ABOUT THE GEM ACADEMY OF CANADA
GEMMOLOGICAL INSTITUTE OF MONTREAL
Founded in 1995, the School of Gemmology of Montreal (EGM) is recognized for the quality of its courses and pedagogy and the excellence of its programs. In our quest for constant improvement, EGM joined the World Gem Foundation in May 2020, and now holds the exclusive licensing rights for Canada under the banner of the Gem Academy of Canada.
Located in the heart of Montreal’s cultural district, the school is easily accessible by bus and metro.
However, the essential is within the school's walls. Large, bright classrooms, well equipped with professional-quality instruments, allow students to learn in optimal conditions. Classes are systematically given to small groups of students, in order to give maximum support to each of them. The practical aspect of the courses is also one of the great strengths of the EGM: the equipment of the rooms, the time devoted by each student to the study of the stones: nearly 3000 gems have been carefully selected and acquired over the 25 years of the school’s existence.
The EGM also offers other facilities: a cafeteria to warm up and take meals and a rest and revision room. Outside of their school hours, students also have access to classrooms and instruments so that they can study and practice as they wish.
The EGM also benefits from advantages granted by two exclusive partners: Lelièvre Laboratoire de Gemmologie (LLG) and the Gems and Jewelry Appraisal Center.
If you wish to know more about our school, you can click here
ABOUT OUR TEAM
Our team summarizes the DNA of our school: a love of gemmology, field experience, creativity, pedagogy, rigour, continuous improvement and student well-being.
Marie-Hélène Corbin, CEO and President of the EGM
Marie-Hélène is an FGA gemmologist and accredited Senior Gemmologist through the AGA.
Following a busy career in real estate, she wanted to change her professional path and became interested in gemmology. This discovery of gemstones turned into a passion. Marie-Hélène studied at the EGM and successfully passed her Gemmology Diploma. Guided by the desire to pass on her love for gems, she became the new Director of EGM in 2016, with a strong desire to modernize the school. As a teacher, she instills in her students the desire to learn more about the world of gemstones.
This passion for gems does not stop there, and Marie-Hélène created Quebec’s first independent gem identification laboratory, Lelièvre Laboratoire de Gemmologie (LLG) in 2018. In order to offer the most complete service to her clients, she created the Gems and Jewelry Appraisal Center in 2019, also in Montreal. These two centres allow a synergy with the EGM, with the starting of professional traineeships for students (starting in 2020), so as to facilitate their access into the job market.
ABOUT THE WORLD GEM FOUNDATION
The World Gem Foundation is a not-for-profit organization that was formed in 2015 with the mandate to provide quality and affordable gemmological training to students, jewellers and professional gemmologists.
Currently consisting of seventeen national and regional gem academies in the United Kingdom, Holland, the U.S, Canada, Spain, Belgium, France/Monaco/Switzerland, Scandinavia (Norway, Sweden, Finland, Denmark and Iceland), Eastern Europe (Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Hungary, Macedonia, Poland, Republic of Kosovo, Republic of Moldova, Romania, Russia, Serbia, Slovak Republic and Slovenia), East Africa (Burundi, Comoros, Djibouti, Eritrea, Ethiopia, French Southern and Antarctic Lands, Kenya, Madagascar, Malawi, Mauritius, Mayotte, Mozambique, Réunion, Rwanda, Seychelles, Somalia, Somaliland, Southern Sudan, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia, Zimbabwe), South Central Africa (Angola, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Republic of the Congo, Sao Tome and Principe, Botswana, Eswatini, Lesotho, Namibia, South Africa), West Africa (Ascension, Benin, Burkina Faso, Cape Verde, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Ivory Coast, Liberia, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Nigeria, Saint Helena, Senegal, Sierra Leone, The Gambia, Togo, Tristan da Cunha), Central America (Mexico, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, El Salvador, Costa Rica; Belize and Panama), South America (Brazil, Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Paraguay, Peru, Uruguay, Venezuela, Guyana and Suriname), the Caribbean (Aruba, Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Cayman Islands (U.K.), Cuba, Puerto Rico, Curaçao (Netherlands), Dominican Republic, Guyana, Haiti, Jamaica, Antigua and Barbuda, Dominica, Grenada, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Sint Maarten, Suriname, Trinidad and Tobago and Turks and Caicos), Sri Lanka and India. We plan to establish more academies around the world in 2023.
