Earning a Culinary Arts Degree: Your Next Steps Toward Becoming a Chef

The path toward becoming a professional chef has many twists and turns. Each route is uniquely different for everyone, in spite of some important commonalities. One key direction along the way is earning a culinary arts degree. The resources, networking opportunities, and skills (both inside and outside of the kitchen) that are available in culinary school have no substitute. Let’s take a closer look at the checkpoints along the way to becoming a professional chef.

Have a Passion to Cook and Create

The passion for cooking and creating and experimenting is essential to a successful and fulfilling career. This is a critical ingredient for becoming a professional chef.

Find a Job Working in a Kitchen

Starting in the industry is a crucial step. Gaining experience and working your way up the ladder is essential to understanding how a kitchen and restaurant operate. While you may begin by washing dishes, opportunities for more appealing tasks will present themselves. This is also an essential part of the process to confirm this is what you want to do.

Complete High School or Have a GED

Education is vital in any pursuit. While the real-life, real-world experience you gain by doing can’t be replaced; neither can the lessons and skills that are taught in high school. To continue down this path, a high school degree or GED is a prerequisite.

Enroll in Culinary School

Now that you’ve identified your passion, gained industry experience, and completed high school, it is time to earn the specialized knowledge that will take you to the next level in culinary school. While a culinary degree isn’t required to become a chef the skills, interactions, and resources that you are exposed to offer a distinct advantage for your future.

Continue Getting Practical Culinary Experience

Practical, professional experience is an integral part of becoming a professional chef. Working in the industry while in culinary school is a great way to supplement the lessons you are learning. Applying them directly and understanding how they fit into actual scenarios can have exponential results in the development of your skills. Learning from different chefs in different environments can make you a more well-rounded, multi-faceted chef.

If you have a passion for creating, culinary school can offer you the tools you need to take it to the next level. Louisiana Culinary Institute is the premier culinary school of the south with a rich history, brilliant alumni network, and provides the highest level of instruction and resources for students and graduates alike.