What The Best Culinary Schools Have In Common
Just like college universities, there are a lot of culinary schools. Not all of these schools are created the same. Some of the best culinary schools have a few key things in common with each other. Not only do these schools consistently graduate successful individual chefs; some of them have very famous chefs who endorse these schools. A few common of the characteristics the best culinary schools will possess are these qualities:
• Curriculum and courses are pertinent to culinary arts schools and provide students with the kitchen and restaurant skills along with professional techniques that employers are looking for when hiring new graduates. The curriculum is made relevant to becoming a chef and time is not wasted on courses that are not pertinent to becoming a chef.
• Students are immediately placed in a real time kitchen under a work study program in order to immerse them in the curriculum. A hands on approach is emphasized in order to tie written coursework to the actual skill being learned. The school also employs well known chefs to teach students the culinary arts.
• The culinary community is familiar with a school, it’s curriculum and consistently hires the schools graduates due to the high quality of the skills the school teaches. Speaking with the manager of a top notch restaurant and inquiring as to the schools they hire graduates from, can go a long way in locating culinary schools of high caliber.
• The curriculum is varied and covers a range of culinary education choices. Degrees including culinary specialization (different types of cuisines for instance) and programs with both full-time and part-time enrollment options should be available. Options for associates and bachelors programs and technical certificates are usually available.
• Recognized accreditation by the culinary arts is usually an attribute of top culinary schools as well.
When searching for the top 10 best culinary schools; you will yield several different lists. There are a few schools, however, that consistently show up, regardless of criteria used to form the list.
These top schools include:
• Culinary Institute of America
• The French Culinary Institute
• The Art Institute
• Le Cordon Bleu culinary school
All of the above mentioned schools have campuses in several states. Check online to see if they have a school in your area. The California Culinary Institute in San Francisco consistently appears as a top school as well. If you pose the question “What is the best culinary school in the USA?”; you will get several different answers. Since culinary school ratings are not standardized, you will need to research the school and come up with your own answer. You answer is likely to depend on the school’s relevance to you particular circumstance and what you specifically are looking for in a culinary school.
When evaluating a list of top schools, take a look at who is doing the ranking and what basis they are using for making the determination that the school is top rated. Most schools that are included on any best culinary schools list will be accredited however. This is extremely important when relying on financial aid to pay tuition. Most often government financial aid will not pay for tuition at a school that is not accredited.
