Coloured stone grader
| Highest | $5,800 / mo · Switzerland |
|---|---|
| Experience | 2–4 yrs |
| Degree | Required |
| First paycheck | 2 to 4 years |
Pay in the destination countries
Monthly, in US dollars. Each country is an Imora admission package — open one for that route's fees, language requirement and deadline.
| Country | Monthly |
|---|---|
| SwitzerlandIELTS 6.5 · CHF 0.9–8k | $5,800max |
| ItalyIELTS 6.0 · €0–4k | $5,550 |
| NorwayIELTS 6.0–6.5 · NOK 130–260k | $5,550 |
| United StatesTOEFL 80–100 · $10–70k | $5,500 |
| DenmarkIELTS 6.5 · DKK 45–135k | $5,450 |
| AustriaGerman A2–C1 · €726 | $5,450 |
What does the day look like?
Your bench is a binocular gemological microscope with darkfield/brightfield illumination, refractometer with contact liquid up to 1.81, polariscope, dichroscope, hydrostatic balance, handheld spectroscope and UV darkbox at 365 nm and 254 nm, plus FTIR, UV-Vis-NIR spectrophotometer, EDXRF, Raman and LA-ICP-MS with GemmoRaman, RRUFF and LIMS. You examine rough and cut ruby, sapphire, emerald, alexandrite, tourmaline, spinel and jadeite for inclusions, growth zoning and fissures, test refractive index, specific gravity, pleochroism and fluorescence, detect flux healing, glass filling, beryllium diffusion, heat treatment and oil/polymer enhancement, determine origin such as Mogok vs Mozambique ruby or Muzo vs Zambian emerald, and write the data sheet.
About 20% of the day is top natural gems under the microscope. The other 80% is calibration, sorting commercial trays, cleaning with acetone/alcohol, repacking parcels, data entry and rechecking spectra. Hours are 40 per week, 08:30 to 17:30, Monday through Friday. Large labs in Bangkok or Carlsbad run 2 day/evening shifts in peak auction season. No night work or on-call.
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