Culinary school vs. colleges

[retroguy]

Hi, I am jsut wondering if there is a huge difference in a culinary school and a college like SAIT (Souther Alberta Institute of Technology) which does have a culinary course and it is the smae length etc. The only thing it does not seem to have is the actual restaurant to work in? As I am in Canada there is not many choices for schools and am thinking of the one in Vancouver as a culinary school. I live in Calgary, and would like one close to their, but the only choice is SAIT as I said. What are hte pros and cons of both, etc...

Thanks,

[culinarian247]

As a newbie here I can't really comment on the differences. But there is an LCB school in Ottawa you can look into.

[dcifan2k]

I don't know to much about this subject but I hope that my little insight might help. the difference between the two is that when you go to a college you will also be getting your basic education aka GED if you go to a program you will only be getting culinary education. from what i have seen between the two companies and resturants prefer the college. my friend was going to do a le cordon bleu course and they said there hire rate was 75% which is good but the college that I'm going to that has culinary arts says that there hire rate is 98% but this is just my little insight so you do what you feel you need and go where you will be comfortable I hope this helps

Michael

[Chef Tim]

CANADIAN COLLEGES IN MY OPINION ARE YOUR BEST CHOICE...... THEY ARE LESS EXPENSIVE AND THE QUALITY OF EDUCATION IS VERY GOOD......... I AM A GRADUATE OF ALGONQUIN COLLEGE IN OTTAWA AND HAVE HAD A LOT OF SUCCESS IN MY CAREER...... YOUR BEST BET IS TO GO TO COLLEGE.......... AND THEN AFTER GRADUATING TAKE A FEW COURSES IN CULINARY SCHOOLS....... I AM NOW A CHEF INSTRUCTOR WITH THE INSTITUTO CULINARIO INTERNATIONAL IN TOLUCA MEXICO......... WWW.ICTOLUCA.COM

COULD BE YOU OTHER OPTION........... ITS WARMER THAN ALBERTA...... BEST OF LUCK

CHEF TIM WASYLKO

[retroguy]

Thanks a lot for the replies. I am looking into a college in Alberta SAIT. It is supposed to have a good reputation. For requirements, it does need a resume...how long would one need to work in a kitchen environment to have some effect on a resume for a college? If that makes any sense.

Tim...I visited your culinary school, but had trouble with the requirements page as it was not english...hehe....is bilingual a necessity for it?

[Chef Tim]

Your resume for a college is just to see where you interests lye.... your education level, your ability to stay with one employer for periods of time. Of course they do not expect tons of expierience (other wise you wouldn't be going to school)....... your best bet is to shop around....... ask the school, where the graduates are...and if you could contact some...... our classes here are taught mostly in Spanish... but translation is free of charge.... we have a number of english speaking students from United States and Canada........ I could send you information in English if you are interested..... ..........

BEST OF LUCK

Tim
P.S I have heard good things about that school.......... good luck

[dspiel]

I go to a private college (Art Institute of Los Angeles) where you can only recieve a degree in Culinary, Graphic Design, Video Production, and Web Media. Whats so nice about it is that for the culinary program they offer an Associates of Science degree as well as a Bachelors Of Science.

[CulinaryGeek]

I had this same problem with choosing a school to attend. I definately knew I wanted to go to a school of some type, as opposed to an apprentiship. I looked into about 15 different schools, including Colorado Mountain College (which offered free ski passes ), The Art Institute of Dallas, Mississippi State University (where I got my first Bachelor's degree), and the Culinary Institute of America. The deciding factor for me had 3 elements:
1. Will this school have working kitchens, capable of producing quantity?
2. Will they provide a career assistance program for graduates?
3. Will going to this school prepare me for the real world, or just some collegiate fantasy world?
(4. Housing?)

I thought long and hard and finally decided on the CIA. It has working kitchens throught the program, producing as many as 300 covers a meal period. They offer an extensive Network of Graduates that have influental positions, and they have re-vamped their program (I am in the first class of this new program) to more accurately project the real world.

This was the right choice for ME, now the question is, would it be the right program for YOU? No matter what school you look at, its best to have a list of questions that is going to provide you with deciding information. Where ever you decide to go, DO YOUR RESEARCH! Its an expensive venture and not one to be entered into lightly. Please treat it like a Job hunt.

I generally found the colleges were more intersted in General education for the whole. Where as the Culinary Schools focused on the Culinary Arts.

Good luck,

Bill Mullins