Law graduate here. Worked in law for fourteen years before I copped on to myself and got out.
Go and get yourself a part-time job in a kitchen, Tim, and experience real world cooking. The reason I say this is that college cooking and professional kitchens are very, very different and one does not prepare you for the other. This is what I did and it was a good introduction. I can confidently say that for every 20 people that has walked in the door at work wanting to be a cook, only one has hung around. You only know it's hard work when you can feel it in your bones
I can't imagine what are you studying if you're studying for ten hours a day. Even when I was doing finals, I wasn't notching up that much. So let's be realistic, shall we?
If you want to live life fully, it should never be about the money. Because if it is, then you're in it for the wrong reasons
Culinary Arts is an interesting term. Because, to me, there's nothing artistic about it. No one owns a recipe. No one invents anything. Nothing is new. Not even the alchemy and fusion caper they were carting around a while back. It's all been done before. Cooking is a trade. That's what I love about it. Making money out of cooking is an art form. Which is where your business quals would come in very handy. Of course, I speak from a cultural perspective because, unlike the US where you have huge schools devoted entirely to cooking, in Australia you do not get a degree in cooking as it's a trade course which is done at a technical college. For the most part, you are expected to obtain a kitchen position first (which most people do) and support this with classroom studies. This method takes approximately three years to complete. Some people choose to do their theory course first (6 months) and then get a job but they must do two years' experience and then trade test before getting their papers (unless they already have that experience).
I'm currently completing my theory studies as well as working in a kitchen and I'm having an absolute ball. I'm set to complete the back end of an apprenticeship (about 18 months) and then I'm away.
And I couldn't be happier.