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The Pinnacle of Professional Distilling Qualifications

Master Distiller - Newly updated for 2026

The CIBD Master qualification stands as the pinnacle of the CIBD qualification hierarchy and holds the utmost esteem amongst brewing and distilling industry senior leaders and educators.  

The brewing and distilling industries senior operational leaders and professional brewers and distillers have seen significant changes in their roles over the past few years. 

The new syllabus was developed in collaboration with distilling industry senior business leaders and learning and development specialists through the CIBD Masters Customer Reference Group. Their feedback ensured alignment with industry requirements. Candidate feedback was also considered, as a recent CIBD survey revealed a strong preference for the qualifications to reflect current and future roles and support aspirations. The content of the new Master syllabus was written with the support of ‘unique contributors’ who are leading experts in their fields and was peer reviewed by senior industry professionals and academics. 

The new syllabus includes modules that test application and leadership, electives that reinforces expertise and a revised assessment methodologies that helps examiners’ gauge candidate’s skills, knowledge, and experience.  

The new syllabus has been designed for senior operational and technical leaders, future operational, supply chain and technical directors. Aspiring industry professionals can now also attain the CIBD Master qualification as a prerequisite for pursuing individual chartered status. 

If you are part way through the existing Masters qualification, then rest assured there are several options that are available to you. Please see the links on the right hand side to see your options.  

 

Qualification Structure

There are five Modules in total. Modules 1, 2 and 3 cover the full end to end value chain that encompasses distilling – they can be done in any order, but all must be completed before starting Module 4.  

For Module 4 candidates will be required to select three advanced electives from a list of six. These have been designed to enable the candidates to tailor their qualification to their career and personal goals.  Module 4 can only be attempted once candidates have successfully completed modules one to three 

Module 5 is the final step and must be done last. It consists of submitting a portfolio of evidence followed by an oral examination (viva)  

Candidates should be able to complete the CIBD Master qualification within three years but can have longer, if necessary.  Find out more about this in our examination regulations

Assessment Methodology

Candidates will be assessed through a combination of controlled assessments, examinations, and a portfolio of evidence with a ‘viva’.  

Date of assignment 2026

Module 1 16th June 2026

Module 2 17th June 2026

Module 3 18th June 2026

Registration Closing Date (Module 1, 2 and 3) 12th March 2026

Module 4 To be available for purchase in 2028

Module 5 To be available for purchase in 2028

Per module £750

Membership Requirements £155

Pre-requisites

  • Mandatory: Senior person from within the candidate’s organisation nominated as a sponsor. The sponsor’s role is to provide resources and opportunities to complete the full qualification program as well as sign off the candidate's readiness to undertake the Master level qualification. 

  • Recommended: 

    • Typically, a minimum of 5 years' experience in mid to senior leadership roles within brewing or distilling industries, 

  •  
    • The CIBD Master qualification is aimed at candidates with an IELTS score of 7, meaning candidates have operational command of the language, with only occasional inaccuracies and misunderstandings. IELTS stands for the International English Language Testing System and is the world's most widely accepted English language test for study, work, and migration. It assesses a non-native English speaker's ability in listening, reading, writing, and speaking and is recognised by thousands of universities, employers, and immigration authorities globally. 

Who is this Qualification for?

Typical candidates are senior operational and technical leaders, future operational, supply chain and technical directors.

Once you have achieved the award, you can use the 'M.Dist' post-nominal.

Qualifications

What's next

The CIBD believes in lifelong learning. For those who attain our highest level of qualification, we offer several professional development opportunities that enable you to give back to the community while enhancing your skills in new areas. You may find yourself in future years helping to train the next generation of brewers and distillers, sitting on our examinations board or contributing to the continuous cycle of learning material improvement.  

There are many roles and opportunities for our Master Distillers within our community of global experts. What will yours be?