WSET launches 'roadshow' for new wine diploma format

01 March, 2019

By Shay Waterworth

The Wine & Spirit Education Trust (WSET), the largest global provider of wine and spirits qualifications, has announced that it will be running a ‘roadshow’ for the Level 4 Diploma in Wines across key markets before the new qualification goes live on 1 August 2019.

The roadshow comprises a series of information sessions which will take place in WSET’s pop-up classroom at forthcoming global wine and spirit trade shows and through its London school.

The full itinerary of events is as follows:

Vinexpo NYC | 4 March | 3.00pm | WSET Pavilion, Exhibit Hall
ProWein | 17 March | 10.00am | North Entrance, EN05
WSET School London | 11April | 6.30pm
Prowine Asia Hong Kong | 7 May | 1.00pm | Hall 3F, Forum 1
WSET School London | Dublin | 13 May | 6.30pm
London Wine Fair | 21 May | 1.00pm | Education Zone
WSET School London | Manchester | 22 July | 6.30pm

The information sessions, aimed at prospective students, will give a first look at the new WSET Level 4 Diploma in Wines with its focus on wines, updated specification and new digital learning materials.

The sessions will explain why the WSET Diploma is changing, what the new WSET Diploma looks like, how it differs from the current WSET Diploma as well as how students will benefit from taking the new qualification.

WSET chief executive Ian Harris said: “As a result of our announcement last year launching the new Level 4 Diploma in Wines, we realise that many prospective WSET students are keen to understand how this qualification will differ from the existing offering.

“The current WSET Diploma has been available for so long and is such a gold standard for wine education that the changed format is bound to raise a lot of questions. We are therefore excited to be able to launch this roadshow across our key markets in New York, Germany, London and Hong Kong.

“We want to show how the new programme will improve the student experience, providing them with expert-level product knowledge while enabling the development of professional skills key to success in the global wine business.”

The key changes to WSET Level 4 Diploma in Wines are:

Removal of spirits to allow more in-depth coverage of wine
Increase in the delivery time for the Wines of the World Unit
Different assessment format for the two ‘foundation’ units - covering wine production and wine business
New in-depth research assignment designed to assess the candidate’s ability to research beyond WSET’s learning materials to evaluate the current trends in wine