World Leisure International Centre of Excellence (WICE) is a
non-profit, co-operative endeavour of the World Leisure Association
(WLA), based in the Iowa in the USA, and Wageningen University and
Research Centre (WUR), based in Wageningen in the Netherlands. WICE,
basically, has two aims.
The first aim is to bring together, in a multi-cultural setting, international students, international Faculty and study material from all parts of the world, to address, from a world wide perspective, in an educational setting, leisure and leisure related issues, such as, the concepts and developments in leisure or free time itself, international and domestic tourism, outdoor- and indoor-recreation, leisure at home and in the neighbourhood, and the arts as leisure activity.
To realise that aim, WICE, together with the Chair Group Socio-Spatial Analyses (SRA) of WUR (see also in this website the paragraph on the History of WICE) , offers a Scientific Master (MSc) Programme in “Leisure, Tourism and Environment” (LTE) of two years duration, at Wageningen University Campus. As the Programme title indicates, special emphasis is placed on the multi-facetted relationship between leisure, tourism and the environment. The focus is on leisure as free time activity of ordinary people; issues such as professional sports are only marginally addressed. The realisation of balanced development through furthering quality leisure is in the very centre of the Programme.
WICE, specifically, has main responsibility for bringing to the MSc. Programme the international students and Faculty; SRA has main responsibility for content and supervision of the courses and coursework. Through intensive education, WICE and SRA aim at the formation of leaders in various positions in the leisure field, in the private as well as in the public sector.
Annually around 35 students subscribe to the MSc MLE, half of which come from all parts of the world, mainly third world countries, the others are Dutch. Supervisory teaching is done by SRA staff, but mainly by 20 – 25 international renowned experts brought into the Programme by WICE, and indeed coming from all world regions and drawn from the world wide network of WICE educators and experts; the best to be found. The network itself counts around 250 renowned professionals, experts, scholars, educators, et cetera.
Graduates received a Master Diploma from WUR and World Leisure.
For more information on
the MSc Programme itself see in this website under MSc.