How Jewellery Training Solutions (JTS) Works
JTS has four levels of training to suit beginner’s students and professional jewellers 'Bronze Silver Gold & Platinum'
Check out the projects in each level to determine whether you want to start a hobby and have fun making jewellery, expand on your skills and creativity to develop your own product range, or enrol into the apprentice course and work through the unique Ten Stage Training Program in the Silver level.
Our passion is to help students start a career in jewellery making.
JTS also caters for professional jewellers who want to up-skill or learn stone setting techniques.
In my experience Jewellery students are generally visual learners. JTS understands this so the video projects & demonstrations are set up as a simulated apprentice teacher relationship with clear instructions of the manufacture process and techniques.
Some projects come with important formulas and theory notes related to the subject.
When you click on the VIEW VIDEO button you will then be linked to the curriculum with the lesson details. There will be a required material list if applicable. This page will also show you the payment options.
Members & subscribers will be invited to the JTS student group to enjoy Facebook interaction with other students & teachers just like a real jewellery school. JTS students from around the world post progress shots or pictures of their finished work ask advice and share learning experiences. There are also lots of tips, tricks, advice and exclusive previews & videos.
Safety
The extensive JTS video library is hosted by Thinkific.
The Thinkific student platform is used & trusted by thousands of businesses schools & universities worldwide because it is renowned for its safe reliable and secure cloud hosting. It is PCI compliant and SSL enabled. You are in safe hands.
The course navigation is easy. Our clear curriculum forward navigation supports student progress through individual chapters and lessons.
Students resume learning exactly where they left off, including mid-video, on their mobile, tablet, laptop or any device.
Materials & Equipment
A well-equipped jewellery workshop is required for Silver Gold and Platinum Levels. However, you will be amazed at what you can achieve with a limited workshop.
During the video lesson you will be given detailed information on the tools consumables and equipment required to participate in the project lesson.
The training projects are generally fabricated from stock gauge silver available at your local precious metal stockist or online.
All jewellery components are hand made using traditional techniques handed down from Master Jeweller to apprentice for centuries.
JTS has even put together a recommended tool list that you can find when you go to ‘Downloads’ so you can make sure you have the required tools to start training.
Content & Access
The lessons are complete. That means, you don't have to wait until the next instalment to see the end result. All the information you need is included and in some cases information handouts can be found in the curriculum.
You have a choice of how you can access the JTS courses.
New lessons are continually being created and are added to your following month subscription. Members will have immediate access.
You can check what’s new on the ‘Latest Lessons’ page.
You can watch as many times as you like during the term.
It is not permissible to copy or share JTS copyright videos.
Payments & Billing
All prices are in Australian dollars. So check the conversion to your currency; https://www.xe.com/currencyconverter/convert/?Amount=1&From=USD&To=AUD
There is no fixed term for subscriptions. Students have full control of the JTS account and can manage billing information as well as cancel the subscription directly from the Billing tab of the Student Account page.
You are never dealing with a robot your teacher is here to help in any way, so if you want us to handle the cancellation you can just request via email.
Stripe & PayPal
What's the difference between Stripe and PayPal?
By default, JTS is setup to use Stripe for payments. Stripe is the easiest way to accept credit cards online and is seamless for the purchaser. It's likely that you've already encountered Stripe while purchasing online and didn't even know it - you can find a list of some well-known companies who use Stripe for their payments at https://stripe.com/gallery.
When checking out, you will have the choice of using PayPal, or credit card.
Note: subscription payments are only available using Stripe, in order to accommodate recurring credit card billing.
Training Rewards
JST members and subscribers can also claim training stage level certificates for recognition of achievement.
The Silver Level Course is for serious students looking to start a career as a Goldsmith. It is based on authentic apprenticeship training developed by Peter Keep for the Australian jewellery industry. There are ten easy to follow levels that will help you to plan and systematically work through your skill development.
The projects are designed to introduce new techniques and knowledge that are staged in manageable lots along the way. This pathway is based on many years’ experiences teaching and qualifying trade jewellers and apprentices.
The certificate applications that are in each course curriculum identify important points to assess for each training project.
When you have completed and self-assessed at least two projects from the level you are working through, email photographs to me (Top plan & side elevations if possible) Your work will be assessed and a stage level certificate relating to the project can then be issued.
Only send the project applications when you have completed the stage you are working on.
