4 answers
Eliah
Student
Justin, Texas
4
Questions
Updated
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Where is the best place to go to college for being a pastry chef?
I want to become a pastry chef but I don't know where to go to college I would love your advice. #chef #pastry-chef #culinary #culinary-skills #culinary-management #culinary-arts #cooking-and-baking
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4 answers
Kelly Thomas
Business Process Owner
5
Answers
Champlin, Minnesota
Updated
Kelly’s Answer
I attended the Califonia Culinary Academy way back in the day (2005) and while I really enjoyed the school experience and learned a lot of fundamentals, I don't know if school is always necessary. Have you considered getting a job in a bakery/reastaurant to start getting experience? Or getting an internship to gain experience and start making connections? One challenege to keep in mind for culinary schools is that often they are for profit schools and can be very expensive and most entry level pastry chef/baker jobs are not high paying. I would take that into consideration as you consider your options so that coming out of school you understand the balance of income and paying off loans if you have them. I think its also important to understand and gain experience in the day-to-day of that job (i.e. hours of work, working during holidays, size of company and benefits that go along with that, etc.). I am not saying this to scare you off of this path, but as someone who experienced this and went to culinary school and worked as a baker/pastry cheffor 5 years, I am offering my experience.
Dada Shaik
90
Answers
Bengaluru, Karnataka, India
Updated
Dada’s Answer
Some schools offer baking and pastry arts as a specialization within a culinary arts or pastry management majors.
Courses in baking and pastry arts prepare students for careers as pastry chefs and bakery managers.
Below is an overview as to few things you get to do hands on in pasrty industry.
Sanitation and food safety
Restaurant management, nutrition and menu planning
Chocolates and confections, cookies, tarts and pastries.
Hi Elaih Please find below links that offer pastry chef college courses.
https://www.chefspencil.com/13-best-culinary-schools-in-the-world/
https://www.culinaryschools.org/career-info/pastry-chef-colleges
All the best Eliah !
Courses in baking and pastry arts prepare students for careers as pastry chefs and bakery managers.
Below is an overview as to few things you get to do hands on in pasrty industry.
Sanitation and food safety
Restaurant management, nutrition and menu planning
Chocolates and confections, cookies, tarts and pastries.
Hi Elaih Please find below links that offer pastry chef college courses.
https://www.chefspencil.com/13-best-culinary-schools-in-the-world/
https://www.culinaryschools.org/career-info/pastry-chef-colleges
All the best Eliah !
Sabrina Shin
Pastry Chef
2
Answers
Los Angeles, California
Updated
Sabrina’s Answer
Hi Eliah!
Honestly, schools not 100% necessary. Yes it's great to learn the basics but sometimes the cost of the schooling doesn't match up to what you learn. It also depends on how much you put into it as well. The more effort you put in, the more you get out.
If you are truly interested in baking and pastry as a career, I would recommend getting a job or doing a stage in a small bakery to see and learn. Sometimes after you try it out, you might learn that it is not the career for you OR that it is the career for you. That way you can decide how much you are willing to spend on your schooling as culinary schools can become very very expensive.
I went to a very small culinary school in Austin, TX and yes I learned my basics but I learned so much more on my first month of working at a restaurant. And now I've worked side by side with some chefs who graduated from CIA, Johnson & Wales, schools in Europe and etc and I can still stand with them and work side by side with them even though my schooling was much cheaper and definitely not as well known as the schools I mentioned above.
And it's not always necessarily about the school. I've had students from CIA stage at the restaurants that I've worked at before and some were amazing and are to this day still amazing chefs.... And some were a definite pass. So it comes back to, you get what you put in. The more effort you put in... The more you will get out.
Hope this helps!
Honestly, schools not 100% necessary. Yes it's great to learn the basics but sometimes the cost of the schooling doesn't match up to what you learn. It also depends on how much you put into it as well. The more effort you put in, the more you get out.
If you are truly interested in baking and pastry as a career, I would recommend getting a job or doing a stage in a small bakery to see and learn. Sometimes after you try it out, you might learn that it is not the career for you OR that it is the career for you. That way you can decide how much you are willing to spend on your schooling as culinary schools can become very very expensive.
I went to a very small culinary school in Austin, TX and yes I learned my basics but I learned so much more on my first month of working at a restaurant. And now I've worked side by side with some chefs who graduated from CIA, Johnson & Wales, schools in Europe and etc and I can still stand with them and work side by side with them even though my schooling was much cheaper and definitely not as well known as the schools I mentioned above.
And it's not always necessarily about the school. I've had students from CIA stage at the restaurants that I've worked at before and some were amazing and are to this day still amazing chefs.... And some were a definite pass. So it comes back to, you get what you put in. The more effort you put in... The more you will get out.
Hope this helps!
Justine Jones
Student at The Art Institute of Indianapolis
1
Answer
Updated
Justine’s Answer
I started the Baking & Pastry program at the Art Institute of Indianapolis back in April 2017. I wouldn't recommend any other school. They may be one of the more expensive schools you could attend for this career but they are very through in the curriculum and class sizes are small so you get more one on one time with the instructors.