The move is in line with Travelport’s wider plans to increase training initiatives across the Asia-Pacific region.

Established in 1951, Shanghai DongHua University is one of the major universities supported by the local government for future development. Under the new agreement, Travelport will provide all training materials to students, including course manuals, access to the Galileo booking software and Train-the-Trainer courses to assist in planning and ensure educators deliver best practice training.

The new Travelport training course is open to fourth year students studying travel and tourism at the university. Commencing in December, the course takes place over three weeks and requires students to attend two classes weekly. Course topics include Basic Reservation as well as Car and Hotel Training. Students who successfully pass the examination for the course will receive a certificate from Travelport. Around Fifty students are expected to complete the initial course, with more to follow when the course becomes a compulsory core subject in the new year.

“We are delighted to work with Shanghai DongHua University in offering a hands-on course that helps students understand the inner workings of the travel industry as well as the complex needs of today’s travellers,” said Li Kang, Travelport’s Country Manager for China.

“This is an exciting development in the delivery of travel and tourism courses at Shanghai DongHua University, and provides students with a hands-on approach to learning from a recognised leader in the travel industry,” said Yau WeiXin, Vice President, Glorious Sun School of Business and Management, Shanghai DongHua University.

Last year, Travelport partnered with UCSI University Sarawak Campus in Malaysia to provide training resources to their hospitality and tourism students. In Australia, Travelport issues 6,000 new certificates every year to students, while in India, more than 100 institutes offer Galileo training as part of their curriculum.