Mission

The Estoril Higher Institute for Tourism and Hotel Studies (Escola Superior de Hotelaria e Turismo do Estoril – ESHTE), created in 1991 (Law-Decree no. 374/71, dated 8^th October), is a public polytechnic higher education institute under the tutelage of the Ministry of Education.

ESHTE’s statutes, published on 1^st September 2008, reinforce its nature as an institute with management autonomy and emphasise ESHTE’s role in the development, transmission and dissemination of highly-qualified knowledge and training in the areas of tourism, hospitality and catering.

As a centre for the development of tourism and hospitality activities, both in education and applied research, ESHTE has always been actively engaged with the business sector in order to adapt its teaching/learning practices to the requirements of the labour market and thus facilitate the employability of its graduate students.

ESHTE’s cultural and vocational training aims at preparing future professionals that can successfully respond to the challenges and opportunities of the tourism sector, in a context of strong competitiveness and underlying uncertainty.

Campus and Facilities

ESHTE’s location in the tourism area of Lisbon, Cascais and Estoril, as well as the exceptional training facilities in which it undertakes its activities, contribute to reinforce its training and research offer in the areas of tourism, hospitality and catering.

For more information on ESHTE’s facilities and resources, please see Facilities and Resources.

Links with Business

ESHTE’s curricula include compulsory internships at public and private sector companies and institutions, which ensure that students have the opportunity to consolidate their experience and know-how through on-job training. This contributes to the establishment of a closer link with the business sector and allows for the constant adaptation of curricula and methodologies to the requirements of the labour market.

These links with business are also strengthened by regular research visits undertaken throughout the academic year and the organisation of thematic conferences, talks, congresses, and workshops with speakers from different tourism segments.

In addition, ESHTE has established various agreements with public and private institutions such as hotels, travel agencies, catering and entertainment companies, city councils, as well as other local, regional and national public entities, which have generated the development of joint projects, events and strategies that contribute to students’ employability and enable students to transfer knowledge acquired at ESHTE to the work environment and vice-versa.

Moreover, the fact that ESHTE has an Advisory Board composed by members of tourism’s institutional, business and vocational areas ensures a more formal and permanent relationship between the school’s activities and those conducted in the market. This concern has also led to the creation of a careers and employment service (ESHTEmprego) that disseminates job and training offers among former and present students.

This rationale of opening ESHTE to the external community is further emphasised in the development of applied research (e.g. European funded projects or agreements with the public entities in the tourism sector).

Internationalisation

ESHTE has established bilateral agreements with over 20 European institutions that promote student and staff mobility exchange within the scope of the Socrates/Erasmus programmes, as well as other agreements with universities in Brazil, Macao and Camerino.

ESHTE is also a member of different associations in the sector, both as a regular institutional member and as a member of their executive committees. These include AMFORHT (World Association for Hospitality and Tourism Education and Training); ATLAS (Association for Tourism and Leisure Education); EURHODIP (International Association supporting Hospitality and Tourism Education and Training); and EUHOFA (International Association of Hotel Schools). ESHTE is also a member of AULP (Association of Portuguese Language Universities).