Education

There are few official courses for perfumery in the world and consequently it can be a difficult industry to break into. The most famous independent school of perfumery is in Versailles, France and is called the Institute Supérieur International du Parfum de la Cosmétique et de l’Aromatique Alimentaire (ISIPCA).

This institute runs a range of courses related to the fragrance industry from perfumery to evaluation and marketing.

Other perfumery schools are run privately by some of the large fragrance houses and are used to train future employees. There is strong competition for places and no guarantee of a position afterwards. The average course length is four years.

ICATS is an organization that exists to provide flexible quality learning to professional and aspiring professionals in the Aroma Trades, Perfumery and Flavor industries. They provide distance learning on a global basis leading to the IFEAT (International Federation of Essential Oils and Aroma Trades) Diploma. They also provide occasional workshops exclusively focused on the Aroma Trades, Perfumery and Flavor industries. ICATS learning material is written by international industry experts with long experience of training and education.

Fragrance Foundation and Sense of Smell Institute

The Fragrance Foundation which has offices in New York, USA, London, England and Dubai, was founded to promote the fragrance industry and also to provide help to those wishing to study the industry as well as the olfactory sciences via the Sense of Smell Institute.

Below are some useful links for people wishing to find out more about becoming a perfumer.