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Learn the language
of packaging and discover its opportunities.
The Packaging School has assembled thousands of learning assets for you. We’ve broken down complex ideas into easy to understand concepts. We help you see the why behind packaging wins and losses. Like air and water packaging surrounds us and will be a key to sustainability. Check out the example video here, and then come take a journey of discovery with us.
Materials Courses
Not ready for our Certificate of Packaging Science? Try one of our materials courses where you can learn about everything from paperboard, corrugated, plastics, glass, metal, sustainable packaging and more.
If you don’t know where to start, PACKAGING 101 BOOTCAMP is a must.
Paperboard Cartons
The paper segment of the global containers and packaging market is the most lucrative, boasting a 40% market share of revenue.
From Fortune 500 brands to emerging startups, paperboard is a top-used packaging substrate. It’s no wonder because paperboard has amazing graphics and printing capabilities, a high degree of sustainability, and enhanced usability. As a packaging designer, marketer, converter, or supply chain manager it is beneficial to understand the ins and outs of paperboard in order to produce the best carton possible. This eLearning course will focus on helping you understand the foundations of paperboard packaging from sourcing raw materials to the finished good. This understanding will serve as an important context for your future advancement, on your own and in your company.
Corrugated Containers
Corrugated board is a highly customizable substrate and the knowledge to use it well can be greatly advantageous for your company in terms of saving waste and money.
There are many stock options you can choose from when ordering standard shipping containers, but a box suited specifically to your exact product may need a custom design, and with corrugated you have that option. We’ve made an informative course with easy to digest information that will get you up to speed on corrugated containers. In this course, you will learn both the art and science of corrugated. From learning how corrugated fiberboard is manufactured, to how corrugated containers are designed and produced on packaging machinery, you will get a 360° view of the corrugated industry.
Glass & Metal Packaging
2 for the price of one – this course includes lessons, quizzes, and exams in both glass and metal packaging.
This eLearning course goes into detail on manufacturing, raw materials, design, procurement, packaging types, sustainability, and industry applications of both metal and glass!
Polymers in Packaging
Polymers play a big role in packaging. To be a proficient and well-rounded packaging professional, you need to be comfortable with polymers.
When you are working on a project involving plastics, it’s important that you are able to speak this language and bring value to the table concerning polymer selection, polymer processing, and plastic applications in packaging. In this course, you are going to learn about the different types of polymers, their roles, functions, pros and cons of each, and real-world applications. From this, you are going to take away which polymers are suitable for the applications you are working on.
Bioplastics For Packaging
Dr. Sandeep Kulkarni is the founder and President of KoolEarth Solutions Inc., a technical consulting and business development company.
They are focused on helping small as well as large companies develop and commercialize new sustainable packaging solutions as well as to improve the sustainability footprint of existing packaging. Sandeep has over 20 years of industry experience working for several large packaging companies, such as International Paper, Neenah Paper and Georgia Pacific. Most recently he worked for PepsiCo, in the area of sustainable beverage packaging. Sandeep has 7 granted patents as well as several publications in industry journals. He has also served on conference advisory boards and has delivered several invited presentations, at international conferences, on the topics of sustainability and sustainable packaging. Sandeep serves as an Adjunct Professor at The Packaging School (affiliated with Clemson University) as well as the North Carolina State University.

Plastic Folding Cartons
Though a small subset of the folding carton market, we help you with the why and the when of using plastic folding cartons for your packaging needs.
Honeycomb Packaging
Honeycomb packaging is a paper based material that offers a combination of properties that may not seem to go hand-in-hand—light-weight characteristics with superior strength.
In this short course, you’ll learn from subject matter experts who work closely with this packaging material. They’ve given us case studies that provide a context-rich opportunity to see real problems and learn how to think critically about potential solutions to these problems.

