Universities Tap Into Craft Beer Growth by Offering Classes
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

MONTPELIER, Vt. — With an explosion in growth in the craft beer industry over the last decade, it’s not enough to simply have a passion for brewing and beer when it comes to starting a brewery or working for one as the industry gets more competitive.

Recognizing that, some universities are now offering programs on the business of craft beer.

In the last decade, the number of craft breweries has grown to more than 4,000 in the U.S. today, from more than 1,400 in 2005, according to the Brewers Association.

A lot of breweries started out five or 10 years ago with a focus on beer, said Gregory Dunkling, director of the University of Vermont’s new online business of craft beer certificate program, which starts in February. Back then, a home brewer may have been able to create some great recipes but didn’t have the business acumen so along the way hired staff to cover marketing, sales, the business operation, he said. It’s harder to pull that off today.

As the industry has grown and become more competitive, the bar has been raised for those starting a brewery or working for one, said Bart Watson, chief economist with the Brewers Association.

“Certainly the demand for people with a high level of brewing knowledge has gone up and on the business side as well. So I think we’re seeing a variety of different programs look for ways that they can capitalize on that,” he said.

Portland State University in Oregon started an online business of craft brewing program in 2013, with the first cohort filling up in the first week with around 40 people. It’s become one of the school’s most successful professional certificate programs, drawing people from around the world, said Scott Gallagher, the university’s director of communications.

“We discovered that there’s a huge need for people who wanted to get a certificate. They didn’t necessarily want to go to college or already had a college degree and wanted to open up a brew pub,” Gallagher said. They needed some basic and more advanced knowledge, such as in marketing, he said.

The demand is so high that PSU is looking at how to develop and expand the program, Gallagher said.

“The truth is ... it’s not all about brewing and drinking beer. There’s a lot of business behind it as well and that’s usually what they’re lacking,” he said.

University of Portland and San Diego State University’s College of Extended Studies also have business of craft beer certificate programs. Classes for San Diego State’s program are held at local breweries and at the university, but not online.

So far, the University of Vermont program, in a state that has made a name for itself for its craft beers, has drawn applicants from around the country — Arizona, Florida, Georgia, Oregon and Texas, and about half are from the Northeast, Dunkling said.

The program costs about $4,400 for the two courses: one on the fundamentals of craft beer and a second course of students’ choosing focused on digital marketing, sales or business operations. Apprenticeships with a network of breweries and distributors are also available.

Industry officials agree there’s a need for education and knowledge in the industry and different ways to get it, whether through experience, hiring talent or training, which some breweries provide.

As outside investors and larger breweries become increasingly involved with craft brewing, Harpoon Brewery, which will be offering apprenticeships to the UVM students, feels a need to maintain its independence.

“Hiring talented people is a critical part of that effort,” Rich Ackerman, Harpoon’s director of human resources, said by email. But the company cautions anyone against thinking of craft brewing purely as a business.

“It’s a passion project, first and foremost,” he said.

精釀啤酒業成長迅猛 美大學開釀啤酒課

標榜小巧、獨立和傳統風格的精釀啤酒（craft beer）業近十年來迅猛成長，競爭日趨激烈，美國很多大學已針對這個領域開闢相關課程。

佛蒙特大學2月將新開設線上精釀啤酒事業認證課程，課程主任鄧克林說，很多五或十年前設立的啤酒廠，他們的專注焦點只有釀酒。那時候，家庭式啤酒廠或許有能力創造很棒的釀酒配方，卻沒有必要的商業頭腦，只能邊發展、邊找人負責行銷和管理營運。然而，現在要以這種方式發展，已經不太行得通。

啤酒廠協會的首席經濟學家土華特森說，這個行業不斷在成長，競爭日益激烈，不論開設啤酒廠或只是想在這個行業工作，門檻都已拉高。

他說：「業界不僅對高等釀酒知識人才的需求升高，對商業營運人才的需求也同樣擴增，所以針對不同需要開設的課程很快會應運而生。」

俄勒岡的波特蘭州立大學2013年開設線上精釀啤酒商業課程時，約40人的名額第一周就已填滿。這個班如今是該大學最成功的職業認證課程，吸引世界各地人士就讀。佛蒙特大學的認證班課程費用約4400美元，包括兩門課，其中一門是有關精釀啤酒的基本知識。

原文參照：
http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/2016/01/01/us/ap-us-beer-business-school.html

2016-01-02．聯合晚報．B3．國際財經．編譯陳澄和