Where Can You Study to Become a Brewer in the US? The Universities Offering a Degree in Beer

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In the United States you can study beer brewing at university. Today eleven universities offer a bachelor’s degree in brewing or fermentation science, with their own pilot breweries where students brew at scale.

When we published the first version of this article in 2016, the list fit into five names. Since then new degrees have opened in Colorado, Illinois, Tennessee, Maryland and Michigan, while San Diego State’s craft beer business certificate no longer appears in the university’s catalog.

This guide gathers the programs active in October 2026, checked against each institution’s official pages.

What Do You Study in a Brewing Degree?

No American university awards a degree simply called “brewer.” The programs are Bachelor of Science degrees in food science or fermentation science, with a specialization in beer.

The curriculum combines chemistry, microbiology, process engineering and sensory analysis with hands-on work in a pilot brewery. That is where students learn concepts such as wort attenuation, yeast management and the quality control a commercial brewery demands.

Alongside these degrees there are graduate certificates and continuing education programs for people already working in the industry. We explain the difference further down, because not every course leads to a university degree.

The Five Universities with the Longest Track Record in Brewing

1. University of California, Davis (UC Davis)

UC Davis taught the first university brewing courses in the country in 1958, in a brewhouse donated by the Lucky Lager brewery and the Master Brewers Association of the Americas (MBAA). Professor Michael Lewis consolidated the program from 1964 onward, and the degree with a brewing concentration arrived in 1971 (UC Davis; All About Beer, 2015).

Today the program is the B.S. in Food Science with the Brewing Science option, which includes the malting and brewing courses FST 102A and 102B. Hands-on work takes place in the August A. Busch III laboratory, opened in 2010, whose 1.5-barrel pilot brewery the university presents as the world’s first LEED Platinum certified brewery.

People already working in the industry can choose the Master Brewers Program, created by Lewis in 1995. Since 2022 it has also been offered online.

2. Oregon State University

Oregon State launched the country’s second four-year brewing program in 1996 (All About Beer, 2015). The major is now called Food Science and Sustainable Technologies, with the Fermentation Science option, which adds 37 specific credits according to the current academic catalog.

Its research brewery, in Wiegand Hall, covers everything from malt milling to lagering and packaging, and includes a micromalter. The same pilot plant houses a research winery and an experimental creamery, so students work with several fermentations.

3. Central Washington University

Central Washington University offers a B.S. in Craft Brewing, approved in April 2015. It also has a craft brewing certificate designed for students from other majors (CWU).

Practice batches range from 5 gallons to half a barrel in the Michaelsen Hall labs. Recipes that work are then scaled up at Ellensburg Brewing Company, a commercial brewery in town.

An internship is mandatory for students in the degree. The department states that job placement for its graduates is close to 100%.

4. Appalachian State University

Appalachian State, in Boone, North Carolina, has offered the B.S. in Fermentation Sciences since the state university system approved it in 2012. It was the first four-year brewing degree east of the Mississippi River (All About Beer, 2015).

The Department of Chemistry and Fermentation Sciences has an automated 3-barrel brewhouse, a 1-barrel brewhouse, and column and pot stills. That is why the program also trains students in wine, cider and spirits.

5. Colorado State University

Colorado State offers the Fermentation Science and Technology concentration within the B.S. in Fermentation and Food Science, a 120-credit degree. Its students practice in the Ramskeller Brewhouse and in a laboratory sponsored by New Belgium Brewing.

The department’s Anheuser‑Busch quality laboratory analyzes malt for the industry. It is one of the few undergraduate facilities that provides this service to companies.

Which Other Universities Offer a Degree in Fermentation Science?

Metropolitan State University of Denver has a B.S. in Brewery Operations within its School of Hospitality. Its students brew in the Charlie Papazian Brewing Education Lab and sell the beer at Degree Brewpub, a brewpub that serves only what they produce.

Southern Illinois University Carbondale approved its B.S. in Fermentation Science in 2016 and requires a 300-hour internship. The university states that it is one of seven undergraduate programs recognized by the MBAA.

In Tennessee, Middle Tennessee State University was the first in the state to offer a degree in Fermentation Science. The University of Maryland offers its degree at College Park and, since fall 2023, at the Universities at Shady Grove for the last two years of study.

Washington State University opened the Fermentation Science option within its food science degree in 2016, a program it shares with the University of Idaho. Eastern Michigan University completes the list with a 120-credit B.S. in Fermentation Science that ends with an applied project with local businesses.

San Diego State’s craft beer business certificate, which appeared in the 2016 version of this article, is no longer listed among SDSU Global Campus programs. Its old web address now leads to an error page.

The table summarizes the eleven active degree programs and what sets each one apart.

Can You Study Brewing Without a Bachelor’s Degree?

Yes. It is the most common route for people who already work at a brewery and want technical training without leaving their job.

Auburn University offers an online graduate certificate in Brewing Science and Operations of 18 credits, which can count toward a 33-credit master’s degree. Its graduates are eligible to sit the General Certificate in Brewing from the Institute of Brewing & Distilling.

Ohio State offers a 15-credit minor in Brewing Science. Through its eCornell platform, Cornell sells an online craft brewing certificate made up of five courses.

Outside the university system, the Siebel Institute left Chicago after anti-immigration pressure on its students and moved its headquarters to Montreal in 2026. Its advanced World Brewing Academy programs are now taught in Munich, together with the Doemens Academy (Siebel Institute, 2026).

The American Brewers Guild, active since 1997, combines distance learning with an on-site week in Burlington, Vermont. Anyone more interested in service and tasting than in production can look to the Cicerone certification as the benchmark in the United States.

What Career Prospects Does a Brewing Degree Offer in the United States?

The craft market contracted in 2025. The Brewers Association counted 9,578 craft breweries in operation, 2.9% fewer than the previous year, with 300 openings against 481 closings (Brewers Association, 2026).

The craft sector employed 191,000 people, 6,000 fewer than in 2024. That is still thousands of breweries that need staff trained in laboratory work, quality and production, exactly the areas these programs prepare students for.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

1. Which was the first university in the United States to teach brewing?

The University of California, Davis. It taught its first brewing courses in 1958, in a brewhouse donated by the Lucky Lager brewery and the MBAA, and in 1971 it opened the country’s first degree with a brewing concentration. Today that training is the Brewing Science option of its food science degree.

2. How many years does a brewing degree take in the United States?

Bachelor’s degrees take four years and add up to around 120 credits, as at Colorado State, Southern Illinois, Middle Tennessee, Maryland or Eastern Michigan. Certificates are shorter. Auburn’s has 18 credits and eCornell’s, five courses.

3. Can you study brewing online at an American university?

Yes, as a certificate. Auburn University offers an online graduate certificate in Brewing Science and Operations, UC Davis has offered its Master Brewers Program online since 2022, and Cornell sells a craft brewing certificate through eCornell. Full bachelor’s degrees are on campus because they require work in a pilot brewery.

4. What is the difference between a fermentation science degree and a master brewer program?

A bachelor’s degree is a four-year university degree grounded in chemistry, microbiology and engineering. Master brewer programs, such as the UC Davis Master Brewers Program or the World Brewing Academy Master Brewer Program in Munich, are intensive courses lasting a few months, designed for people who already work at a brewery.

5. Does San Diego State’s beer program still exist?

It is not part of the current offering. San Diego State’s craft beer business certificate no longer appears in the SDSU Global Campus program list, and its old page leads to an error. The university has not published a closure announcement.

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