Secret Secret, I''ve got a secret...

[Nicrez]

(a little Mr. Roboto lyrics for those what know who I am talking about)

Alright, I have been harbouring a little secret from many. I am ....gulp... studying full-time for my GG in GIA's NYC campus.

There.

I am actually in my first week of classes, so the more I learn, the more I realize I know NOTHING...

But just so you know, if I end up spilling out on a topic in a totally textbook vernacular, it just means I have been doing my homework and most likely been waving my hand madly at the front of class yelling "Oh...OH.... pick me....pick me..." when the teacher asked a question.

So, anyone else go through this torture out there?

Today I sat for almost 8 hours straight staring at impossibly tiny inclusions, practicing on grading stones... I tell you people, those of you who don't like the "dirtiness" of a VS2 stone have not seen some stones out there... In the sizes we are dealing with, only the SI2's and the I's are really ugly... all the rest are frighteningly eye clean... unless you use the 60X microscopes we use!!!!

Okay, cat's out of the bag, so if I don't post, it likely means I am freaking out studying for a quiz or test.

 

[ootthibo]

Just wondering how long is the school and what kind of degree do you get when you get done. Where do you usually find a job and if you don''t ming me asking what is the average salary.

Thanks

 

[cflutist]

Date: 11/3/2004 7:44:57 PM
Author:Nicrez
(a little Mr. Roboto lyrics for those what know who I am talking about)

Alright, I have been harbouring a little secret from many. I am ....gulp... studying full-time for my GG in GIA''s NYC campus.

Nicrez, how exciting. Good luck in your endeavors. And good luck (when you get there) with the Gem ID Final - identifying 20 unknown stones. If you miss one, you fail. I sweated bullets on that test, but did pass on the first try.

I actually got my Gemologist Diploma from the GIA in 1989 by completing their "Distance Learning" program in Gemology. Completed classes in Diamonds, Diamond Grading, Colored Stones, Colored Stone Grading, and Gem Identification. Would have to go back and complete 3 lab classes in Diamond Grading, Gem ID, and Colored Stone Grading to get my GG.

Do not work in the industry full time though (am a Consultant in the IT business). Every year when I read JCK''s salary survey I think, they sure don''t pay GGs very well (can''t remember the numbers right now).

 

[alexah]

Thank you very much (for the) Mr Robato

Best of luck to you Nic

I hope it proves fun & interesting for you...

 

[hoorray]

Hi Nicrez,

I''ve been wondering about you lately! I''m glad to hear you started the classes. I hope you find it rewarding! I know my type A personality wouldn''t be able to sit and examine things so carefully, but admire those who can, because the subject is facinating.

Good luck and stay around to share your learnings.....

 

[Nicrez]

Date: 11/3/2004 7:51:14 PM
Author: ootthibo
Just wondering how long is the school and what kind of degree do you get when you get done. Where do you usually find a job and if you don''t ming me asking what is the average salary.

Thanks

The Graduate Gemologist course is actually broken into two. 1) Graduate diamonds from 10/28/04-12/16/04. Then after Holiday break, we come back for Round 2! Colored Gemstones! That ends in mid May, and then I get a lovely little piece of parchment that claims I am a certificed Gemologist by GIA. Basically I will be "Nicrez, G.G."....*sigh*

What kinds of jobs? Well anything from retail to lab work grading diamonds... obvisouly if you work in private companies with greater repuation or profits, you will make more. Exceptions are when you think you''ll get a high paying job at Tiffany''s. Nope. It''s literally THE most popular booth at the GIA Career Fair every year, and they take a few people, and pay them NOTHING, just because they can, and if you don''t like it there are 14 other grunts waiting for that bottom-feeder position... But there is room to grow.

Private companies have been know to pay more than GIA for grading stones ad a Gemologist. I think the salaries at GIA can start at $40K, or so, but many times they request that you have a bachelors in Earth Science or Minerology. Damn. I have to verify the salaries, as I am only told this by a few people so far, and nothing is conclusive. Of course all salaries are comisserate with experience in the industry and education in the subject.

Hence if you only took the diamond course, you are not a GG, but you can get a higher paying sales position, or work with retailers or wholesalers... If you take a GG course, as well as a design course, you can probably command a better salary as well... With an G.J.G (Graduate Jeweler and Gemologist) you can probably do desing and gems... lots of options.

