VA Tech is teaming up with UR to make brewery dreams come true

There’s a saying that if you do what you love, you’ll never work a day in your life. It is an elusive dream for most of us. But Virginia Tech and the University of Richmond are teaming up to give some people the opportunity to make that dream a reality.

If you’ve ever visited a craft brewery, sipped at a handcrafted brew, and imagined what it would be like to work at or even own your own brewery, maybe it’s time you stopped imagining and started doing.

The Virginia Tech Center for Organizational and Technological Advancement (COTA) and the University of Richmond School of Professional & Continuing Studies have joined together to partner with Virginia suppliers, breweries and distributors to offer a one year, non-credited course of study which would grant those who complete the course a Beer Brewer Professional Certificate.

This 12 month program requires participants to complete 11 modules covering brewing, the history of craft brewing, brewing terminology, selecting high-quality ingredients, packaging and distribution, quality assurance, and others. There are also two field trips, and a one-month, 20-hour internship requirement to earn the certificate.

With the exception of the two field trips, classes are 3 hours long and usually held Monday evenings, making it perfect for anyone who has to work while pursuing their dream. The internship provides a hands-on, practical learning experience and takes place near the end of the course at a relevant organization which would be selected by the student in consultation with a program supervisor.

Not only will graduates have the knowledge and skills they need to enter the craft brewing industry in a variety of roles, but by collaborating with local partners in the brewing community they also gain first hand knowlege as well as valuable contacts in the community.

Unfortunately UR and Tech will only be accepting 20 applications each, with an additional 5 applications to be placed on a wait list, so individuals interested would need to apply as early as possible to ge a seat. The intent is to limit the class size to allow each student more one-on-one interaction with faculty and the local business partners throughout the course.

The Virginia Tech course will take place at the Virginia Tech Roanoke Center and local brewing partner facilities, while the University of Richmond course will be taught at the University of Richmond campus and at local brewing partner facilities in Richmond. However, there are plans to expand the program into the National Capital Region in 2020.

Applications and a required essay for admission for either campus must be submitted through the University of Richmond web site. The application deadline for the Virginia Tech course is October 1, and the deadline for the University of Richmond course is September 9.

To submit an application, or to get more information, visit the UR web site: https://spcs.richmond.edu/noncredit/programs/beer-brewer

So raise a glass, and make a toast to turning dreams into reality. And to never having to work another day in your life!

Cheers!