Brewing Sciences graduates place at international brewing competition

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Faculty behind Auburn University's Brewing Science and Operations program believe the recent accomplishment of two of its graduates validates the effectiveness of the new programming.

Eric Mitchell and Scott Worthington were among the first class of students to complete the graduate certificate program last summer. Earlier this year, they both earned medals at the Craft Brewers Conference in Philadelphia.

"This is a wonderful validation for our program and the groundbreaking work the faculty is doing with the curriculum," said Martin O'Neill, head of the Department of Nutrition, Dietetics and Hospitality Management in Auburn's College of Human Sciences. "Naturally, there's a good degree of individual talent involved, but I believe success stories like these point to the quality of our curriculum and approach with distance education."

The Brewing Science and Operations program at Auburn is a graduate certificate option for students who have already earned a bachelor's degree. The curriculum – the result of a partnership between the Department of Nutrition, Dietetics and Hospitality Management, the colleges of veterinary medicine, business and agriculture, the Alabama craft brewing industry and Oskar Blues Brewery of Longmont, Colorado – is designed to prepare students for entry into the malting, brewing and/or distilling industries.

Courses, which focus on such topics as biology, microbiology, chemistry, brewing science, agronomy, facilities and operations, and business planning, are offered via distance education.

Mitchell and Worthington, brewers with Heist Brewery in Charlotte, North Carolina, earned a bronze medal in the English-style mild ale category at the 2016 World Beer Cup during the conference.

Garrick Mallery, a current student in the Auburn program, earned a silver medal in the American-Belgo style ale category and gold in Belgian-style dark strong ale category. He works as a brewer at Boulevard Brewing Company in Kansas City, Missouri.

Mallery and the second class of brewing certificate students are set to complete the year-long program in August.

Auburn University is a nationally ranked land grant institution recognized for its commitment to world-class scholarship, interdisciplinary research with an elite, top-tier Carnegie R1 classification, life-changing outreach with Carnegie’s Community Engagement designation and an undergraduate education experience second to none. Auburn is home to more than 30,000 students, and its faculty and research partners collaborate to develop and deliver meaningful scholarship, science and technology-based advancements that meet pressing regional, national and global needs. Auburn’s commitment to active student engagement, professional success and public/private partnership drives a growing reputation for outreach and extension that delivers broad economic, health and societal impact.