The Specialty Coffee Association (SCA) officially launched what it calls the highest professional distinction in specialty coffee, the Master of Specialty Coffee (MSC) certification, on June 9, 2026, at the Four Seasons Hotel in Gwanghwamun, Seoul, South Korea, with the first cohort limited to just 15–20 candidates, according to Daily Coffee News and The Asia Business Daily.
Daily Coffee News reported that the MSC has been described by the SCA as “the highest professional distinction in specialty coffee,” while The Asia Business Daily noted that tuition for the inaugural program in Korea is set at US$5,000, or approximately 7.58 million South Korean won. The Asia Business Daily further reported that the SCA is recruiting only 15–20 students for the first intake, underscoring the program’s exclusivity.
Entrance requirements are designed to target the industry’s most experienced professionals. According to Daily Coffee News, applicants must already hold all four SCA Skills Diplomas—Café, Roastery, Coffee Trade, and Sustainable Coffee—and possess a currently valid Q Grader License. Both Daily Coffee News and The Asia Business Daily reported that candidates must pass a 100-point knowledge examination, submit documents for screening, and then succeed in an interview before entering the preparatory education program.
The final assessment is structured to span the value chain. Daily Coffee News and The Asia Business Daily reported that MSC candidates face four final examinations: three case-study assessments covering green coffee evaluation, roasting, and sustainability, plus an oral communication exam. Daily Coffee News added that those who pass will receive a lifetime credential that includes a permanent listing in an SCA directory, featured speaker opportunities at World of Coffee trade shows, and SCA-backed public recognition.
In its press announcement quoted by Daily Coffee News, the SCA stated, “Every great discipline reaches a moment when its accumulated knowledge, research, and professional excellence demand a new kind of recognition. Culinary excellence has the Michelin star. Wine has the Master of Wine. Now, Master of Specialty Coffee takes its place alongside the highest distinctions in food and beverage.” The association explicitly compared the MSC to the Michelin star system and to the Master of Wine title.
South Korea has been chosen as the first country in the world to introduce the MSC, according to The Asia Business Daily and Korean outlet 매일일보. The Asia Business Daily reported that the SCA assessed Korea as a key market characterized by highly discerning consumers and a strong pool of professional baristas. At the Seoul press conference, SCA CEO Yannis Apostolopoulos was quoted by The Asia Business Daily as saying, “Korea is a market where both consumers and professionals continuously expand the value of coffee. We believe it is the most suitable place to launch the MSC for the first time in the world.”
The SCA is positioning the MSC as filling a gap at the very top of the profession. The Asia Business Daily quoted Apostolopoulos as saying that while the coffee industry includes experts in cultivation, processing, green coffee assessment, roasting, and extraction, “there has not been a top-level certification system that covers the entire industry. MSC is the first global master qualification for professionals capable of understanding and leading all aspects of coffee.”
In an interview with The Asia Business Daily, Peter Giuliano, the SCA’s Senior Advisor for Science Communication and Engagement Strategy, linked the program to rising technical demands on coffee professionals. He stated that “today, the coffee industry requires much higher levels of expertise than in the past, ranging from cultivation environments and chemical analysis to supply chain management and flavor evaluation,” and added that the SCA had been preparing the MSC “for a long time to systematically recognize the capabilities and value of coffee professionals.”
The MSC launch comes just over a year after the SCA announced its takeover of the Q program from the Coffee Quality Institute (CQI), as reported by Daily Coffee News. The same report noted that the takeover had caused concern among some existing Q Graders and instructors, while the new master-level certification now requires a valid Q Grader License as one of its prerequisites.
Beyond the MSC, the SCA has also been building academic-style pathways. On its website, SCA describes a postgraduate Certificate of Advanced Studies (CAS) in Coffee Excellence offered with the Zurich University of Applied Sciences (ZHAW) as a 12‑month, 12‑ECTS hybrid e‑learning program. In an undated statement on that page, Apostolopoulos said this certificate “is the start of a broader goal for the SCA to work with multiple universities around the world to create a master’s program in specialty coffee.”
According to Daily Coffee News, the SCA began accepting expressions of interest for the MSC program on June 9, 2026, with applications for the first cohort expected to open in late 2026 and the inaugural class scheduled to begin in 2027.
