in a number of interpretation methodologies and cultural Tourguide techniques, as well as in studies of diverse […]
PROFESSIONAL TOUR GUIDE CONTINUING EDUCATION PROGRAM
The program is designed for graduates of History, Archaeology, Social Anthropology an Folklore Studies (Ethnology).
40 students are chosen from over 150 candidates based on portfolio, foreign language competence and academic record.
The program offers special skills and education in a number of interpretation methodologies and cultural Tourguide techniques, as well as in studies of diverse audiences. It is in tune with international standards for professional guided tours and for approaches to the cultural interpretation of monuments, emphasizing narrative and lived experience rather than cognitive and knowledge-oriented communication.
Upon completing the course, graduates can apply for the State License for Guided Tours, granted by the Ministry of Tourism.
According to UNESCO, Thessaloniki has the highest density of monuments of world heritage globally, and our students practice on site interpreting and presenting monuments of classical, hellenistic, Roman, Byzantine, western medieval, Ottoman, popular, modern and contemporary culture. The program uses the latest communication and representational techniques and is designed and taught by professors and scholars from the Interuniversity Postgraduate Program in Museology that has over a decade of experience and success in training museum and heritage professionals.
The aim of the program is to combine the necessary theoretical tools with communication techniques and the professional practice of the tour guide. Lectures are offered by professors from the departments of History & Archaeology, Architecture, Preschool Education and Medicine at the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, from the Education department of the University of Western Macedonia,as well as public officers from the Ministries of Tourism, Culture, and Education and Religious Affairs. Professional practice is guided by museum curators and Tourguide experts.
Our students train at archaeological sites, at Byzantine,Ottoman and modern monuments and museums in Thessaloniki. Educational visits include excursions to the world-famous archaeological sites at Vergina, Pella, Dion, as well as to traditional settlements (ancient and prehistoric) in Macedonia and Thessaly. They visit the medieval fortification walls of the Upper Town in Thessaloniki, trace the itineraries of Philip and Alexander the Great, of Apostle Paul and the martyr Saint Demetrius. They learn to devise their own guided tours and alternative approaches to emblematic monuments and sites of world importance, involving the community and co-designing projects with university departments.
The main feature of our program is the combination of solid academic taught courses with training in advanced methods of interpretation and communication.
The Professional Tourguide Training Program offers direct access to the professional market.
Take a look here at the video about the course and at one specifically desiged for the Greek National Tourism Organisation