Pressure Sensitive Labels
Pressure sensitive labels play an essential role in the packaging value chain – they enable your brand to stand out among the competition on the shelf and convey vital, sometimes lifesaving information.
How much do you really know about the innovative technology that goes into developing these labels? By taking Pressure Sensitive Labels 101, you will learn first-hand the essentials of the world’s leading label type. Developed and taught by UPM Raflatac’s world-renowned experts, the Pressure Sensitive Labels 101 course includes an overview of the global pressure sensitive labels market, decoration technologies and market share, label construction, press converting, end use application, performance testing and so much more. Once you complete the course at your own pace, you will be equipped with the expertise and recognition to grow your business through operational efficiency, brand impact and sales.
Sustainable Packaging
Are you looking for ways to make more sustainable decisions in your packaging line?
In this course, you’re going to get a solid foundation in sustainable design thinking- the tools and resources you can apply today to make better decisions. We will cover LCA, energy sourcing, design optimization and effective recovering. Consideration of the 3Ps (people, planet and prosperity) together are absolutely essential in crafting a convincing sustainable strategy.

PTI Online Academy Collection
We partner with Plastic Technologies, Inc. (Holland, OH) to help packaging and plastics professionals enhance their polyethylene terephthalate (PET) knowledge via an innovative, online educational platform.
Industry Courses
We offer industry specific courses including automotive packaging, packaging for agriculture, medical packaging, appliance and electronics packaging and more.
The first and only 100% online academic program that will enable you to develop the professional skill set you need to be successful in the automotive packaging field.
We’ve collaborated with subject matter experts and state-of-the-art facilities so you’ll understand the unique roles of Tier 1s, OEMs, and packaging suppliers.

The Packaging School and Smurfit Kappa teamed up to create a few engaging courses on a variety of subjects: packaging for agricultural products, honeycomb packaging, and proactive packaging for appliances and electronics.
Traveling to Smurfit Kappa’s facility, The Packaging School team was able to interview information rich subject matter experts to enhance the student’s course experience. Throughout these short courses, students will encounter voiceover lessons, interactive click-through lessons, downloadable PDFs, and real-world case studies.
Each course is sold separately, but check out the bundle for 25% off.
Courses individual: $65
Packaging for Agricultural Products
Have you ever wondered how grocery store produce ships from the farm to the grocery store?
Packaging for agricultural products helps farmers and manufacturers deliver food in the most effective way, reducing product loss. In this short course, you’ll learn from subject matter experts working in the industry who understand the needs of the growers, packers, and retailers who deal with agricultural products. This course is also chock full of case studies that provide a context-rich opportunity to see real problems and think critically about potential solutions to these problems.
Protective Packaging for Appliances and Electronics
There’s a lot to consider when you start packaging large appliances and electronic products.
The goal for you in this course is to gain a basic understanding of the options available to you as you start this journey, as well as the sustainability implications for your choices. You’ll learn from subject matter experts working in the industry who will walk you through their design process for appliance and electronic packaging. And this course is chock full of case studies that provide a context-rich opportunity for you to learn about real problems and to think critically about potential solutions to these problems.
Packaging Machinery
This course focuses on how machinery is used in the packaging industry to produce high volumes of quality packages.
These individual machines can be connected to create a packaging line. You will learn: how to be realistic in selecting a co-packer, how the structural design of a package influences the efficiency of the line, and how you can optimize your package design and machinery to produce the most proficient packaging line.
Packaging Foundations
The Foundations of Packaging is a self-paced, online course that provides an essential introduction to the art, science and business of packaging.
Packaging is a complex process that must be seen as part of a greater system, where each activity has an impact on the final package. Factors such as packaging material production, selection and procurement; package design, engineering and manufacturing; package branding, printing and labeling; packaging laws and regulations and packaging distribution all play a critical role in the efficiency of the global supply chain for consumer and industrial goods. These packaging functions impact company departments such as marketing, sales, procurement, legal, distribution, quality control, manufacturing and warehousing. After taking this course, students will possess the thought process required of a successful stakeholder in the packaging industry.

