i'm new to the forum. Hope you guys can help out a newbie like me.
First of all, I am very interested in diamonds - both trading and collecting diamonds.
I bought a couple of diamonds before for gifts purposes (proposals and anniversaries) and do have the basic understanding of the 4Cs. Of course, these kinds of knowledge were picked up over the Internet like Pricescope and talking to jewelers.
I would actually like to take things a step further and learn everything I can about diamonds since I am taking this hobby seriously now. This forum had been useful and I had already read http://www.bwsmigel.info/ on the free gemology information.
Question: Are there any online courses /books that specifically focuses on diamonds per se? Everything from rough diamonds,cut processes, evaluating diamonds, standard tools used, grading etc... The reason I say online courses /books is that I live in Asia (most big name labs that offer courses are not available) and still work in a day job. More importantly, a flexible course in terms of time commitment would be ideal for me.
A big thanks in advanced for any advice shared by the pros here.
Joined: Mon Oct 17, 2005 10:56 am Posts: 6461 Location: The frozen north prairie :-/
Hi Frank,
For online courses, probably one of the best is the GIA diamond course, found here.
Or, for a different take, there's the AIGS program here.
If you want to really get deep into it, there's the Gem-A out of Great Britain here.
Each of these courses has merit; I understand they teach to a different aspect. The GIA emphasizes selling, and are the ones who created the 4Cs of diamond grading. The course is a good one and you can't go wrong with it.
From what I've gathered from members of this forum, the Gem-A is an in-depth study, going further than the GIA courses as to the process of diamond formation. I'm sure some of their graduates will chime in for you .
I'm not really familiar enough with the AIGS courses to say much, but, again, many members here can fill you in on this aspect.
Hope this helps a bit.
_________________ IIJA Registered Gemologist GIA Graduate Gemologist
The GIA online course in diamonds is something I'll be taking up in a few months. I'm just finishing up on the Gem Identification course. It's a great start into the basics, and GIA does share really nice multimedia learning tools to its DE students. I'm also new here on the forum (1 week) so, cheers!
Joined: Sun Mar 11, 2007 10:03 pm Posts: 341 Location: San Diego
I'm an instructor for GIA's online distance education diamonds course, so please feel free to email me at my work address: paul.mattlin@gia.edu and I would be more than happy to help answer any questions you may have.
_________________ Paul Mattlin Senior Manager, Online Education Division
* My posts are my own and do not reflect the opinions or policies of my employer
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