General Cerificate In Brewing (IBD)

[Thorbz]

I remember a couple of people on here considering doing this exam. Did anyone take the plunge, and do they consider it worthwhile ?

[WishboneBrewery]

I found it interesting but practically useless to me, I sat it in November and they took months to tell me I'd passed.
If you don't already work in a brewery it will mean even less than it did to me, I expected more from it and the notes repeat themselves in places withing the Cask or Keg/Filtered sections. The exam was more about being able to read English and interpret the questions correctly, there was also some stuff that the revision notes did not cover.

At the time of revision I'd hoped it might be the first step to go onto the Diploma (in its 3 parts, doing 1 part per year) but with work and home-life and seeing how much time the revision takes up i doubt I'll continue, though I might still read thru my Boss's old notes if i find time.

[Thorbz]

Thanks for responding.

[yorkbrewer]

I sat it in November too. It's a good all-round introduction to brewing, covering all bases so you can move on to a more specific exam having been at least well familiarised with everything else first. The exam is multiple choice but that doesn't mean it's easy, because the pass mark is very high! Can't remember if it was 66 or 70%. I know of a few people who failed it; it's no walk in the park. But at least that makes it a more serious qualification to have. I would recommend doing it.

[darkonnis]

Hmmm two fairly different opinions there. I wouldn't mind looking at an example of the notes if anyone has some i could take a peek at? atleast before throwing down the cash for something which may or may not be useful.

[WishboneBrewery]

Each person is going to take something different from the revision, for me it posed some questions and made me realise my own ideas were better for me than the IBD ways.
What I hoped it would teach me is what it didn't, like working a recipe out on paper vs me using software.... yeah its in homebrew books and stuff but I expected that at a basic level it would start with these basics.

[yorkbrewer]

darkonnis have you seen the syllabus? http://www.ibd.org.uk/qualifications/ex ... s-content/

True that, pdtnc. It's more about the technical information and less about specific ingredients and creating beers. I wouldn't say it is fun material, but then it's not supposed to be. I had been studying it for a few months when I was given Randy Mosher's Radical Brewing for Christmas. I read the whole book with childlike wonder; firstly because it's a great book, and secondly because it was the perfect complement to the GCB notes. The notes were about the science of brewing, the book about the art.

[darthballs]

Hi there, I too have been looking at this and am very interested in taking this course, and potentially moving onto the Diploma. Do you need to be working in a brewery to get the full benefit of this or is it something that can be learnt at home or as distance learning as a prelude to working in a brewery?

I am seriously thinking of changing career.

[WishboneBrewery]

You do need a Mentor/Sponsor to sign your application form, The brewery Manager signed mine, though it could/should have been David Smith our Brewery Consultant who comes quarterly to do an Audit.

[50quidsoundboy]

there is also this course from Brewlab: http://www.brewlab.co.uk/threeday.asp

i'm thinking about doing one or the other even though it's clearly a total folly for someone like me

[masterosouffle]

The brew lab one looks like it's for people with redundancy money burning a hole in their pocket

[50quidsoundboy]

The brew lab one looks like it's for people with redundancy money burning a hole in their pocket

haha. but tbh it does look more geared towards the homebrewer turning pro, whereas the IBD exam seems more suited to those in already the industry looking for a qualification to help them at work.

[darthballs]

You do need a Mentor/Sponsor to sign your application form, The brewery Manager signed mine, though it could/should have been David Smith our Brewery Consultant who comes quarterly to do an Audit.

Hmm, so unless I can either find employment in advance or persuade someone to sign my form I would find it difficult to even enrol, cheers for the advice.

[WishboneBrewery]

You could probably get anyone to sign it, they will never know.