Actually with a GG, I know some people can even head to law school and become a diamond Industry specific lawyer (possibly patents)... we had a poster here before who worked in that field and I think he was a GG...

Sky''s the limit... Marketing, merchandising, production, lab, technology, etc...

 

[lmurden]

Very interesting conversation. Is it true that the smaller the diamond the less the inclusions show in SI daimonds.

 

[quaeritur]

WAY cool, Nicrez!!! That sounds really really interesting. I hope you''ll keep sharing with us how it''s going

 

[Nicrez]

Date: 11/3/2004 8:49:43 PM
Author: lmurden
Very interesting conversation. Is it true that the smaller the diamond the less the inclusions show in SI daimonds.

Yes. When you grade a .61ct SI1, you can barely see a thing!!! 10X obviously shows, but you get a 3ct honker in an SI1, and that will be more obvious than a smaller stone, any day...

Try grading a VVS1 on a .25ct...

I almost went blind for those 20 minutes of visual torture!

Absolutely would love to share the experience. I f anyone has questions, I will try to answer them, or ask someone at GIA...It''s quite an experience, and I am SO excited to make a career change! Sitting in front of papers all day long versus diamonds....hmmm....

Also, it''s a bit nerve wracking to switch careers and go from a high paying job to getting paid peanuts for hard work... and school is NOT cheap, but I think it''s absolutely worth it for me to do it full-time. My professors help me locate and identify inclusions, as well as answer all my four hundred a minute questions. They are amazing and so helpful. Plus networking with my classmates from all over the world is always fun and helpful!!

Actually CFlutist, our final, we need to have graded 145 stones throughout our lab tenure, and we have a 5 stone test that if we get one wrong, we need to retake the twice 9up to twice) or we FAIL!!! WHINE...

Ok, time to study...

 

[Nicrez]

Date: 11/3/2004 8:12:47 PM
Author: alexah
Thank you very much (for the) Mr Robato

Best of luck to you Nic

I hope it proves fun & interesting for you...

Domo Arrigato Alexah!

 

[noobie]

Way to go Nic! I''m so glad to see you''re having so much fun and glad to see you back here.

You''ve always been my radiant consultant, hope you don''t mind expanding the scope!

 

[EdSkinner]

Actually you will be a Graduate Gemologist. Certified Gemologist is an AGS title

 

[sevens one]

Nicrez- that''s wonderful. Good for you.

Keep us posted.

 

[Patty]

Very cool, Nic. Good for you on pursuing something that you love!

 

[moremoremore]

Super cool! Best of luck!!! How ''bout you slip one of those pretties into your pocket while you''re grading LOL

 

[glitterata]

Oh, very very cool, Nic! I love to hear about people who follow their dreams.

 

[canuk-gal]

HI:

Excellent!! A worthwhile pursuit

.

cheers

Sharon

 

[lmurden]

Thanks for the info. Best of luck.

 

[chrono]

Nic,
That sounds great. I really admire your love of gemstones and diamonds so much that you''d actually change careers. The best of everything to you. I hope you''ll still have time to share the newfound knowledge with us here at PS.

 

[Nicrez]

Sadly our grading stones are under 61 points, so they are little, BUT quite interesting and chock full o'' "clarity characteristics"...

Actually if you lose a stone, YOU HAVE TO PAY FOR IT...

They actually have your student ID card in place of the stone they give you, so they know who has what and if you don''t return the stone, they know who you are!!!

I am currently working on getting LARGER 4ct stones as learning stones...I think they just laughed at me and walked away...

 

[lmurden]

In your opinion is the difference between a D-I color diamond that big?

 

[cflutist]

Date: 11/4/2004 1:44:37 PM
Author: Nicrez
Actually if you lose a stone, YOU HAVE TO PAY FOR IT...

Nic, that used to make me really nervous as well. But since I did the Diamond Grading Class via Distance Learning, they used to mail them (one at a time) to me for grading. One time, I dropped a diamond on the floor and had to search for an hour to find it.

I am so excited for you. Must be neat to have a career change to something that you enjoy doing.

 

[Nicrez]

Yes, and it''s much more obvious in a 54 pointer...or a 61 pointer...

Actually when grading, now I can tell a colorless stone, as most I see are near colorless to slightly yellow... I got an E and called it before i checked the certificate... Pretty cool!

I was never good at color in round stones, but even though they are small you can still tell. it''s the G-J colors that are tough, and sometimes it''s more obvious if the stone has no florescence...