Cannabis Packaging
Contrary to popular stereotypes, the cannabis industry is comprised of highly educated professionals specializing in accounting, advocacy, agriculture, compliance, customer service, sales, technology, packaging, and more.
With medical cannabis now legal in more than half of the U.S. and recreational cannabis use legal in ten states (and counting), cannabis companies are scrambling to fill a rush of new jobs in the industry — an estimated 340,000 of them nationwide by 2020. This course will discuss the types of products being derived from cannabis sativa, from the traditional flower to processed products. We’ll talk about methods of packaging as well as suppliers and stakeholders in the packaging industry that work with cannabis brands. This is important, as there are many supply chain and transport obstacles to overcome for emerging cannabis brands and suppliers in this developing Consumer Packaged Goods category.
Food Packaging Certificate Coming Soon!
Interested in Learning More?
Please complete this form to be notified when this certificate is available.
Food & Beverage Courses
A partnership between The Packaging School and the International Society of Beverage Technologists (ISBT).
ISBT members should contact info@packagingschool.com or visit https://www.isbt.com/institute and login to get the discounted pricing.

Fundamentals of Beverage Technology
Every organization in the beverage industry needs to have trained personnel with the knowledge of beverage fundamentals, industry best practices, technical standards and current technology.
As the premier technical beverage industry society, ISBT is in the unique position to offer you the very best in professional development and training solutions.
The ISBT Beverage Institute® is designed to provide an important resource for the global community of beverage professionals. The sessions, given by experienced beverage professionals, provide overviews as well as in-depth discussions on key topics in the art and science of beverage production.
Public Price: $450
ISBT Member Price: $378

Beverage Institute Value Bundle
SPECIAL OFFER – LIMITED TIME ONLY!!
Buy all Beverage Institute courses for just $1,499 (total savings of $1426)!
This exceptionally priced bundle includes the following courses:
Fundamentals of Beverage Technology
Sanitation for Fountain Beverages
Beverage Ingredients
Introduction to Microbiology
Water & Wastewater Treatment Technology
Sweeteners
Complete Gases
PET: Resins, Preforms, and Bottle Technology
E-Book for Liquid Filling (with John Henry)

Beverage Gases
Argon, Nitrogen, and Oxygen—gases in the air surrounding us—are colorless, odorless, tasteless, and non-irritating.
And used in a wide variety of markets and applications within the food and beverage industry. We’ve created this course to give you an understanding of their history, properties, purity requirements, hazards, safety precautions, and more. You’ll be given equipment maintenance recommendations and get a look at ISBT’s Beverage Grade Nitrogen Quality Guideline.
As the premier technical beverage industry society, ISBT is in the unique position to offer you the very best in professional development and training solutions. You’ll walk away from this course with knowledge you can begin using today.
Public Price: $75
ISBT Member Price: $63

Introduction to Microbiology
If you work in the field of microbiology, these topics will be old hat. But for those of us who are relying strictly on high school biology, we might need a refresher.
And this course is just that. An overview of the broad topic of microbiology and how it plays into the food and beverage industry. Microbiology is the study of small living things called microbes or microorganisms—things so small they must be viewed with a microscope. Just don’t let their size fool you. They can be either extremely beneficial or extremely detrimental to the beverage making process.
Besides an overview, we’ll cover the various types of microbes including yeasts, molds, and bacteria. We’ll learn which ones are of concern to beverages and foods and the available microbial control strategies to combat their growth or spread. Anyone training as a member of an HACCP team, starting in a new position with microbiology and food safety responsibilities, or needing a prerequisite for more advanced training down the road will benefit from this course.
Public Price: $75
ISBT Member Price: $63

Sweetener Course
Sweeteners are one of the most important ingredients in a beverage. And they can also be the most controversial ingredient in a beverage.
Public Price: $375
ISBT Member Price: $315

Water & Wastewater Treatment Technology
Meeting specifications for water is an essential process for beverages.
Public Price: $675
ISBT Member Price: $567

Complete Gases Course
The course benefits individuals who use beverage gases to create products.
These products include: carbonated soft drinks, oxygenated water, argon systems in wine processing, nitrogen for headspace control and pressurization, ozone generation, and oxygen in brewing
Public Price: $150
ISBT Member Price: $126

