Are most GIA Graduate Gemologists Women?

[YoungPapa]

I was reading through a few of the threads tonight and I noticed that our gemologists are constantly referred to as "he". The fact, however, is that four of our current five GG's are women and that every time we advertise for a new GG position the OVERWHELMING number of applicants are ladies.

Are diamonds not just a "girls best friend", but also a more popular career choice?

Regardless, "she" is probably a more appropriate pronoun when suggesting questions to ask our GG's. Jason (our only guy), is stuck in the corner doing appraisals.

 

[denverappraiser]

I think the majority of GIA graduates are women, and have been for quite some time. Actually, I think the majority of college graduates in nearly any subject are women, and that the differential is expanding. Why that is is a curious question and I think an important social problem in the US. Not too long ago it was the opposite. I’m certainly thrilled to see our daughters doing better but I can’t help but wonder what is happening with our sons. It’s not an either/or sort of proposition.

 

[yialanliu]

Agreed, females outnumber males who are GG.

And unfortunately, as has been mentioned, females enter college at a higher % which also applies to anything requiring higher education/training.

For instances, colleges are getting closer and closer to 60-40 split. Also resulting in unfairness when colleges strive to mantain a 50-50 split. Harvard might accept 9% of females versus 11% of males for instance of people who applied.

 

[Christina...]

Well I say, "Go Women"!

I wonder if part of the reason we refer to GG's as male is because on PS so many of our contributing trades people are male, therefore many us incorrectly assume that same trend carries over into the field?

 

[LibbyLA]

denverappraiser,

I wonder if the male/female ratio in higher education has anything to do with the fact that higher paying jobs that don't require a college education (e.g., mechanic, electrician, plumber, oil field worker, etc.) are more appealing to men than to women.

College isn't the right place for everyone, and I say that as someone who teaches at a state university. As long as men aren't being prevented or discouraged from going to college if they want to, I don't see a problem with the disparity between the numbers of men and women in higher education.

Even though there are more women students in college than men, faculty (at least at my university) is still more men than women, especially at the higher ranks. That will probably change over time, but there will still be differences from one field to another (engineering vs. English, for example).

liz

 

[denverappraiser]

The faculty disparity surely will change as well. Mostly professors graduated from college a decade or 3 ago and back then the ratios were different. Some of the academic fields that have been historically men, like law, are now heavily women and that is surely going to play through to changing demographics in the ‘next’ step like professorships and judgeships. That’s just a matter of time.

Gemology wouldn’t count in most people’s minds as traditional college any more than plumbing but I get your point and I agree that many of the manual trades are dominated by men. The more physical the activity the more advantage the men seem to have and I think the reason for this is clear. Although it’s true that some of these activities can be pretty good gigs, I’m not sure with your assessment that the manual trades is a particularly high paying life path. Careers tend to be short, injury rates tend to be higher, and the skills learned often don’t translate well into a second career. For example, an injured miner will find it difficult to use their talents in a different way while an unemployed accountant or lawyer has a much more broadly useful set of skills.

I came in to the trade as a bench jeweler first. This has been several decades past. Benchies are still overwhelmingly men but this too is changing although, more slowly than the more academic elements of the trade. In the case of bench workers there’s an additional component at play. It takes an amazing amount of practice to get any good and, for the most part, the schools are a small first step rather than a short cut to the end as students tend to expect. A significant number of the benchies in the US are immigrants who started their careers overseas and a fair number of them spent quite a bit of time working in shops elsewhere before coming here. I bring it up because a lot of the overseas shops hire or in the past have hired only men which skews the skill sets of our immigrants.

I’m the parent and grandparent of only girls and I’m certainly on board with the ‘go women’ sentiment but I can’t help but wonder if this isn’t just a sign of good planning on the part of our girls but also some bad decisions on the part of our boys. I may be wrong. We NEED plumbers and miners just as much as we need lawyers and dentists but the nagging voice in my head tells me that the woman going to law school is making a better choice for her future than the man starting a career on a fishing boat.

As an interestng anecdote, I just went through some advanced training with the American Society of Appraisers in business valuation. It's a slightly arcane bit of appraising that has to do with the handling of estates, public financing, intergenerational transfers, taxes and such. Not surprisingly, I was the only gemologist in the room and the bulk of the people came from banking and accounting backgrounds. Of 25 or so students in the class, all but 4 were women. Both teachers were men.

 

[LibbyLA]

denverappraiser,

We will always need mechanics, plumbers, electricians, etc. I wouldn't choose to fish (I did deckhand for a month or two on my brother's very small shrimp boat and that was enough "fun" for me) or work offshore (both of my brothers have done that, one still does) or farm (grew up with lots of farmers and farmers' kids) or mine, but there are people who do. I don't personally know any of the people on the show "Swamp People" but I know a lot of people like them. You could not pay them a large fortune to work inside or sit at a desk. They love their hard, smelly, hot, dirty, dangerous work.

Not all smart people opt for a traditional higher education. My SO is one of them. He tried college and didn't like it one bit. But he can fix anything mechanical, he can built things (including houses and large barns and sheds and cabinets), he has logged, he flew and worked on his own twin-engine plane for years, he built his own airboat using an airplane engine.

