Tour Guide

Tour Guide

Career Overview

A tour guide may schedule and conduct tours of various historical or interesting locations. Nick, the tour guide featured in the video, does a lot more than just a tour guide because he is the owner of his tour company.

Education

There is not set degree requirement for this position. A four-year bachelor's degree in history or a related field may be very useful in obtaining one of these positions.

Future Outlook

Growth rate: 5 percent (Faster than average)

Work Environment

A tour guide can work for any tour company, historical site, or museum. Many people who do this only do it part-time. Many tours may require outdoor work and one may spend long periods of time on their feet.

Recommended High School Courses

  • Psychology
  • Business
  • Communication
  • Take as many college-prep courses as possible!
  • Hospitality
  • History

  • Active Listening - Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
  • Complex Problem Solving - Identifying complex problems and reviewing related information to develop and evaluate options and implement solutions.
  • Coordination - Adjusting actions in relation to others' actions.
  • Critical Thinking - Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems.
  • Judgment and Decision Making - Considering the relative costs and benefits of potential actions to choose the most appropriate one.
  • Negotiation - Bringing others together and trying to reconcile differences.
  • Persuasion - Persuading others to change their minds or behavior.
  • Reading Comprehension - Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work related documents.
  • Service Orientation - Actively looking for ways to help people.
  • Social Perceptiveness - Being aware of others' reactions and understanding why they react as they do.
  • Speaking - Talking to others to convey information effectively.
  • Time Management - Managing one's own time and the time of others.
  • Writing - Communicating effectively in writing as appropriate for the needs of the audience.
  • Administration and Management - Knowledge of business and management principles involved in strategic planning, resource allocation, human resources modeling, leadership technique, production methods, and coordination of people and resources.
  • Clerical - Knowledge of administrative and clerical procedures and systems such as word processing, managing files and records, stenography and transcription, designing forms, and other office procedures and terminology.
  • Customer and Personal Service - Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.
  • Economics and Accounting - Knowledge of economic and accounting principles and practices, the financial markets, banking and the analysis and reporting of financial data.
  • English Language - Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.
  • Geography - Knowledge of principles and methods for describing the features of land, sea, and air masses, including their physical characteristics, locations, interrelationships, and distribution of plant, animal, and human life.
  • Sales and Marketing - Knowledge of principles and methods for showing, promoting, and selling products or services. This includes marketing strategy and tactics, product demonstration, sales techniques, and sales control systems.
  • Transportation - Knowledge of principles and methods for moving people or goods by air, rail, sea, or road, including the relative costs and benefits.
  • Category Flexibility - The ability to generate or use different sets of rules for combining or grouping things in different ways.
  • Deductive Reasoning - The ability to apply general rules to specific problems to produce answers that make sense.
  • Far Vision - The ability to see details at a distance.
  • Inductive Reasoning - The ability to combine pieces of information to form general rules or conclusions (includes finding a relationship among seemingly unrelated events).
  • Information Ordering - The ability to arrange things or actions in a certain order or pattern according to a specific rule or set of rules (e.g., patterns of numbers, letters, words, pictures, mathematical operations).
  • Near Vision - The ability to see details at close range (within a few feet of the observer).
  • Oral Comprehension - The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.
  • Oral Expression - The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand.
  • Problem Sensitivity - The ability to tell when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong. It does not involve solving the problem, only recognizing there is a problem.
  • Speech Clarity - The ability to speak clearly so others can understand you.
  • Speech Recognition - The ability to identify and understand the speech of another person.
  • Written Comprehension - The ability to read and understand information and ideas presented in writing.
  • Written Expression - The ability to communicate information and ideas in writing so others will understand.
  • Organize recreational activities or events.
  • Sell products or services.
  • Resolve customer complaints or problems.
  • Arrange services or reservations for patrons.
  • Provide attraction or event information to patrons.
  • Guide patrons on tours.
  • Monitor availability of equipment or supplies.
  • Maintain financial or account records.
  • Manage budgets for personal services operations.
  • Assist individuals with special needs.
  • Administer first aid.
  • Drive vehicles to transport patrons.
  • Prepare foods or meals.
  • Demonstrate activity techniques or equipment use.
  • Explain regulations, policies, or procedures.

Schools

usa_school
Cuyahoga Community Colleg...
Sullivan University- Loui...
Suny Jamestown Community...
canada_school
Cdi College- Calgary C...
Cdi College- Edmonton...
Cdi College- Surrey Ca...
Cdi College- Vancouver...
College Of The North A...
College Of The North A...
Conestoga College- Wat...
George Brown College-...
Mount St. Vincent Univ...
Seneca College- Markha...
Vancouver Career Colle...

Potential Scholarships

5 Strong Scholarship
Agnes M. Lindsay Scholars...

Approx Salary Expectation

Currency:
Low End:
$19,500.00 /yr
Avg/Med:
$27,600.00 /yr
High End:
$45,850.00 /yr

References

Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor, Occupational Outlook Handbook, https://www.bls.gov/ooh/.
Trend Analysis - Explorer the Market, Labour Market Information, Government of Canada https://www.jobbank.gc.ca/trend-analysis.
PayScale, Inc., https://www.payscale.com/.
O*NET OnLine, National Center for O*NET Development, https://www.onetonline.org/.