Culinary Arts Degree Programs

Food is much more than chowing down. And if you think cooking – real cooking – is an art, perhaps a career in the culinary arts is right for you. From learning how to whip up a four-course meal to making a cake from scratch, managing a restaurant to learning how to cater a wedding, the culinary arts keep our taste buds happy.

Exploring the world of the culinary arts: Ready to learn more about the culinary arts? Let’s explore the basics.

How long does it take to get a degree in the culinary arts?

The culinary arts include several different careers and disciplines. In fact, many students enter culinary school at a variety of times in their lives. You’ll find students who are fresh from high school as well as students who haven’t been in school for decades.

Depending on your goals, you could finish culinary school in a couple of years, or you could continue school beyond your Associate’s Degree (AA) and get other certifications. Many culinary arts students find that it’s helpful to take courses in business, accounting and other marketing-related fields, particularly if they plan on opening their own restaurant or business. Some students start working in restaurants as cooks or sous chefs immediately, so their schooling takes just a year or two.

Where can an education in culinary arts take me?

People who study culinary arts end up in a variety of careers. The most obvious career, of course, is a chef. But beyond that, you could become a sommelier, a caterer, a baker, a sous chef, a line cook, a restaurant manager, a banquet hall manager, or even a food science technician. If you love food, there’s a whole industry you can study and enjoy.

The culinary arts involve much more than cooking. Food science, for example, studies the types of food we eat, the nutrition of what we eat and the way it relates to health. There are scientists across the globe who study how we eat, what we eat, and what different cultures eat. Beyond the scientific world, the culinary arts can also trend toward hospitality management. People who enter this world study not only cooking and food, but also catering and facility management. This means your culinary arts studies could involve business, technology, science and biology in addition to proteins, carbs, fruits and veggies.

Which types of culinary arts degrees are available?

Culinary arts programs are varied. You’ll find schools that are dedicated just to the culinary arts, and those programs typically award either Associate’s Degrees or certificates related to a particular field. But there are four-year degrees in hospitality management or other culinary-related fields that you also can explore.

Depending on your goals, you could earn these degrees in the culinary arts:

• Certificate: upon the completion of a specific program
• AA or Associate’s Degree: typically a two-year degree, awarded by a culinary school
• BA/BS or Bachelor’s Degree: a four-year degree, which usually includes coursework in business or hospitality management
• MA/MS or Master’s Degree: a post-graduate degree, usually intended for serious study in hospitality management and the culinary arts