It depends on what you want to learn.
The Diploma in Natural Skincare Formulation teaches you how to formulate a wide range of natural skincare products. It includes how to formulate an oil-based serum only, whereas the Advanced Certificate in High-Performance Serum Formulation (3rd Edition) focuses on serums only. You’ll learn to formulate 6 types of serums.
The Diploma in Natural Skincare Formulation covers how to formulate a much broader range of skincare products including: facial oils, body and massage oils, dry oil body spray, bath and shower oils, cleansing oils, whipped body butters, balms and salves, soaks and scrubs, facial and body polishes, toners and spritzers, creams and lotions.
It covers a broader range of topics including creating a brand, natural and organic certification (eg COSMOS), cosmetic categories, product evaluation, lab techniques and skills, introduction to microbiology, selling your products, cosmetic regulations and cosmetic claims.
You can find out more about it and take our free 7-day free trial here: https://www.schoolofnaturalskincare.com/formulation/
The Advanced Certificate in High-Performance Serum Formulation has a narrower subject area and goes into this topic in more detail and greater depth. It is focused purely on formulating serums with active ingredients and you’ll learn to formulate 6 types of serum: liquid anhydrous serums, pressed serums, gel-based (aqueous serums), emulsion-based serums, gel-cream serums and bi-phase serums.
The Advanced Certificate in High-Performance Serum Formulation contains detailed information about more advanced active ingredients including vitamins and their derivatives, peptides and ceramides, AHAs and BHAs, active ingredients that are: toning, anti-inflammatory, anti-aging, antimicrobial, skin brightening, skin barrier repairing, strengthening and offer sun protection.
It also covers new and sophisticated plant oils, natural esters and botanical extracts including pracaxi oil, cacay oil, watermelon seed oil, prickly pear oil, guava oil, perilla oil, buriti oil, tamanu oil, blueberry seed oil, natural silicone replacements and more! These are not included in the Diploma class.
You can find more details about the course and take the free 7 day trial here: https://www.schoolofnaturalskincare.com/certificate-in-natural-high-performance-serum-formulation
We have written an article that helps explain this further: Choosing between our skincare Certificate or Diploma – which course is right for you? https://www.schoolofnaturalskincare.com/difference-between-certificate-and-diploma/
The Diploma class can be taken as a complete beginner but we recommend that you already have some experience of making skincare products before joining the Advanced Certificate in High-Performance Serum Formulation.
The courses complement each other very well and students often start with the Diploma in Natural Skincare Formulation and then move on to the Advanced Certificate in High-Performance Serum Formulation.
The Skincare Specialist Program is available which contains both courses with a discount. You can find out more about that here: https://www.schoolofnaturalskincare.com/online-programs/#specialist