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| Year | # of jobs | % of population |
|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 224 | 0.00% |
| 2020 | 332 | 0.00% |
| 2019 | 401 | 0.00% |
| 2018 | 418 | 0.00% |
| 2017 | 405 | 0.00% |
| Year | Avg. salary | Hourly rate | % Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | $63,848 | $30.70 | +4.2% |
| 2024 | $61,300 | $29.47 | +5.1% |
| 2023 | $58,345 | $28.05 | +4.6% |
| 2022 | $55,767 | $26.81 | +1.5% |
| 2021 | $54,968 | $26.43 | +2.2% |
| Rank | State | Population | # of jobs | Employment/ 1000ppl |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Delaware | 961,939 | 27 | 3% |
| 2 | Virginia | 8,470,020 | 155 | 2% |
| 3 | Maryland | 6,052,177 | 110 | 2% |
| 4 | Montana | 1,050,493 | 16 | 2% |
| 5 | District of Columbia | 693,972 | 15 | 2% |
| 6 | South Dakota | 869,666 | 14 | 2% |
| 7 | Wyoming | 579,315 | 13 | 2% |
| 8 | Vermont | 623,657 | 12 | 2% |
| 9 | Illinois | 12,802,023 | 122 | 1% |
| 10 | Indiana | 6,666,818 | 58 | 1% |
| 11 | Michigan | 9,962,311 | 57 | 1% |
| 12 | Wisconsin | 5,795,483 | 45 | 1% |
| 13 | Washington | 7,405,743 | 44 | 1% |
| 14 | Connecticut | 3,588,184 | 35 | 1% |
| 15 | Iowa | 3,145,711 | 30 | 1% |
| 16 | Idaho | 1,716,943 | 21 | 1% |
| 17 | Nevada | 2,998,039 | 17 | 1% |
| 18 | Maine | 1,335,907 | 14 | 1% |
| 19 | Rhode Island | 1,059,639 | 11 | 1% |
| 20 | North Dakota | 755,393 | 9 | 1% |
The Travel Institute
Diane Petras: Agents should expect business to return when the pandemic passes. In fact, there is already significant, pent-up demand with consumers who want to travel. Short-term, this demand has translated into 1) greater interest in domestic travel as a more comfortable, familiar option for now, and 2) bookings for travel itineraries a year or more out. Longer-term and post-pandemic, the travel industry is expected to fully recover for both national and international travel bookings. Both short- and long-term, agents need to understand and communicate with travelers on new health-related travel protocols and, possibly, emerging health-related ratings for suppliers and destinations. In the meantime, given the fluidity of changes in travel restrictions and destinations, agents can also expect great professional camaraderie as agents are sharing dynamically-changing travel and destination details so that the industry can best serve all travelers.
Diane Petras: The good news for young graduates considering their career options is that anyone can become a travel agent. That said, the foundation for being a successful travel professional and trusted advisor is a combination of soft and hard skills. It's a combination of knowing market specifics and how to access and secure the best value for your travelers while also understanding personal needs, communicating value, being ethical, and building trusting relationships, all while taking the client through the decision process and finalizing the sale.
Diane Petras: Regardless of where a graduate lives, there is a great opportunity for those who possess an entrepreneurial spirit, a passion for travel, and a strong desire to curate travel experiences for others because travel can be sold from anywhere. We conducted a survey in 2018 that analyzed the changing face of travel agents over the past decade and identified a seismic shift from travel agents working in an agency office location to working from home as a self-employed agent.
Diane Petras: Absolutely! By and large, travelers will become quite comfortable exploring destinations near and far again. When that happens, travel insurance is most certainly going to become a more critical option they want to include as we all come to expect the unexpected. We also see new pandemic-initiated health protocols that are here to stay, from face masks to social distancing, hygiene practices, virus testing, and more. And, for travel suppliers, implementing these protocols may translate into health-related rankings that agents and travelers use to further determine an itinerary.
Diane Petras: Experience in booking particular destinations or through specific suppliers is always helpful on a resume, but education is the most critical indicator of commitment and success throughout an agent’s career. In fact, industry surveys prove agents who take the time to learn will earn more as well. For new agents lacking travel-specific experience, The Travel Institute’s TRIPKIT introductory course provides industry newcomers with the foundation they need to be successful, whether they choose to specialize or generalize. After completing the course, they can build consumer-, employer-, and self-confidence by taking the Travel Agent Proficiency, TAPSM, exam, which confirms whether they’ve mastered travel industry basics. For more experienced agents, our CTA®, CTC®, and CTIE® certification programs ensure agents continue to gain advanced skills throughout their careers. And, of course, there are countless courses that dive into the details on specific destinations, industry products and services, and more.
Diane Petras: I envision technology continuing to impact the travel industry in many ways, including:
· Technology will create additional opportunities to connect travelers and agents that would otherwise never meet. For instance:
o The Travel Institute’s digital credentials for agents allow travelers to find and validate an agent’s experience and education through us as a third-party, independent resource.
o Online video meetings are now the norm, enabling people to connect on a deeper level than email or phone allows.
o Social media tools are becoming more prevalent in helping agents stay connected to current clients while also expanding their reach and growing their base.
· Technology will also further enable online learning.
o As the leader in travel industry education, we believe online learning management systems will only become more critical. We already deliver most of our content through an online, interactive educational tool, and we see only increased interest from students for us to make our print resources available via this platform.
o Group learning online is also a popular, growing trend as we facilitate more and more virtual classrooms for students to learn together, share experiences and ideas, and grow their networks.
· There will also be more artificial intelligence and cloud-based technology to assist agents during the trip planning process and help agents with time-consuming, research-intensive, repetitive tasks so that they can spend more time collaborating with clients, suppliers, and destinations to produce more vacation choices, customization, and immersive experiences.
· One thing technology will not do is replicate the agent’s true value. Over the years, DIY travelers have found themselves stranded during crises related to weather, terrorism, health, and more; learning the hard way that they were without the support of a travel expert who could navigate a rapidly changing situation and find a creative solution to get them home quickly and safely. The 2020 pandemic has proven, yet again, there is no replacement for a professional travel agent with the critical thinking skills, supplier relationships, industry knowledge, and network connections needed to advise and assist before, during, and after travel.