In the past year, IFT received numerous awards and was widely recognised by various international bodies. In 2003, IFT was invited by United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) and the International Centre for the Study of the Preservation and Restoration of Cultural Property (ICCROM) to be one of the founding members of the Asian Academy for Heritage Management (AAHM), with the aim to promote and strengthen the heritage management in the Asia-Pacific region.

As one of the world-leading higher education institutes providing degree programmes in the area of tourism and hospitality, IFT was highly ranked by QS, when the QS World University Rankings in the subject area of Hospitality and Leisure Management was launched in 2017. IFT never stops improving teaching quality and continues moving forward on the way of pursuing even higher international ranking.

IFT is also the world’s first higher education institute to pass the International Quality Review (IQR) from UK’s quality assurance agency for higher education - QAA - which ensures the high quality of programmes offered.

IFT strives to develop curriculum and conduct researches with an international spirit and create an all-embracing learning environment for students to equip them for a better future. In academic year 2017/18, IFT signed new cooperation agreements and invited new research partners from all across the world, including Mainland China, France, Malaysia, Myanmar, Portugal and Hong Kong SAR.

Students also have the opportunities to learn with non-local students in IFT. In academic year 2017/18, the interflow programme invited exchange students from America, Europe, Africa and other parts of Asia to Macao, while local IFT students go to different corners of the world.

In 2017, the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC), the governments of Guangdong, Hong Kong SAR and Macao SAR signed the “Framework Agreement on Deepening Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Cooperation in the Development of the Bay Area” which recognises Macao’s unique position as a training centre for tourism talents in the Greater Bay Area. In academic year 2017/18, IFT cooperated with all local higher education institutions and relevant government departments to form a Working Group for the Development of Macao into Greater Bay Area’s Tourism Education and Training Base. The objective of the Group is to build a regional tourism research platform, increase the mobility of students in further education in the area of tourism, provide training, enhance exchange among students and faculty, as well as establish a broader platform for communication.

IFT also pays a lot of attention in international connection and nurtures students as the bridge of connecting China and the world. Our highly acclaimed programmes and Macao Occupational Skills Recognition System (MORS) now attracted more and more professionals in the industry and learners from Mainland China and around the world to join. In academic year 2017/18, 1,115 professionals participated in the training programmes and were certified by the MORS. Through working together with international organisations in the field of tourism, services, and F&B, IFT fosters Macao as a seedbed for talents and professionals locally and internationally.