Both of my brothers are intelligent, but one squeaked through high school and the other chose not to finish college. Both have chosen to work outside in dangerous professions at one time or another. You are right about those types of professions not lending themselves to training in a second career but someone needs to fish, farm, get oil and gas out of the ground, and so forth. Because there are people who do those things, the some of us have the luxury to pursue more comfortable, less dangerous careers.

liz

 

[diamondseeker2006]

All I can say is, in this economy, there are PLENTY of 4 year college grads who are either unemployed or working at department stores or grocery stores at close to minimum wage. For the first time in my life, I have seen teacher graduates not be able to find jobs in a state that had mostly had a shortage (and this was due to cuts in positions).

I absolutely agree that some people are much better suited to skills that use their strong eye-hand coordination over doing work such as accounting. People are much happier when their strengths are matched with a job as opposed to having a prestigious jobs. I have seen my share of very unhappy people with law degrees.

Neil, where are the best schools for bench jewelers? I do have a daughter who is gifted in art and who can make anything with her hands. We need to explore career options where she can use her natural ability whether it be jewelry making, hair dresser, cake decorating, graphic design, etc.

 

[denverappraiser]

Neil, where are the best schools for bench jewelers? I do have a daughter who is gifted in art and who can make anything with her hands. We need to explore career options where she can use her natural ability whether it be jewelry making, hair dresser, cake decorating, graphic design, etc.

I'm a big fan of the Revere academy in Oakland CA as well as the Rhode Island school of design in Providence. I've hired a number of graduates from both schools over the years. Vancouver Community College and Paris Junior College (Paris TX) both enjoy excellent reputations for solid training and modest prices (VCC has an excellent gemology program too). There are plenty of others. GIA, of course, is in this business and they're the 'brand name' although, frankly, I don't think they offer either the best training or the best value. It's been more than a decade since I've hired a bench jeweler and these things change pretty quickly. California Institute of Jewelry Design is a relavely new player run by Dee Huth who is a highly skilled lady and I would expect the school to be terrific although I've never been there. Down the road from me in beautiful Salida Colorado is the Colorado School of Metal Arts and there are literally hundreds of similar academies about the country that cater to both amateurs and professionals. They can be an excellent place to start.

 

[denverappraiser]

denverappraiser,

We will always need mechanics, plumbers, electricians, etc. I wouldn't choose to fish (I did deckhand for a month or two on my brother's very small shrimp boat and that was enough "fun" for me) or work offshore (both of my brothers have done that, one still does) or farm (grew up with lots of farmers and farmers' kids) or mine, but there are people who do. I don't personally know any of the people on the show "Swamp People" but I know a lot of people like them. You could not pay them a large fortune to work inside or sit at a desk. They love their hard, smelly, hot, dirty, dangerous work.

Not all smart people opt for a traditional higher education. My SO is one of them. He tried college and didn't like it one bit. But he can fix anything mechanical, he can built things (including houses and large barns and sheds and cabinets), he has logged, he flew and worked on his own twin-engine plane for years, he built his own airboat using an airplane engine.

Both of my brothers are intelligent, but one squeaked through high school and the other chose not to finish college. Both have chosen to work outside in dangerous professions at one time or another. You are right about those types of professions not lending themselves to training in a second career but someone needs to fish, farm, get oil and gas out of the ground, and so forth. Because there are people who do those things, the some of us have the luxury to pursue more comfortable, less dangerous careers.

liz

I'm not looking down on tradesmen. Plumbng (for example) is a good gig and it just seems to be getting better. The learning curve isn't nearly as long as it is for a lawyer or a research chemist, and the cost and time commitment is a fraction of what's involved for the traditional sorts of college trained careers. At the same time, there ARE 4 year degrees offered at most colleges that I would not recommend a student pursue if they're looking for career advancement. Not all college is about getting a job and I have no problem with people pursuing education for it's own sake but professional training type college (medicine, law, accounting, pharmacy, engineering, etc.) still strike me as a sound professional move for young people with the temprament, the time, and the money to pursue it. A degree in these sorts of things isn't a meal ticket, but it's sure a leg up.

 

[Rockdiamond]

All I can say is, in this economy, there are PLENTY of 4 year college grads who are either unemployed or working at department stores or grocery stores at close to minimum wage. For the first time in my life, I have seen teacher graduates not be able to find jobs in a state that had mostly had a shortage (and this was due to cuts in positions).

I absolutely agree that some people are much better suited to skills that use their strong eye-hand coordination over doing work such as accounting. People are much happier when their strengths are matched with a job as opposed to having a prestigious jobs. I have seen my share of very unhappy people with law degrees.

Neil, where are the best schools for bench jewelers? I do have a daughter who is gifted in art and who can make anything with her hands. We need to explore career options where she can use her natural ability whether it be jewelry making, hair dresser, cake decorating, graphic design, etc.

Hi Ds- I'd say another great possibility for your daughter is an apprenticeship

I agree with Neil about the value/quality offered by GIA.
GIA grads are simply not prepared (by virtue of a GG alone) to work in the jewelry business. Hands on experience is WAY more valuable in a general sense.