Is 29 too late to go to culinary school?
No way!! I left my own business in the medical insurance industry to go to Culinary school at 43. And I loved every minute of it! Just keep in mind that commercial kitchens and bakeries are very fast paced and do require you to be able to keep up. Sadly at 49 with bad knees I can’t do that anymore and it breaks my heart. I would love to be able to do SOMETHING in the food industry and I keep looking. If you love it, pursue it - no matter what your age!
Is culinary school worth it?
The simple answer is: Yes. And no. Which really means that there IS no simple answer, as others have pointed out.It can be helpful, definitely, because it’s hands-on learning in an environment where you’re expected to screw up. A good school will even provide you with high quality ingredients and, when you destroy that sashimi grade ahi tuna or that $50/lb foie gras, show you how to not do it again. It’s a learning environment where mistakes are expected and excellence is a plus. That said… it’s expensive, has a high dropout rate (I think I finished with maybe 1/5 of the class that I started with) and the employment prospects, when you consider what your student loan payments are going to be, are pretty dismal.Just because you’ve gone to culinary school doesn’t mean that you’re going to be the Executive Chef of a 3+ star establishment. In fact… A lot of places seem to be looking down their nose now at people who have gone to culinary school, simply because of the reputation that culinary schools are getting for being diploma mills. What you WILL get is, depending on where you live, a job that will pay you between $12 and $15/hour (perhaps more if you’re in a major city, but that’s just because of the cost of living) and will hopefully give you 40 hours per week.A bit of advice that I gave a young girl who noticed my knife kit as I was on my way to school… If you’re truly interested in going to culinary school, work in a restaurant first. Go get a job in a kitchen… Ruby Tuesday, TGI Friday, Applebees, even Denny’s - but not fast food. They have challenges all their own, but it’s not quite the same. Get a job working in a kitchen and do that for six months, a year. If you still enjoy it after that long, then consider culinary school - or consider shifting into nicer places. The real benefit in not going to culinary school and learning it all on the job is that you’ll get paid to do it - instead of having to pay to learn it. Either way… Good luck and best wishes!
How old is too old for culinary school?
I'm 28 years old, and I enjoy cooking and baking and am considering pursuing it seriously from a career standpoint. I'd like to know the advantages and disadvantages of going to culinary school as an adult as opposed to going right out of high school, as well as likes and dislikes of being a chef in general. I'd also like to know if obtaining a bachelor's degree in culinary arts would be better than an associate's degree in the long run. Thank you.
Pastry Chef: How Do I Go to Culinary School?
Make sure you find a mentor first. Someone that went to culinary school and graduated. These schools don't promise jobs, although they are fun to take. Many people after 10 years of graduating are still paying off the loan, and never get their dream job. These companies tend to be family run and family owned. The only way to make it is if you open your own business. /
Would it make sense to go to a culinary school to become a pizza chef?
If you want to be a pizza chef, meaning someone who owns or runs a restaurant that produces the highest possible expression of pizza, then you should go to Italy. Get a job at a renowned pizzeria like Santarpia in Florence, Pizzeria di Albert in Trento, or Pizzeria Gino Sorbillo in Naples.If you can’t get to Italy, Gino Sorbillo has a restaurant in NYC and there are many great pizza places in America, like Pizzeria Mozza in LA or Ribalata in NYC and Atlanta.You’ll learn more about making amazing pizzas working at one of those places for a couple of years than any culinary school will teach you, about making pizza. Culinary schools teach a wide range of cooking principles and methods you might not be exposed to at a pizzeria. Your career path should dictate your decision. Don’t waste money on school if it won't benefit your future.
Do you have to go to culinary school to become a chef or baker?
Nope. It's helpful in gaining general knowledge, technique, knife skills and networking. I went to culinary school, but before I did, I had worked as a baker for 7 years.After school, I found a chef I wanted to learn from and got a job with him. Many of my coworkers had never gone to school and learned all their skills on the job.There are other potential options (in the US at least), such as apprenticship programs where you work under a chef and attend school once or twice a week for lectures.Would I take a different path down my culinary exploration knowing what I know now? No. I enjoyed school and the college I attended taught sustainability, farm to table and modern as well as classic techniques. My education was 90% funded though. If I would have had to take out a large student loan for culinary or pastry and baking school, I may have chosen not to attend. There is money to be made in the culinary field, but unless you have lots of experience (and are good at what you do) you will not become a chef out of school. You will work your way up in kitchens and start at not much more than mininm wage (Just as you would if you didn't attend school).If you have the drive to learn and passion for cooking, you will make it to where you want to be someday.
Do I need to go to culinary school to be a line cook?
No you don't need culinary school to be a line cook. In fact if you have aspirations to make a career in culinary, I would.recommend working as a line cook for a year to get grounded and to be sure it's the future you want.If you do decide to do this for life, culinary school is a good short-cut to getting there with a couple of caveats. Firstly, school can give you an overview of a lot of skills that you might otherwise take years to be exposed to. However that's only a quick peek. Immersive detail is beyond what culinary school can give you, that takes industry experience.Secondly, school can't give you real life, under fire experience. The better schools will get as close as they can but there's no substitute for real world on the line experience. As well, time you spend working as a line cook will make you more successful in school as you have framework for learning things.
Should i drop out of college and go to culinary school?
I'm currently going to a university and i just have some of my main generals done. i have no idea what i'm going to college for and i feel like i'm wasting my time and money. i think i would love to go to culinary school but i feel like if i'm gonna do that why continue to waste money on something i'm not gonna use. but i've already spent so much on college so far...
Should I go to culinary school immediately after high school? Or get my degree and then go to culinary school?
That’s a hard question. Really depends on what degree you are thinking. The culinary school industry is skewed in many ways, there isn’t really a replacement for actually learning on the job, therefore a 4 year degree in culinary arts isn’t going to land you a chef job or even a Sous chef job, you’re still going to start as a cook.I would recommend going to a shorter program in culinary arts to learn the basics and then while you’re getting your other degree, working in the industry to pay your bills. You would be learning the culinary trade further whilst still getting your degree and making money. By the time you’re done with your degree you’ll have enough experience under your belt to get the job in the culinary world that you want, or pursue your career in the degree you e been studying.With several years of culinary experience you can leave the cooking world and do something else, but ultimately will have he resume to come back if you choose.If you wait to do culinary school after your degree, you’ll have student loans, and believe me, a cook job is not going to cover those and the cost of living.Besides, you’re probably going to need to work while you’re in school anywa, night as well put that towards something that can further your career options in the long run.