Certifications
Which coffee certificate is worth your time
The academy teaches one certificate, the Italian Barista Certificate. The other, the SCA Coffee Skills Program, is explained here because you deserve to know what you are not getting. This page sets them side by side so you can choose on the facts rather than on the acronym.
Two certificates, and they reach you differently
Finish a course with us and you end up with two separate things. They are not the same certificate and they do not arrive the same way.
The Italian Barista Certificate
Issued in Italy by Espresso Academy and emailed to you after the course. It is the qualification, it carries the level you took, and it does not come to you at the campus.
Our participation certificate
We give you this one in person, at the Bengaluru campus, at the end of your course. It is ours and it records that you attended. It is separate from the Italian Barista Certificate and is not a level of it.
The two certificates
| What is being compared | Italian Barista Certificate (IBC)Read the full page | SCA Coffee Skills ProgramRead the full page |
|---|---|---|
| Who issues it | Espresso Academy, Italy. Diplomas are issued in Italy and emailed to you. | The Specialty Coffee Association, not the school, and only on an assessed module. We do not run one and do not assess for one. |
| Levels | Basic Barista, then Advanced Barista or Advanced Roasting. | Foundation, Intermediate, then Professional, across five areas. |
| Taught here | Yes. All three courses at the Bengaluru campus lead to it. | No. We run no SCA course of our own, and this page is here so you can tell the two certificates apart. |
| Who it suits | People who want one certificate, issued by Espresso Academy, Italy, start to finish. | People who want a modular programme they can add to, area by area. |
| What it costs | The certificate is part of the course fee. Nothing separate is charged for it. | Not published here, because no SCA course is sold here. |
What a certificate is actually worth
A certificate helps you get an interview. Your skills get you the job.
Neither certificate is a licence to practise, and neither replaces what you can do on a bar. What an employer tests at a trial shift is whether you can dial in under pressure, texture milk consistently and keep a bar moving.
If what a certificate is worth to a particular employer matters to you, ask before you book, and ask the employer too.
Which courses lead where
Italian Barista Certificate (IBC)
Ask us which employers recognise the IBC in your city and we will answer plainly.
SCA Coffee Skills Program
No course here leads to it. The academy runs the Italian Barista Course, not an SCA course.
SCA certification is issued by the SCA, not by a school, and only on an assessed module. The academy does not run one and does not assess for one. What it teaches is training aligned to the SCA Coffee Skills Program, which is a description of the standard, not a certificate. If the SCA route is what you want, ask and you will be told where to take it.
The IBC ladder
The IBC runs at Basic, then at two Advanced courses. The IBC Basic is required before either of them, however long you have worked.
Italian Barista Certificate
The Italian Barista Certificate runs at two levels. IBC Basic is four days and assumes no machine experience. Above it sit two Advanced courses, Advanced Barista and Advanced Roasting, of two days each. The two Advanced courses are separate from each other, and the IBC Basic is required before either of them.
About certificates
The IBC is issued in Italy by Espresso Academy and emailed to you after the course. We teach under the supervision of Espresso Academy Italy, and the certificate is awarded at Basic Barista, Advanced Barista and Advanced Roasting. We also give you a participation certificate in person at the campus, which is our own and separate from the IBC.
No. The academy runs the Italian Barista Course, not an SCA course, and it does not assess for SCA certification. What it teaches is training aligned to the SCA Coffee Skills Program, which describes the standard rather than the certificate. If the SCA route is specifically what you want, ask and you will be told where to take it.
Ask which certificate fits your plan
Tell the academy what you want to be doing in a year, and ask which certificate helps and which one is beside the point. You will get a straight answer, including when the answer is that the academy does not teach what you need.