"First, what value, other than to show that you have done quite a bit of reading and studying, is the master certificate? 
Does this make you a better beekeeper?? 
Or does it give your bees a better chance to live??"

Howdy, 
I am currently taking 2 Master Beekeeping Programs, so I think I might have something to add to the previous excellent answers. :)

To your first question on value: I believe that for many people doing more reading and studying on a topic of interest has a LOT of value.  Would you go to a medical doctor that had never been to school?  Yes, experience is one of the best ways to learn and an apprenticeship maybe even better, but those options aren't always available to everyone. (I’ll also mention everyone learns differently, some by seeing, some by hearing, some by doing, etc.)  And knowing all that, typically a Master Beekeeping Program (MBP) takes all of those things into consideration.  In the first year, you can't even begin a MBP until you have a minimum of 1 year keeping bees.  Then the first year focuses on a lot of book learning to supplement what you are doing and seeing in the apiary in your 2nd year.  Typically there are also some aspects of you SHARING your new knowledge with others as you begin "teaching" others about bees or beginning beekeeping by speaking to schools, kids programs, gardening groups, etc.  (Teaching others makes you learn it better, because it becomes more important to you.)  Sharing your new knowledge with others has value because it spreads the message to non-beekeepers that honey bees are valuable resources we want to protect and appreciate.  If you are a back yard beekeeper who wants to become a better beekeeper and wants to help bees in general, taking a MBP might be the only way available to you to get higher knowledge.  You may not be able to have 50+ beehives and get your experience hands on and might not be able to find a big apiary to volunteer/apprentice to gain knowledge and experience.  Also some people in MBPs want that certificate to gain the credentials to teach others, volunteer, or get a new job.  It may be part of “proving” you are qualified.

To your second question on making you a better beekeeper:  Yes, I am a better beekeeper because I have improved my knowledge in even MORE aspects of beekeeping than exist in my “little world” of beekeeping.  There are MANY things I have not seen in my apiary or even in the apiaries I help others with, BUT that doesn’t mean I can’t learn about how to recognize those problems and learn what to do when I see them.  A lot of beekeeping is problem solving and asking the right questions and knowing a lot of the biological reasons behind bee behavior, plant behavior, knowing aspect of how weather or the environment affects plants and bees, and knowing more about chemicals and treatments and their effects.  We all know that you can’t believe everything you read, part of a MBP is learning how to read critically by going through journal articles and separating fact from hypothesis.  Another part is looking through a microscope and seeing diseases for yourself and learning how to test for disease without relying on others for diagnosis or to catch something earlier so you can prevent a problem.

And your last question:  Will my bees have a better chance to live:  That’s tougher because it isn’t always about what I know or have learned.  I do think 1 part of beekeeping is just luck.  It could be WHERE you live or where your apiary is situated.  It could be you got just the “right” bees when you bought or found them.  It could be that you guessed what was wrong or what your bees needed and you were right.  It could be that your bees knew what to do and took care of themselves just right.  (Or any combination of luck and circumstance.)  You can also know all the answers and lose a colony for a variety of possible reasons and have no idea why.  That happens to beekeepers with very little experience and beekeepers with 50 years of experience.  I personally believe that gaining more knowledge on bees and beekeeping AND sharing that knowledge with others AND associating myself with fellow beekeepers on the same journey WILL improve my skills as a beekeeper and therefore WILL make better and WILL help my bees do better and WILL help me help others to do better for their bees.  In fact I have seen improvements in % of bee survival in my own apiaries as my knowledge and practical experience increases, so it must be true, right? :)  (hahaha, trick question, watch out!)

The last part of your statement had to do with COST.  I will tell you that different MBP cost varying amounts from FREE or very minimal cost to hundreds, maybe thousands of dollars.  As I said, I am in 2 different programs myself, one costs a lot more than the other AND they are both very different, so I do both! FOR ME, and for my bees.

Here’s to a GREAT Spring season for all bees and beekeepers!
Cheers,

Tanya Phillips, Journeyman Beekeeper :)
Austin, TX

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