PET: Resin, Preform and Bottle Technology
If you are responsible for purchasing, running PET filling lines, quality or packaging development, then this is your course.
Bundle Public Price: $150
ISBT Member Price: $126
Public Price: $94/module
ISBT Member Price: $79/module

Sanitation For Fountain Beverages
No doubt, this topic is a critical one for the beverage industry. Cleaning and sanitizing fountain beverage systems has always been a necessity, but maybe not a priority.
And the consequences for not following proper sanitation protocols affect not only beverage quality and taste, but also the health of the consumer. Our course will give you information about sanitizing solutions, beverage dispenser cleaning, ice container cleaning, flushing syrup lines—all the current processes you need to keep your beverage systems clean.
As the premier technical beverage industry society, ISBT is in the unique position to offer you the very best in professional development and training solutions. The knowledge you gain from this course will immediately help you establish best practices for your fountain beverage equipment.
Price: $75
ISBT Member Price: $63

Beverage Ingredients Course
Every organization in the beverage industry needs to have trained personnel with the knowledge of beverage fundamentals, industry best practices, technical guidelines, and current technology.
As the premier technical beverage industry society, ISBT® is in the unique position to offer you the very best in professional development and training solutions.
In order to supply beverages, we must have ingredients. Without them, a beverage cannot exist. There are different types of beverages, and, naturally, these different types have different ingredients. This Beverage Ingredients course offers a deep dive into understanding the principles of the chemistry, manufacturing, quality guidelines, and applications of the most common ingredients in beverages we consume.
Modules are for individual sale or bundled together.
Public Price: $94/module |
ISBT Member Price: $79/module
Public Price: $975/bundle|
ISBT Member Price: $819/bundle
Business Courses
If you are looking for general business courses we offer our Packaging 101 Bootcamp along with engaging sales, sales ops, project management and packaging design workflow courses.
Packaging 101 Bootcamp
(New to packaging? Start Here!)
This Boot Camp will serve as an introduction to the packaging industry and provide the fundamental knowledge necessary to get you up to speed.
Packaging 101 BootCamp runs over 20 work days, with an investment of less than 20 minutes per day. With eight hours of educational content, activities, and cheat sheets, you’ll exit with a solid foundation in packaging basics. Departments such as marketing, sales, procurement, legal, distribution, quality control, manufacturing and warehousing all have unique demands on the packaging. After taking this course, you will have the thought process required of a successful stakeholder in the packaging development process.
(New!) Sales Prospecting Series
Interested in creating a repeatable process that generates powerful conversions with prospects?
The purpose of the Sales Prospecting Series is to equip you with the tools, strategies, and processes that will allow you to stand out from your competition, close more business by doing less chasing, and regain control of the sales process once and for all.
Often times packaging projects do not move along as we plan. Sometimes projects even fail completely.
Many projects that fail do so because of poor project management strategy or lack of strategy altogether. The benefits of project management serve everyone involved in the packaging development process: the manager who oversees the project, the client who anxiously awaits the completed project, and the production team that get the project up and running. Project management isn’t rocket science, yet it often gets dressed up that way. In reality, project management is just a set of tools – a roadmap if you will, that enables managers to guide a project from point A to point B in a way that demonstrates efficiency, cost-savings and plain ‘ol ingenuity. We live in a world where change, and the rate of change, is constantly increasing. In order to survive and prosper, organizations need to continually modify their products and services. And packaging projects are the means by which innovations are delivered.
(New!) Introduction to TikTok for Packaging Professionals
TikTok is a popular social media app that allows users to create, watch, and share 15-second videos shot on mobile devices or webcams. But what does that have to do with packaging?
In this course, Cory Connors will take you through the importance of social media in the packaging space—specifically, how TikTok can be used to level up your packaging organization and how to create these videos to be impactful for your audience.
(New!) Sales Operations for Printing and Packaging
Are you ready to have your front line sales people be your most powerful source of sustainably sourced revenue? Maybe you’re in sales or marketing and wondering how on earth you can be your own greatest source of sustainably sourced revenue?
By learning about data and tools along with aligning with the proper mindset, Adam Peek has been able to deliver exceptional growth to the companies where he has worked. And now, Adam has partnered with The Packaging School to give you insight into how it happens.
Packaging Sales Fast Track
Great sales people aren’t born. They’re trained. Get on the fast track to sales success. Land more new customers and provide better ideas to current customers.
There are hundreds of potential pitfalls during the sales process, including self-limiting beliefs, the challenges presented by your prospects, the marketplace, and of course, your competition. This introductory course is designed to give a complete overview of the Sandler Selling System concepts as they apply to packaging sales, along with actionable steps that you or your team can implement from the first day to immediately start to improve performance.
Supply Chain & Logistics Courses
Take a deeper dive into packaging supply chain and logistics topics including hazmat packaging, distribution, regulations, and temperature assurance.

