THE GEMOLOGICAL INSTITUTE OF AMERICA (GIA)
Headquartered in Carlsbad, California, on an expansive campus that serves as the world’s premier college for gemological studies, the Gemological Institute of America (GIA) is the United States’ leading gemological body and world’s premier gemological organization—at the very least in terms of gemological training and research.
The institute was founded in 1931 in Los Angeles by a jeweler from Kansas, Robert M. Shipley, and it grew to include a college, a research institute and diamond and gemstone grading labs in 15 centers worldwide, of which the most well-known is in New York. GIA research centers are located in Antwerp, Bangkok, Carlsbad and New York.
In the 1950s, GIA created the international standard for describing diamond quality: the 4Cs (color, cut, clarity and carat weight) and the GIA International Diamond Grading System is the most used and emulated standard in the world. It includes the D-to-Z color scale, the Flawless-I3 clarity scale and the Excellent-Poor cut grading scale.
Each Diamond Grading Report from GIA provides an analysis of the quality of a diamond based on the 4Cs, and also includes a plotting diagram that depicts the diamond’s unique clarity characteristics, such as inclusions. Diamonds weighing 1.99 carats or less can be issued a GIA Diamond Dossier, which the same information as the GIA Diamond Grading Report, but does not include the plotting diagram. The GIA Diamond eReport service, delivers GIA grading results online, and is available for natural, D-to-Z color diamonds from 0.15 to 2.99 carats
Since the 1930s, GIA researchers have made numerous breakthrough contributions to the industry’s understanding of gems, including developing the first gemological microscope with darkfield illumination; distinguishing synthetic from natural diamonds; detecting high pressure, high temperature (HPHT) color-treated diamonds; detecting synthetic and chemical vapor deposition (CVD) diamonds; and creating a comprehensive grading system for round brilliant-cut diamonds.
Since its founding, GIA has educated more than 365,000 professionals worldwide and today operates 10 teaching campuses around the world, including Bangkok, Gaborone, Carlsbad, Dubai, Hong Kong, London, Mumbai, New York, Seoul and Taipei. The Graduate Gemologist (GG) diploma, which focuses on gem grading and identification, is the industry’s highest professional credential.