Looking at a stone in the microscope that HAD florescence is cool because it looks like it glows a bluish grey color...VERY cool! I want one now, simply for that property!!!

 

[lmurden]

Nicrez, thanks.

 

[Hest88]

Good luck Nicrez!!! How exciting!

 

[Jennifer5973]

I this this is awesome, Nicrez. I am so happy and excited for you and so interested in this process.

One of the greatest luxuries in life is being able to love what you "do." I am thrilled to see you embarking on that path and I hope to take inspiration from you and make some significant professional changes in 2005.

Keep us abreast of your progress!

 

[cflutist]

Date: 11/3/2004 7:51:14 PM
Author: ootthibo
Just wondering how long is the school and what kind of degree do you get when you get done. Where do you usually find a job and if you don't ming me asking what is the average salary.

Thanks

The JCK (Jeweler's Circular Keystone - trade journal) Annual Salary Survey was just published in the Nov 2004 Issue. Almost every job category posed a decline from 2002 in both median base pay and total pay, with the biggest drop (-21%) felt by salespeople.

For 2003, median annual compensation for a Gemologist/sales is $37,500 for men, and $37,380 for women. Total pay range was $27,040 - $70,000 for men and $22,000 - $65,000 for women.




From the benefits standpoint, only 32.3% offer 401K, however 53.7% offer Educational Support, and a whopping 93% offer Merchandise discounts.

 

[Nicrez]

www.pricescope.com/idealbb/images/smilies/35.gif"> Thanks for all the well wishes guys!!!

If anyone has questions on the whole process I can answer questions as best I can...

Thanks CFlutist! That was very helpful... now if anyone can give me the name of a good sex change doctor, I''d like to be a boy now...

How do I subscribe to the JCK? I already put in my order for Gems & Gemology....

 

[Mara]

HEY why did I already know this? I think you mentioned it in the past that you'd stopped working and were doing this? Or am I on some serious crack?

In any case, how fun for you! I took the first course and found that it didn't interest me as much, considering what I had already learned on Pscope, so I never took any of the other ones. I kind of want to, but as much as I adore gems and jewels...I think I'd crave more knowledge than the first batch of courses could really give me and they cost enough to make that kind of fun exploration prohibitive.



Do you want to appraise? I thought that if I ever went into the trade, that is what I'd love to do. Could never sell because I'd probably end up talking people OUT of buying diamonds if they weren't up to my version of 'par'...hehe ... 'Those crown angles are not primo! Don't buy it'.

 

[Nicrez]

Hey Mara, I DID mention that I had quit and was scheduled to start classes. I reposted the info so that people would know that I am a student of the trade, not some dealer as some have alleged, or some fully knowledgeable person, when I may know just ONE component of something.... Just to let people generally know that I am sort of entering the trade really, sort of just a heads up really...

Also, I noticed that as much as I thought I knew BEFORE the class, there is really no substitute for the classes. Seeing and grading over 150 stones in person under a loupe or micrscope really gets your skills working! We also have lecture on light theory as well as ways to measure and estimate angles and percentages by the eye to a percentage degree...again, the professors help you find inclusions in stones, and answer all your questions during the learning process. One of my two professors actually has been a GIA grader for 20+ years... He''s seen quite a bit, and it''s useful to have that kind of experience just a question away...


I enjoy it enough to want to do it as a career. I also noticed that my personality and my talents are closer to a very detailed sort of field, and it worked out well that it included diamonds!

Actually, I will do appraising, but am considering working as a buyer eventually for a larger company, or even within a auction house. Eventually, I am hoping to go a more creative route, possibly working in design or marketing within the industry, but I am the type of person that I want to go into a new career with all the knowledge possible, so I am prepared for anything.


And with the amount it cost, it''s not just for hobbyists! But the home courses are helpful, and much more easily priced for those who want to learn. Going full-time is tough, and if I wasn''t going into the industry I SURE woudn''t do it...


Eventually, I will probably take design courses and bench jeweler course perhaps. Who knows, maybe I''ll have a line with a retailer or maybe m own...

Mara, if you ever consider switching to the DARK side, you are in the right state to do so, as their Carlsbad campus is the center for all their studies... I WISH I could study there, and Rand and I even discussed the possibility of my taking the GJG (Graduate Jeweler Gemologist) program out there, except it''s 1 year away from each other, so that idea died pretty quickly!!


Have you posted any new pictures of Portia? Such a cutie!!!