What Is the Cost to Become a Chef?

Becoming a chef takes long hours, hard work -- and also a fair bit of money.

The word chef simply means "chief." A large kitchen may have a head chef and several chefs that supervise sections full of cooks to make up the entire kitchen brigade. It is true that if you work hard, are talented and reliable, you can eventually become a chef without attending culinary school. However, to gain greater respect and access to higher paying jobs with the title of chef more quickly, you need accredited culinary schooling.

Types

Culinary schools typically offer certificates, associate degrees, and bachelor's degrees in culinary arts and baking/pastry programs. Generally, you must choose one path or the other at the outset of your career. Some schools will allow you to go back and complete the other program, skipping general education requirements the second time through, if you wish to obtain both degrees. Culinary courses and degrees are not just offered through specialty culinary schools, however. Community colleges, traditional colleges and universities, and trade schools all offer culinary courses of varying quality and cost.

Considerations

Schools with name recognition, such as the Culinary Institute of America or Le Cordon Bleu, cost more money than obtaining a similar degree through a less well-known school, such as your local community college. As of October 2010, higher-end culinary schools can cost around $50,000 to obtain your associate degree. Community colleges may cost much less, around $13,000. While school is important, most kitchens want to see what you can do, not just what name is on your degree. Because so much emphasis is placed on hard work as a chef, honing and using your skills is the most important thing you can bring to any kitchen.

Time Frame

Some associate degrees can be completed in as little as six months, but schooling in these cases is full-time and very intense. This is intended to get you used to the intense, long hours you will spend in your kitchen once you successfully become a chef. Other programs may be stretched out over a longer period of time, especially if you decide you want to go for a bachelor's degree rather than an associate degree or a certificate. Program lengths and whether or not programs may be completed on a part-time basis to accommodate people who work full-time vary widely by school.

Student Loans

Student loans are available for accredited culinary programs. However, you should be aware that you will not become a chef as soon as you graduate from an accredited culinary program. In most kitchens, you will need to start at the bottom of the ladder, and you will not be making much money. Many culinary schools assist with job placement, and if your school has you complete an internship at a high-end restaurant as part of your course of study, you may develop valuable job contacts. Keep in mind that while loans can be deferred, you cannot defer them forever, and will need to try to move up the kitchen responsibility and pay ladder quickly. The sooner you can work up to a chef position, the quicker you will be able to afford to pay back your loans.

Realistic Outlook

Think hard about what kind of kitchen you want to work in before you decide on a culinary school. It may be tempting to watch television programs and get caught up in the glamor of being a chef, but the reality involves long hours, hard work and little recognition or pay -- at least at first. Of the millions of restaurants all over the world, a comparatively small number of people become culinary superstars. Do not get discouraged, but keep a realistic and focused view about what you want to accomplish with your culinary career. What kind of chef you want to be will help you determine the cost of schooling to become the chef you see in your future.

References

• "The Professional Chef (Eighth Edition)"; Culinary Institute of America; 2006
• What It Costs: Cost To Become A Pastry Chef
• What It Costs: Cost For Culinary School