Travel Agent Schools in Mississippi

A career as a travel agent can appeal to Mississippi residents for many reasons. Not only is the profession financially rewarding, but it is also one of the best fields to enter if you have an affinity for travel and tourism.

What’s more, the steps to becoming a travel agent in Mississippi are so straightforward and enjoyable that most people find the appeal hard to turn down. In the sections below, we explore exactly what these requirements are and why they’re necessary.

Readers will also discover some of the best schools and training programs in Mississippi for launching a travel agent career and the average annual salary they can expect once they start working professionally.

How to Become a Travel Agent in Mississippi

The steps below constitute the process of becoming a travel agent in Mississippi.

Step 1: Gain a Basic Knowledge of the Travel Industry

Mississippi travel agents must possess extensive knowledge of local and international geography. Although most training programs focus on this subject, candidates must start learning it the first day they enter the profession.

What’s more, they have to continue expanding their knowledge even after completing a training program.

Step 2: Complete a Training Program

There is no shortage of possible choices and decisions to make when it comes to choosing a travel agent as a resident of Mississippi. Commonly, candidates go for academic programs to pick up a certificate or even a degree.

They can then leverage this when it comes to securing placement at a host agency and even for customer acquisition. It is also possible to become a travel agent by learning on the job without necessarily completing an academic program.

Step 3: Joining a Host Agency

Joining a host agency is highly advisable for fresh travel agents as it helps them settle into the job without the burden of having to manage complex administrative tasks on their own. The host agency provides many of the marketing resources, booking tools, and other systems needed to carry out day-to-day tasks.

Step 4: Career Advancement

Lastly, candidates must prioritize career advancement on their journey to becoming successful travel agents in Mississippi. As we analyze below, certification is a great tool for achieving this objective.

Explore trades with similar paths:

• Become an HVAC technician in Mississippi

Licensure & Certification Requirements

The American Society of Travel Advisors is a prominent professional organization that travel agents in Mississippi can join to facilitate career growth. The society offers valuable credentials, a sense of community, networking opportunities, and other valuable educational tools and resources to help professionals stand out in the field.

That said, aspiring travel agents in Mississippi should know that certification is not compulsory by state laws. In fact, there is no need for licensing either.

Still, for the benefits above, more travelers choose to become certified in the state than those who choose not to.

Top Travel Agent Schools in Mississippi

The following schools offer viable programs for aspiring travel agents in Mississippi.

Explore travel agent schools in Mississippi by city:

• Travel agent schools in Jackson

Salary & Career Outlook

A travel agent in Mississippi who is just entering the field generally earns less than someone who has been in the job for some time. Factors like credentials, marketing strategy, host agencies, and location can also contribute to the disparity in earnings between professionals in the field.

As for what the actual figures look like, well, a travel agent in Mississippi who has worked on these factors to be among the highest-paid can expect an annual average salary of $66,769 or more. Those who are still at the very beginning of their journey can manage an annual average salary of $23,203.

For the most common class of travel agents in the state, these are the median earners. In this category, the annual average salary to expect is usually around $40,663.

Looking to the future, professionals in the state will also be glad to know that the demand for travel agents in Mississippi is set to increase in the next decade. The Bureau of Labor Statistics expects the field to enjoy a 3% employment rate across the country and for tens of thousands of job openings to arise every year within this time frame.