As a self assessing student you should strive to improve and work on your weaknesses, which could mean working through the same level or repeating some projects until you are satisfied with your improvements. There is no obligation to participate in the merit program, so, no pressure.
It is not essential to complete all the listed projects in the Ten Stage Training Program as some projects share the same skills and outcomes. However, it is recommended that at least two projects from each stage should be completed to a competent level to ensure your jewellery making experience is broad and extensive.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
Yes. But don’t throw yourself in at the deep end. Start with Bronze Level Skills. Pick out the lessons under ‘Hobbyist’ Beginner courses. Soham will guide you through basic skills and help build them up.
When you feel that you are ready, try out the advanced hobby courses or the Silver level to see if advanced technical training is for you.
Yes. However there are skill sets that are essential to the learner that should not be over looked.
For experienced jewellers who are new to setting, I recommend that you start with claw setting before advancing to multi stone setting; you will then have a better understanding.
The Thinkific student platform is PCI compliant; this safeguard ensures that all credit card details are handled in a secure environment.
The site is also SSL enabled so all data passed between the web server and browsers remain private and integral.
You can apply for certificates if you are working through the apprentice program. The JTS Ten Stage Training Plan is recognised and endorsed by the Jewellery Training Council and although we don’t offer a qualification the certificates could be used as evidence of competence towards a qualification. Contact us for more information
The lesson description will note what kind of student will benefit from the lesson, this should be used as a guide only.
This is based on my experience teaching apprentices, and how challenging certain tasks are. However I know there are competent Gold Skills jewellers that would struggle with some Silver Skills tasks. So you will have to acknowledge your own strengths and weaknesses and make a personal training plan.
You can drop in and out of subscriptions whenever you like.
Students are able to manage their billing information directly from the Billing tab of the Student Account page.
To get there, click on your name or picture in the top right of the video library Thinkific site, select My Account, and then Billing on the next page.
From the Billing tab, students can see and remove their saved credit cards.
Students can also review and cancel any of their active subscriptions to your courses. Hitting 'Remove' for a subscription will automatically cancel the recurring monthly payments, and will mean that you automatically lose access to the course content at the end of their current billing period; saving you the hassle of contacting JTS to do it for you.
The Bronze Level Skills is packed full of ideas techniques and easy to make products that have commercial value. Soham has taught thousands of students online as well as face to face. His jewellery knowledge is extremely broad whereas my expertise is in high skilled jewellery making. We both have so many ideas we want to run with, we have committed to introduce at least one new project per week each.
My goal is to deliver jewellery training to anyone who is passionate no matter what skills they have.
Not straight away. Some lessons in Bronze only require a very basic set up, so the curious learners not ready to commit financially can undertake lessons.
I have tried to alternate methods of manufacture using basic tools as well as specialised tools. I also make or modify tools for certain tasks.
The setting demonstrations are mostly performed using hand tools and gravers rather than a Graver Mach. I use a 5x optivisor for all work except micro setting (7x or 10x required).
You can slowly build up your tool collection as you go. Don’t forget to check out the recommended tool list in the free downloads.
When you watch a video you need to click the Next button on every lesson? This is how we track the completion of each lesson. If you are going through the courses using the navigation menu on the left, unfortunately, it won't be recorded as complete.
No sorry. The movie files are encrypted so they can't be downloaded. They can be viewed on most smart devices. Please check this out before you enrol in a course. Or if you find problems please let me know.
Part of running a business online means supporting your customers. JTS use the services of Thinkific to host the course materials. They offer world-class support and expertise to help keep things running smoothly. However, there may be a time when you need technical help.
If you cannot access a video or the speed and quality is poor, the problem can usually be resolved by trying the following.
First refresh your cache. Sometimes browser caching causes problems.
http://www.refreshyourcache.com/en/home/
Try opening in a private window of your browser of choice (e.g. Chrome's Incognito Mode, or Firefox's Private Window). This opens a fresh browser window without any extensions or settings blocking content.
Try on a different browser (Chrome, Firefox, Edge, Safari, IE, Opera, etc). Sometimes the installation of their browser may be damaged. If it works on every browser but one, tell them to reinstall that browser. If the issue persists after reinstalling, send an email to us as it may be an issue only we can fix!
Try on a different device or computer (mobile phone, tablet, PC/Mac laptop/desktop, etc.). Sometimes a certain device has trouble with a content type. This is rare but could be a problem.
If you are still having issues, just reach out, I am always on hand to help, and I have a dedicated support team at Thinkific ready to help.
Cheers Peter