Brewing Qualifications

[Crusty]

Hi guys & gals, happy new year.
Can anyone recommend a good source of online courses that I could possibly do to get a ticket of some sort so I can seek a position in a small micro brewery.
I currently work retail & have had a gut full of the retail world. I know there is full time courses in Victoria but I have three young kids & have to work to bring in some coin whilst chasing my dream. I left school at the end of year 10 so I don't have year 12 completion.
Cheers

 

[DU99]

something like this..also try open universities
http://programfinder.ballarat.edu.au/Progr...gram.jsp?ID=366

 

[Crusty]

something like this..also try open universities
http://programfinder.ballarat.edu.au/Progr...gram.jsp?ID=366

Thanks DU,
I'll keep looking. I just want to do a couple of courses so that I have something on paper that recognizes some credited experience in the field.
I'll start looking for a position somewhere after that. I'm prepared to move obviously so here's hoping to a better & happier 2013.
Cheers

 

[time01]

Crusty let me know if you find anything, I am in a similar position working for a bank wanting a career change.

I spoke to program coordinator at Ballarat uni abou that course and basically he said without a degree behind me or commercial brewing experience etc. I would be no chance get accepted as there are only 20 spots.

Thanks DU,
I'll keep looking. I just want to do a couple of courses so that I have something on paper that recognizes some credited experience in the field.
I'll start looking for a position somewhere after that. I'm prepared to move obviously so here's hoping to a better & happier 2013.
Cheers

 

[Crusty]

Crusty let me know if you find anything, I am in a similar position working for a bank wanting a career change.

I spoke to program coordinator at Ballarat uni abou that course and basically he said without a degree behind me or commercial brewing experience etc. I would be no chance get accepted as there are only 20 spots.

I'll let you know if I get onto anything.
I just want some recognized experience so I can approach a Micro & at least say I've had experience in this & that.

 

[potof4x]

Training.gov link Plenty if info on this site with providers listed and a bit more searching may turn up more certs etc.

 

[Bizier]

I did the ECU short course (1 week in Joondalup, Nth of Perth) and while I was familiar with a lot of the material already, it allowed me to ask a lot of questions and get a very good tour of the BB malting facility. I also did GCB and GCP exams from the IBD. I will be honest that myself and many others were unhappy with the quality of the IBD course material and wording in the exam, but it is still a good starter on commercial brewing and it shows employers that you are keen and willing.

While expensive, I am personally interested seeing if I can wing an online Siebel course somehow. I like their previews, they seem a lot more thorough than IBD and I like their choices of wording from what I see.

http://www.siebelinstitute.com/courses-a-p...quality-control

 

[O'Henry]

While it is not ideal I think the IBD is the best bet (it is pretty cheap compared to most others), or you can look at doing something via correspondance from Heriot Watt in Edinburgh. I'm not sure if they still do it online, but worth a look.

 

[eamonnfoley]

I visited Doemens in Munich a few weeks ago, and that is a world class facility. Wouldn't mind soon something there one day !

 

[///]

As a Ballarat Graduate and employer in these realms, i only take that folks are serious with the Grad Cert or Diploma from Ballarat (or ECU equivalent). The reason being Ballarat overs the critical and core basics required across the fundamental areas. The IBD work assumes a knowledge on many of those areas, and I've learnt never to assume anything about brewing.

The short courses are a good introductions, but not enough for anything past work as a casual on a pack line really ...

 

[time01]

"As a Ballarat Graduate and employer in these realms, i only take that folks are serious with the Grad Cert or Diploma from Ballarat (or ECU equivalent). The reason being Ballarat overs the critical and core basics required across the fundamental areas. The IBD work assumes a knowledge on many of those areas, and I've learnt never to assume anything about brewing."

how did you go about being accepted into the course?

 

[///]

how did you go about being accepted into the course?

I sent my application off on time ...

Scotty

 

[time01]

what qualifications, experience etc. did you have?

As I said above, without a degree or experience they werent willing to consider me.

 

[brad81]

A degree is different to a diploma mate. Check out your local tafe and pick something you have an interest in.

 

[///]

what qualifications, experience etc. did you have?

As I said above, without a degree or experience they werent willing to consider me.

