WIll Certified Cicerone exam become easier?

Yeah I don't really know what else they could add unless you had to memorize ALL of the stylistic IBUs, ABVs, and SRMs.

 

Don't know the levels all that well never having done any of them, but here's what seems to be their description of the Advanced:

http://cicerone.org/content/advanced-cicerone

Maybe you could check it out, compare it to the other levels, etc. and let us know how it compares to what you did?

 

No. The Certified Cicerone exam will remain at the same level. Passing the test will continue to demonstrate the same level of knowledge. The reason for the Advanced level has to do with what was the huge gap in between the Certified and the Master level. In the past 2 years, some 43 people had taken the Master exam with only 2 passing. Many Certified Cicerones, including some who had attempted the Master exam, were requesting a way to demonstrate more knowledge without having to take such a big leap from Certified to Master. Adding the level doesn't dilute at all what Certified Cicerones have achieved. If anything, the increasingly large pool of Certified Cicerones is motivating some to find a way to demonstrate more knowledge. The Advanced level does this. It's also worth noting that this level brings the Cicerone program roughly in line with the 4 levels you find in the Court of Master Sommeliers.

 

https://cicerone.org/files/Certified_Cicerone_Syllabus_v3.pdf

Crazy!

Advanced Cicerone probably includes etiquette on price-gauging and handling line cutters on Black Friday.

 

Isn't the pass rate 40%? And then like 3% for the Master?

 

It's all about level of detail. CC is a 4 hour exam. MC is 2 days. AC will be one day. The revisions were not entirely coincidental. The main reason for the new syllabus (and the primary difference between the old and new CC syllabus) is to reflect the new 2015 BJCP style guidelines, from which the test pulls style info. It just makes sense to do introduce it at the same time as a whole new level.

 

The Advanced Cicerone exam is probably for a couple reasons --

I don't think they're making much money just on these 3 exams. They make the most money on the Beer Server exam since it's online, easy for any bartender to do, etc.

Certified requires a Cicerone rep to fly (most of the time) to a location, get a hotel, buy the beer, etc. Probably losing money in the long run.

So they come out with another exam to fill a nice spot in their portfolio. Not sure what they will be putting in there that's different than the regular Certified exam.

 

I think Certified Cicerone is going to be more difficult due to the 2015 BJCP as well. I passed the Certified in June 2015 and will be sitting for the Advanced Cicerone, March 30 in Washington DC. I found this thread looking for any info on the Advanced and to see the discussion of the program in general. My advice is using 2015 BJCP for all styles, ABV, IBU, vital stats, really everything on BJCP style guidelines. That is how I am studying for the Advanced is basically trying to memorize, apply, and reapply all thing BJCP as one small part of studying. Try to learn the commercial examples from BJCP instead of ones in your own state that others will not know out of the state or they did the style once.

 

The only reason the certified syllabus changed is because the new bjcp came out.

 

Advanced Cicerone level is just going to be a badge on Untappd and it will be given out randomly so nobody will know when they are about to get it.

 

I can say Advanced is significantly more difficult than Certified. I sat for the first ever exam on Tuesday, Feb. 2. It was fair, challenging and thorough. I thought I was well prepared, but have no idea if I passed. I feel that if I passed, it will be by the skin of my teeth. The Certified test is a cake walk compared to the Advanced. We started at 9am and finished at 5:45. We had a nice lunch break, but the day was physically and mentally exhausting. An oral exam before Ray Daniels and a Master Cicerone is the most terrifying thing I've ever done.

If you are Certified and think you can do this, you maybe can, but you need a significant increase in your knowledge. The subject matter is nearly the same, but goes so much deeper. You can think of it like this, if Certified is a Bachelor degree and Master a PhD, the Advanced is Master level work.

For the first time, I think I fully appreciate the knowledge and ability of Masters. Advanced is a shade of the difficulty of Master, but I feel like we were given a glance behind the curtain of what they must do to pass. If you are taking it, good luck. Do not underestimate it. It's a brutal slog. I'm still brain dead and wiped out two days later.

 

I'm curious to hear why people take these tests, is it just to give yourself a push and timeframe to learn the material, or are there jobs that require certification?

 

I don't make my daily living in the beer business, but I'm a freelancer. I write, speak and teach about beer. For me the best way to do that is to continually be a student of beer. The more I learn, the more I realize how much I don't know. Most everyone taking the test is in the industry, working for breweries, distributors or high-end beer bars. I suspect many of them do it for the same reasons, but it may also help their career advancement.

 

I second sybian's question.
Also, I'd like to know if the increased difficulty of the advanced and masters relies solely on theoretical knowledge; that is to say, if you must learn a whole lot more information and that will do, or if you must also have a more refined and experienced palate for those two final exams.

 

I'd say the knowledge is more than theoretical. Not everyone needs to know what happens during secondary fermentation, but being able to articulate will help make me a better homebrew teacher and prepare to answer a wide variety of student questions. But on the tasting side, the experience and trained palate become more important. I was pushing my limits. I'll never take the master exam, I know my palate can never be that good. It's not training that's my limit, it's my genetics and my damned seasonal allergies.

 

Both. Some people just enjoy learning as much as they can about certain things, and this certification is proof that you've done that, to an extent. And some use the certification because it's definitely something business within the industry look for in certain positions.

 

Geez, that sure sounds scary.
Well thanks a bunch, krjoseph.

 

Can any Certified Cicerones here speak to how challenging the Cert is? I'm a Certified Beer Server and have been really thinking about testing my knowledge in the Cicerone exam. I don't work in the beer industry, but this is still a title I've coveted for a while, at least to prove something to myself. I think I have a decent knowledge-base about styles, history, basic brewing, etc, but I'm worried about my palate...