Hazmat Packaging Certificate Courses
This program offers a deep dive into HAZMAT training specifically for automotive applications.
It allows you to comply with:
- The legal training requirements by the US Department of Transportation (DOT)
- The International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO)
- The International Air Transport Association (IATA)
- The the International Maritime Organization (IMO)
Packaging Distribution
Getting products from the point of manufacture to the customer safely is a serious task.
Well designed transport packaging considers many factors: internal packaging equipment, carrier mode, transport strategy, fulfillment, inventory, and environmental factors. This e-learning course will teach you about the various types of carriers and modes of distribution. You will learn the four fundamental categories of hazards and the corresponding tests used to design packaging systems that withstand the forces of distribution. Packaging systems using wood containers, pallets, corrugated containers, and returnables are evaluated. At the end of this course, you will walk away with a complete understanding of the distribution system for both industrial and consumer packaged goods.
Packaging Regulations
In this course, we map out the major regulatory agencies such as FDA, EPA, USDA, CFR, ASTM, and ISO.
Once defined, we break down relevant and applicable laws into cheat sheets for you to have immediate access to when working on projects. By no means is this course a replacement for legal review, but it is the absolute first step in educating yourself on regulations and agencies that impact the product categories you design within.

Sonoco Temperature Assurance Packaging Fundamentals
Developed by Sonoco ThermoSafe’s ISC-Labs in partnership with The Packaging School, Dr. R. Andrew Hurley, Assistant Professor of Packaging Science at Clemson University, and an advisory panel of pharmaceutical manufacturers, wholesalers, logistics providers, and industry experts.
BMW Distribution Testing
The Packaging School in partnership with BMW and Clemson’s Distribution Testing Lab brings you this overview of the required ISTA, ASTM, and DIN ship-tests for BMW’s new protocol.
Instructed by Dr. Gregory Batt, Director of the Sonoco Transport Package Testing Laboratory.
Design Courses
Learn all about packaging design through courses covering corrugated design, solidworks, human factors, augmented reality, diecutting, printing and more.
Package Printing
This course will overview the different printing methods such as flexography, lithography, gravure, screen printing, and digital printing.
You will learn how these processes impact your packaging cost and quality. We will tie in the graphic development workflow including color management strategies, artwork generation, pre-press workflows, plate making and going to print – colors, roll and sheet stock technical specifications, timelines, budgets, and tips & tricks from industry veterans.

(New!) Pack Design Workshop
Master the fundamentals of packaging design in this immersive, online workshop. Work through the design process from ideation to building your own digital prototypes. Completing this workshop will give you a solid foundation of the box design process as well as some hands-on software training that will allow you to directly apply your newfound knowledge to the packaging challenges you or your company are facing today.
In this course, we are going to review design terminology, highlight important design theories, such as typography, color, imagery and materials.
We are going to discuss how to best approach a project with your team and leverage iterative development to build winning designs. There is a lot of cover in packaging design, but this is the first step: making sure you have a solid foundation and workflow when starting a project. You will receive Dr. Andrew Hurley’s RFP guides and the design brief template and strategies he’s used to launch over 100 package designs to market.
(New!) Introduction to Corrugated Design
There isn’t a course out there that actually shows you how to design with corrugated. Jane Scates, a Structural Designer pro, searched everywhere for a basic how-to-design course. She couldn’t find one. Wanting to provide a solid corrugated design course, Jane, along with the amazing team at The Packaging School, developed this course.
In this course, you will learn the fundamentals of corrugated, how to identify corrugated board, and how to use it. Using the knowledge from the first unit, you will learn how to design a pad, a roll or scored sheet, a regular slotted carton (RSC), a one-piece folder (OPF), a tray, a die-cut mailer, and a tray with interlocking dividers.
Solidworks For Packaging | Basic
This is a university-structured course centered around using Solidworks to develop packaging systems.
The objective of this course is to bring practice and application to the fundamentals tools of Solidworks, within the context of packaging. Access to Solidworks software is not included in this course – students are expected to have an active license to the software.

