GIA certification , or? Question *for* the pros on how to *become* one

[Circe]

Without going into too much background, my life''s been pretty much tip-turned upside down (bonus points if you recognize the source on that) and I can''t continue with my current career. I''m very good at what I do, but before I chose to do it, my #1 alternative was going into the jewelry industry, in one way, shape or form. My dad talked my out of it (he was a colored stone dealer before he retired), because he thought it was unreliable and no place for a woman. Well, my current, incredibly white-collar career has turned out to be less reliable than I thought, and ... well, the first thing that pops into my head is still jewelry.

The thing is, my dad and his connections aren''t helpful: in his time, you just showed up and made yourself useful and proved you knew where the good stuff was and how much it was worth, and then, as he often likes to say: first you made your reputation, and then your reputation makes you. Most I''ve got in the way of rep. now, is, "Hey! Joe''s kid! She id''d stuff well back in the day, and then she got some kind of a fancy degree!" Which is all well and good, but which won''t get me a job.

Ideally, I would have liked to have gotten an AA from FIT in jewelry design this year, or jumped into a Jewelry Manufacturing Arts course in NY this fall, and then gotten a GGG as time passed, once I was also making some money, but ... FIT is DONE for the year, and the Jewelry Manufacturing Arts program at GIA NY is also full up (though I can put myself on a waitlist). Both of those would have been $5000 a semester, give or take. So, this year, I can get a Graduate Diamonds Course, and then do Jewelry Manufacturing Arts in Spring, or go straight for Graduate Gemologist (a combo of diamonds and colored stones, for about $18,000 - apparently Colored Stones are $13000 in comparison to the $5000 of Jewelry Arts or Diamonds - makes sense, as they''re everything else).

So ... what is the most practical/lucrative? At the end of the day, I''m interested in making jewelry for fun and profit, with appraising jewelry as a close second. What path would you recommend for these? I would need to be in NY. Thanks in advance for your time and attention!

 

[John P]

Circe,

Sorry to hear about the upside down. Maybe it will wind up being for the better?

NY is one of the best places to pursue your GG and other jewelry credentials. The GG, as you know, is a good credential for pusuing any career in sales or analysis/appraising. You can start with your entry-level courses using distance-education and NY is one of the sites where they offer annual onsite labs and classes.

I earned my Graduate Diamonds diploma in short order. It takes a bit longer to run the GG gamut, but it can be done at your pace. Your experience here will help you immensely with the basics in all-things-diamond and many-things in the business coursework. I find the labs and workshops enjoyable and would actually encourage you to entertain other grading workshops, outside GIA''s purview, for different persepctives.

Something that might help in the near future: As soon as you have completed (enrolled in?) your first GIA course you are welcome to attend the Alumni Association meetings. NY has several chapters. These can be great for networking, dialogue and - possibly - direction, considering your aspirations.

Good luck and keep us informed.

 

[Rockdiamond]

HI Circe,
Also sorry to hear things have been turned upside-down for you!

I have a different take on this.
If one wants to become a GG, by all means go for it- but it''s not necessarily going to help you in getting a job- or knowing the jewelry business.

The course at FIT, which I''m not familiar with, may have more potential, if you wanted to work at the bench making jewelry.

As far as sales, the GG is only as much help as the individual is a good sales person. The largest earners in jewelry- as pretty much in any field, are involved in sales.
I suppose having the GG might give a person increased confidence to become a better sales person- but the knowledge of how to sell diamonds and jewelry is NOT taught by GIA. IN fact, sometimes the knowledge gained at GIA can actually work against selling- as getting too technical is not always welcome.

If a person was a motivated capable seller, you''d need to learn about the particulars of the company that hired you- again, not taught at GIA.

The networking aspect John mentioned might be helpful......

 

[Richard Sherwood]

Date: 8/17/2009 3:56:21 PM
Author:Circe
Well, my current, incredibly white-collar career has turned out to be less reliable than I thought, and ... well, the first thing that pops into my head is still jewelry.

The good news. The jewelry business lends itself to entrepeneurship, and to be self-employed is wonderful. Your career is no longer at the whim of corporate restructuring and capracious employers.

The bad news is that this is possibly one of the toughest times to initiate a career in a luxury goods industry. The economy has taken a great toll on jewelers worldwide. Most of the people I know in the jewelry industry right now are in "survival mode".

The good news again. I know many people who have done very well by disregarding the bad news.

Date: 8/17/2009 3:56:21 PM
Author:Circe
So ... what is the most practical/lucrative? At the end of the day, I'm interested in making jewelry for fun and profit, with appraising jewelry as a close second. What path would you recommend for these?

If you're interesting in making jewelry, I would recommend the GIA diamond course (which gives you the most practical application in the most traded stone on the market in the shortest amount of time), and then a jewelry design / jewelry making course. If the FIT encompasses this, then that might be a good way to go.

Forget about appraising jewelry for now. For that you need the full blown GG and 5 to 10 years industry experience. Appraising is hard, with many pitfalls if you are not uber experienced.

All the goldsmiths, platinumsmiths, jewelry designers and bench persons I know are busy. There is never a lack of demand for a talented jewelry maker.

But you need to recognize whether this ability is within you. You need to be very frank in the appraisal of yourself and your talents. Otherwise you could waste a decade in chasing a whim.

If you don't have designer ability, you might consider sales. A talented salesperson is a superstar. They recognize a good product (such as a talented designer), and bring that person's wares to the world in a way that the designer/maker never could. Designers/makers are usually not good salespeople. They need the "superstars" to help them.

Just don't get discouraged. Someone here has a tag line I love. "Where you're going through hell, keep on going."