International activities 

International activities

The Russian International Academy for Tourism has always paid great attention to the development of international cooperation. For many years the Academy has been actively cooperating with various foreign universities and international organizations in the field of tourism.

International organizations
The Russian International Academy for Tourism is a member of some leading international organizations working in the field of tourism and tourism education:
• The International Social Tourism Organisation (ISTO);
• International association supporting hospitality and tourism education and training (EURHODIP)

The International Social Tourism Organisation (ISTO)
The main goal of this international organization is the development of tourism for everyone: for people with limited means (youth, pensioners, low-income families) or in need of special physical conditions and an accessible environment (disabled people), as well as promoting and supporting various forms of tourism that bring benefits people and communities, contribute to the development of local areas and are associated with responsible, solidarity, fair, community tourism. This authoritative association currently has over 200 member organizations from 32 countries.
Evgeny Trofimov, RIAT Rector, is a member of the governing body of ISTO - the Board of Directors.

International association supporting hospitality and tourism education and training (EURHODIP)
EURODIP is an association of leading European educational institutions that train specialists for work in the hotel and tourism industry.
International association supporting hospitality and tourism education and training was founded in 1988 in Brussels. Today EURODIP unites more than one and a half hundred institutions and more than thirty countries.
The Association’s purpose is to promote the best achievements of European education in the field of hospitality and tourism. By establishing contacts between specialized European educational institutions, educational institutions and state, regional and municipal structures that promote the development of tourism, as well as educational institutions and employers, EURODIP contributes to the development of European tourism. Additionally, it promotes the distribution of students for internships, participates in international educational programs aimed at implementing student and teacher mobility.
Evgeny Trofimov, RIAT Rector is a member of the governing body of EURODIP - the Board of Directors, in which he represents Russian specialized educational institutions.
The Academy actively participates in the statutory events of organizations.
RIAT implements the following educational programs:

1. The international educational program "Vatel - RIAT" (France) has been successfully implemented since 2005.

Vatel School is one of the best Higher Schools of Hospitality and Tourism Management in Europe with educational activities in 35 countries worldwide. It was founded in 1989 and has received numerous awards from the international professional community. The Vatel International Institute received the "Worldwide Hospitality Awards" in 2016 for being the "Best Educational Institution for Training Personnel for the Hospitality Industry".
The developed joint program of the curriculum provides for compliance with international standards of hospitality in accordance with the requirements of real business and in-depth study of two foreign languages, English and French, contributes to the adaptation of future hospitality professionals. Classes are provided by teachers from France, teachers of RIAT who have passed certification, as well as professionals in the hotel, restaurant and tourism sectors.
Under the RIAT-VATEL program, the Marco Polo program is also being implemented. This is a student academic mobility program developed by the methodological center of the Vatel Institute (France). Since 2014, students from foreign countries have been coming to the Academy due to the fact that in the third year the most par of classes is conducted in English.

2. Cooperation with the University of Milan Bicocca (Italy).

The Bicocca University of Milan is one of the leading public universities in Italy with more than 32 000 students.
A joint study program at the master's level has been successfully implemented since 2011. Cooperation with the University of Milan is carried out on the basis of the Faculty of Tourism Economics of this university.
The most important area of cooperation was the development and implementation of a joint educational program for the preparation of masters "Tourist Destination Management - Tourism Economics". As part of this program, Russian students study during the second year of their master's degree in Milan, and Italian students study in the central campus of the RIAT. Upon successful completion of the program, students receive two master's degrees - a state diploma of the Russian Federation and an Italian state diploma.
The Academy also annually takes part in various student international and culinary competitions in India.