Human Factors In Packaging Design
The average grocery store has 39,500 products and the average super center has 120,000.
How can you disrupt the shelf and stand out from the rest? The answer is knowing and utilizing human factors, also known as ergonomics. No matter our culture, our language, our color, or our gender – human factors are the psychological and sociological ways that we are all hard wired. How we perceive. How we think. How we’re attracted. How we act.

Augmented Reality For Packaging
Augmented reality offers enormous untapped potential for brands to revolutionize their packaging and the way they connect and engage with the consumers of today.
Packaging is powerful and in this short course, you’ll be exposed to more than 20 AR examples on the shelf right now. You’ll also be introduced to our Packaging AR Development storyboard where we’ll walk you through how to develop your own packaging AR experience. Finally, you get a snapshot of how you can leverage AR in ways that attract and retain shopper attention – and deepen the relationship between your brand – your product – and your consumer through packaging.
Luxe|Pack Exclusive Collection
In 2017, The Packaging School visited LUXE PACK NEW YORK, the only premier luxury packaging tradeshow in the U.S. dedicated to creative packaging.
LUXE PACK NEW YORK is restricted to industry professionals, but we were given exclusive permission to create this video collection where you will hear from subject matter experts in the beauty, fashion & accessories, personal care, wine & spirits, gourmet food, consumer goods markets and more.
Flexographic Print Fundamentals
Discover how to produce clean solids and line work as well as halftones and spot colors.
High quality flexographic printing on corrugated substrates has always been a challenge. This course demonstrates how to produce clean solids and line work as well as halftones and spot colors. Many typical troubleshooting issues are addressed, from dot gain and die-cutting to proper graphic design for corrugated to ensure best results. This course is based on core objectives covered in the live workshop held at Clemson’s PrintCon facility.

Diecutting Academy: Diecutting 101
Diecutting can be compared to a cookie cutter. While the basic process is similar—both use sharp, shaped blades to cut a material against an anvil—die cutting is naturally more involved.
In machining, die cutting serves as a preliminary forming technique prior to finishing and/or decoration. Several diecutting tools may function in a sequence to create a series of cuts that deliver the desired shape.
To accomplish diecutting for these different types of materials and different diecut designs, different types of diecutting technology have emerged to effectively and economically convert different products for various applications. As this industry continues to evolve, we must follow suit, and this course is the perfect place to begin that journey!

Diecutting Academy: Diemaking 101
Diemaking 101 starts with an introduction to both diecutting and diemaking that summarizes tooling options from the past to the present, modern dies, new technology, and automation. Next, we discuss the product to be diecut, covering common types of material typically used for diecutting and how to select the correct rule for the job.
We then get into the diecutting press and anvil / cutting surface, discussing the common types of presses, and the specific advantages and disadvantages to each type. The following modules cover steel rule knife and toolholder / dieboard parameters and are chock-full of technical information. The final module looks at diecutting ejection — the key processes, materials, and recommended actions.
Read What Our Alumni Have to Say!
Any Questions?
Do you have a question? Would you like to be contacted by one of our Packaging School educational specialists?

You’ve already got the degree, team experience, and company knowledge. Let us help level up your next packaging project:
- Packaging development plan
- Tools and resources
- Expanded networks
- Project management skill