Interested in Becoming a Master Beekeeper??

Time To Register For The Next Texas Master Beekeeping Class

“The 2016 fall exam registration form is now available for the fourth round of apprentice testing and second round of advanced level testing,” says Texas Master Bee Keeping Board member Mary Reed.  Late in 2014 a group of bee keepers including AgriLife Extension and Research professionals plus apiary inspectors began the process of creating a Texas Master Beekeepers Certification program, similar to Master Gardeners and Master Naturalists. The first offering of the testing was held in March 2015 with 68 students earning the apprentice title. The five year certification is built on training, experience and testing, scoring a 70 percent or higher on both a written and practical examinations. The current registration form is available on the Texas Master Beekeeper Program (TMBP) website under the “Exam Registration” tab. 

If you have been a bee keeper for at least one year and are interested in participating in this exam, you must submit the online registration form by October 27.  The Apprentice level class is limited  to 45 participants, but there is no set limit for the Advanced level slots.  The exam will be held at the Bell County Expo Center in Belton, TX on November 3.  The cost for the exam is $50 and must be paid prior to the exam with a check or money order submitted to:

AgriLife Research Department of Entomology

Texas Apiary Inspection Service

2475 TAMU

College Station, TX 77843-2475

If this is your first year, you will be participating at the Apprentice Level. Check in will begin at 8 am, and the exam will start promptly at 8:30 am.  Part of the exam involves working with a real hive, so come prepared!  Please bring your own suit, hive tool, smoker, lighter, and any other beekeeping equipment you normally use when manipulating a hive.  We will provide pine needles as smoker fuel, but if you are more comfortable using a different material, go ahead and bring that along as well.  All sections of the exam will be completed by noon.

If this is your second year, you will be participating at the Advanced Level. Check in will begin at 1 pm, with the exam starting at 1:30 pm.  There is no in-hive portion for this level, so there’s no need to bring any of your beekeeping equipment.  Please bring your Public Service Credits and completed quizzes for the Learning Modules to the exam!  You will need to submit at least five PSCs and all quiz completions to acquire the Advanced level rank.  These documents will not be accepted unless organized in accordance with the Public Service Credit Documentation powerpoint available on the TMBP website.

In the past we have held the review sessions in the morning of the exam day.  However, to give participants extra time to review the topics of interest narrated powerpoint presentations will be posted to the TMBP website after October 1. 

Thanks to Fred Hall (CEA, Ag and Natural Resources, Tarrant County) for this information.

For more information contact Mary Reed at 979.845.9713 or by email at mary.reed@tamu.edu.