Do you need to have experience in cooking in order to get into a culinary school?

You absolutely do not need experience to attend culinary school. I had no professional cooking experience when I started culinary school at the age of 40. I switched careers from IT to Chef. They start with the basics, such as safety and sanitation, and knife skills. You do labs with that and are required to complete those portions of the courses before you can actually start cooking. You get lots of practice chopping, etc in your knife skills classes, and start learning to apply your skills in an actual kitchen, where you learn the basics of cooking - roasting, braising, breaking down chickens, fish, etc, making sauces and soups from scratch, all the stepping stones for becoming a good chef.

You can also get a job in a restaurant kitchen or even a fast food restaurant with little or no experience so you can practice your newly acquired skills. All you need is a willingness to work hard and learn, as well as a passion for food. The first answer above is correct in the fact that it is not always glamorous. You'll have to do a lot of things you don't enjoy, and may not seem related to what you want to do in your career, but it is all important. If you really want to be a chef, and have a love for all things food related, it is worth it, because in the end, if you're doing what you love, it doesn't feel like you're working. I still can't believe I get paid to play in the kitchen every day!

Good luck!
Chef Sallie Lardy

Speaking from experience, you do not need any previous experience to get in to a culinary school. Like many schools, if you claim to have the passion, and are willing to pay the bills, you can get into a culinary school. I had no professional kitchen experience before attending Le Cordon Bleu, a few years ago.
It is not easy to succeed, since many individuals will have previous experience and more knowledge. This should not not keep you from following your passion in the kitchen. Culinary school can either be a place to hone your skills in preparation for becoming a chef or it can be a place to start your journey in working in the food industry.

Just remember, the life of a chef is not always glamorous. It takes hard work, dedication, creativity, and above all else, an extreme passion for food.

Yes. You need to have what's commonly called a "stage" - briefly working in a restaurant to pick up the basics of cooking. Otherwise when you go to school you won't know how to practically apply what you've learned.

Culinary classes, though, sound like amateur weekend work and not professional culinary schools, which are very hard to complete and are also as expensive to attend as college is...so think about it before you take the plunge!

Culinary school is helpful but not necessary.