Tea Management Courses in India: A Rare Option in Beverages!

Tea finds its origin in Asia but it is Britain (UK), which is better known for its tea parties. Japanese too are known for their sanctified and elaborate tea customs. Both the East and the West covets tea as one of its favorite beverages. Tea Management is a rare career option but since tea industry in one of the major source of foreign currency for our country, those who opt for Tea Management courses in India generally find placements very easily.

Tea plantations employs thousands of workers at all levels – right from field workers to accountants and clerks to estate managers. Tea Management courses available in India offer training at different levels too. They include modules like:

• Tea Production
• Tea Processing
• Marketing and Sales of Tea Products
• Finance, and most interestingly
• Tea Tasting

Most of the courses are available at the postgraduate level – as a certificate or diploma course with duration ranging from six months to one year. There are some certificate courses available at undergraduate level too.

Perhaps the best thing about tea management courses is that they are not too expensive. Most institutes offering one-year Tea Management Courses in India charge only Rs 25,000 to Rs 50,000.

Admission Requirement for Tea Tasting Course in India

Tea tasters do not need fancy degrees to be good at their work. A certificate course in Tea Tasting after 10+2 works fine for those who have perfected the art of figuring out the differences in the aromas, tastes, health effects, appearances and colors of different types of tea leaves. The art is mostly learned on the job.

However, for other Tea Management courses, one should preferably have a B.Sc degree in Botany, Horticulture, Agricultural Sciences, Food Sciences, or other related fields. However, since there are few takers for this course, most of the institutes offering tea management courses accept graduates from all streams.

Popular Institutes for Tea Management Courses in India

Since Assam, especially Darjeeling, is the major tea producer of India, it is natural that most of the tea management institutes are clustered around the region. Some of the most popular ones are:

• Assam Agricultural University
• Assam Darjeeling Tea Research Center
• Assam University
• Birla Institute of Futuristic Studies
• Dipras Institute of Professional Studies
• Indian Institute of Plantation Management
• NITM, Darjeeling Tea Research And Management Association
• The Tea Tasters Academy
• University of North Bengal
• UPASI Tea Research Institute

Most of the tea management institutes have acres of tea plantations where students of Tea Management courses frequently go for hands-on training, and research work.

Career Prospects after Completing a Tea Management Program

Demand for tea as a beverage in India is much higher than its production. Hence, the growth graph of tea industry is quite encouraging for those who opt for Tea Management programs. Some of the places where graduates of the program are generally employed are Tea Plantations and Associations, The Tea Board of India, Tea Broking Houses, Agro-Chemical Companies and Tea Research Associations. Besides, tea experts can also work as independent consultants.

In Tea Gardens, higher-level employees are generally offered facilities like bungalows well equipped with electricity, cooking gas and even maids and servants. They have access to on-duty vehicles too. Indian experts in Tea Management are well respected in South Asia and the East but if you want to settle in the West such as US, UK or Canada, you may want to reconsider the option of pursuing a career in Tea Management.

Discuss everything about tea management programs and career options in tea industry here.

Source: Ruchi Shrimali