At a glance
- Client: A private university in Surabaya
- Sector: Higher education / tourism
- Region: Indonesia (Surabaya, East Java)
- Service: Feasibility study
The challenge
The client, a private university in Surabaya, was considering a new Master of Tourism. To open a study programme in Indonesia, a university must show the need for graduates, enough student demand, a curriculum that meets national rules, facilities, staff and at least two years of funding. The university wanted a feasibility study covering all of this, a clear position against existing tourism master's programmes, and a financial model showing when the programme could pay for itself.
What we did
- Analysed tourism workforce needs from the Ministry of Tourism's 2025–2029 strategic plan, BPS labour-force data, ILO and World Economic Forum reports.
- Reviewed the higher-education market using national PDDIKTI data and the university's own master's enrolment data for 2021–2025.
- Benchmarked six tourism master's programmes: four in Indonesia (Institut Pariwisata Trisakti, STIPRAM Yogyakarta, Universitas Padjadjaran, Universitas Udayana) and two abroad (EHL Hospitality Business School, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University).
- Mapped competitors on two axes, industry practice versus academic research and local versus international reach, to find an open position.
- Drafted the programme name, vision, learning outcomes and a 45-credit (SKS), four-semester curriculum built around industry consulting projects and a final tourism venture project.
- Specified facilities, labs, digital infrastructure, lecturers and support staff.
- Built a five-year financial model: intake assumptions, revenue, operating costs, profit and loss, cash flow, NPV and IRR, break-even and payback.
Topics covered
- Tourism's role in the economy and workforce skill gaps
- Student demand and market gap in East Java
- Competitor programmes and positioning
- Curriculum structure and learning methods
- Facilities, staffing and operations
- Funding, financial feasibility and risks
- Launch steps and industry partners
What we delivered
We delivered a full feasibility study in Bahasa Indonesia, structured to the national requirements for opening a study programme, with a separate financial workbook and supporting roadmap figures.
Feasibility study
Report (Google Doc, Bahasa Indonesia) · 7 chapters plus appendices
- Workforce needs and skill gaps
- Market analysis and six competitor profiles
- Positioning map and sustainability assessment
- Programme name, vision, learning outcomes and curriculum
- Facilities, staff and operating needs
- Funding plan and financial feasibility
- Conclusions, recommendations and next steps
Financial model
Google Sheets · 7 tabs
- Assumptions and intake plan
- Revenue and cost projections for five years
- Profit and loss and cash flow
- NPV, IRR, break-even and payback
- Executive dashboard
What we found
- There was no tourism master's programme in Surabaya or East Java, although the province has about 3.68 million tourism workers.
- Indonesian competitors each focus on one angle (applied hospitality, sustainability research or local culture); none put entrepreneurship, digital tourism and sustainability together, which fits the university's strengths.
- Most of the university's existing master's students were working professionals, so we proposed two recruitment tracks: professionals and fresh graduates.
- On conservative intake assumptions, the model shows the programme covering its operating costs from its third year.
- We concluded the programme is feasible, with start-up funding needed in the first two years, and recommended a pilot class, at least ten active industry partners before launch, and semester-by-semester tracking of intake and cash.
In numbers
- About 25.9 million people worked in Indonesian tourism in 2025 (Ministry of Tourism, based on BPS data)
- Only 6.07% of tourism jobs were white-collar and 8.23% of tourism workers held a diploma or higher in 2024 (Ministry of Tourism labour statistics)
- East Java accounted for 14.72% of Indonesia's tourism workforce in 2024 (Ministry of Tourism labour statistics)
Key takeaway
A new degree programme needs more than a market gap: link the position to what the institution already does well, and show when the programme stops needing subsidy.