Sorry, forgot the smiley face on that one. I have 2 other degrees and have also been in an out of plants over the last 8 years. Usually its a case of right place - right time, or last man standing ... I was also lucky to have a Phd/IBD Master brewer leaning heavily on and over us.

ECU has on campus options, but nothing long term at tafes. I think Steven Neilson was teaching in SA at a TAFE, dunno the basis of it.

 

[Thirsty Boy]

I'll disagree with some other posters and say that the IBD courses are very thorough indeed - the lower level exams themselves can seem perfunctory, and they are very persnickety about the wording of the questions. BUT - if you look at the syllabus.... what you are expected to learn is very different to what you might guess just reading the questions contained in a past exam, and if you DO learn the whole sylibus AND you are prepared for slightly triksy question wording, then the exams become a lot less opaque. You'll get that with anything complex that is assessed by a multiple choice exam rather than compound assessment with assignments, essays, exams etc etc.

The other advantage of course is that they are almost universally recognised internationally and that they are available at "low" levels, with independant, non time dependant study and a shitload cheaper than "courses" at any of the institutions.

You can take their fundamentals courses, or for more comprehensive stuff either or both of the General Cert of Brewing and the General Cert of packaging. It'll cost you few hundred dollars and thats about it.

Not so bad when if you were to do both the GCB and the GCP you would finish with a qualification that is pitched and who's syllabus reflects approximatley the same level of learning as the Certificate from Ballarat - but fails to cost multiple thousands of dollars.

The difference of course is that its not actually a "Course" - its just an exam, you need to do all the learning independently, and thus the differnece in price.

TB

 

[Nick JD]

The difference of course is that its not actually a "Course" - its just an exam, you need to do all the learning independently, and thus the differnece in price.

TB

Can you become a qualified brewer without brewing in a brewery?

 

[Cocko]

As my Pa would have said;

"Get down there and offer to sweep the floors!"

Every head brewery started some where..

 

[sp0rk]

The below units are TAFE NSW taught units (under the Cert 3 plant baking)
FDFOP2066A Operate a wort production process 50
FDFOP2067A Operate a brewery fermentation process 50
FDFOP2068A Operate a beer maturation process 40
FDFOP2069A Operate a beer filtration process 40
FDFOP2070A Operate a bright beer tank process 30
FDFOP2071A Identify key stages and beer production equipment in a brewery 30
FDFOP2072A Operate a beer filling process 40
FDFOP2073A Operate a beer packaging process 40
FDFOP2074A Prepare and monitor beer yeast propagation processes 50

Surely if enough people bug TAFE, they'll package it into a brewing cert?
there are a few units on pelletising (handy for hops) and malting processes under the Cert 3 plant baking

 

[Bizier]

I'll disagree with some other posters and say that the IBD courses are very thorough indeed - the lower level exams themselves can seem perfunctory, and they are very persnickety about the wording of the questions. BUT - if you look at the syllabus.... what you are expected to learn is very different to what you might guess just reading the questions contained in a past exam, and if you DO learn the whole sylibus AND you are prepared for slightly triksy question wording, then the exams become a lot less opaque. You'll get that with anything complex that is assessed by a multiple choice exam rather than compound assessment with assignments, essays, exams etc etc.[...]

I respectfully defend my position BUT still recommend anyone considering doing the exams to just do them because they are cheap and accessible.

I know a number of people aside from myself who complained about the wording. I cited an example of incomprehensible text from the supplied reading material to the relevant person at the IBD and they assured me that they were undertaking the process of rewriting everything. BUT they recognised that it is a known issue. Then there were exam questions which used different wording to anything in the supplied material. Other students also picked up on these discrepancies. I spent nearly all the allocated exam time ensuring that I did my best to understand what was being asked of me, but with their triple or quadrouple negatives and over-simplified diagrams I struggled. I mean, show me a pie chart with less segments than functions on a cam filler and I will wonder which functions have been combined into a segment. Show me a diagram of an actual cam filler and I will do my best to tell you what happens where. My gripe is with it being too idiosyncratic, and not being sufficiently edited and refined by the input of more educators.

I do not regret it at all, and I advocate that anyone with no brewing qualifications do both exams if they are available, I just had a number of niggles which got under my skin. ED: and it was from a perspective of someone looking through all of the material trying to memorise their silly numbers such as pitching rates which have no consideration of gravity.