Best School For Pastry and Baking

What does "best" mean to you? The program with the widest range of subjects (breads and cakes and cookies and chocolate work and decorating and frozen desserts and ... and ... and ...)? Or one that will go deepest into one or two subjects? And, does it mean lots of science and theory, or lots of practical work? With a hands-on externship before you graduate or not?

And what about faculty? Do you want to study with people who have lots of industry experience, or lots of teaching experience?

I'm not trying to bust your chops here. I just want you to think about what YOU want to get out of school, and what you are willing to put in. THAT's what will help you determine the best school FOR YOU. :D

Are you, by chance, a grad of a Vo-Tech school? If so, your co-op coordinator may be able to help with some ideas from industry locals. Also, your guidance department at your HS might be able to give some info on scholarship money available. Your HS should have some info on schools through your college advisor; they may able to set-up some visits for you.
Storngly consider what Suzanne mentioned; she has industry insight and is asking the same questions your college counselor should be asking. Good luck.

Pastry Schools

I'm interested in the answer to the original question too, and by 'best' I mean a program with a wide range of subjects, but still a good concentration on decorating work/chocolates/sugar work. And I want a teacher that has worked in the industry, not someone that has only seen the inside of a classroom throughout their career. I want hands on experience, but still I like to get the answers to "why it works that way" and "what other ways does this work". I want to have a well balanced education, that gives me the greatest possibility of gaining employment (above that of a dishwasher or server) when I graduate. I live in Northwest Georgia, so regardless of what school it is I'm either going to have to drive quite a ways or move. The only schools with in 2 hours of where I live are Art Institute of Atlanta which offers a Culinary program with focus on Baking and Pastry and a new J&W school opening up in Charlotte, NC. Not a lot of options here, so anyone with an opinion don't limit it to the two schools above.....getting back in to school and stepping out of my current 'comfort zone' might require a move.

The French Pastry School in Chicago is really good. These guys are the industry leaders and innovators. It is a concentrated 6 month program. They also offer continuing education classes for professionals.

Good Luck wherever you decide to go.

It's not that difficult to research schools on the web -- we even have a link here to listings (all the way at the top of the page; it rotates with other ads). You can find schools in many areas, see what they have to say about their programs and their faculty, and get contact information to follow up with your own specific questions.

I still maintain that the "best" school is the one that suits YOU. This is a big investment, after all. When I was looking for a school to attend (culinary and management, not pastry), I checked out all the schools in my area and picked the one I felt most comfortable about, in terms of program, style, and so on. No one can tell you what will be best FOR YOU.

I know that much ;) I was just asking if there were schools that were better for that certain area of Culinary Education. I have researched all sorts of schools from the only one that is in my state (Atlanta Art Institute with the Le Cordon Bleu Program) to the Johnson and Wales program, closest school is 2 hours away and I've even looked in to the 6 month program at schools like FCI. All of them are expensive, even the 6 month programs and I don't want to come out of a school not knowing much more than when I went in. I have a degree in Mechanical Engineering and I know that I went to one school for 2 years and came out not knowing a whole lot more then when I first enrolled and had spent a lot of time and money for that non existent knowledge (by the way I was a 4.0 student so it's not the case of 'you get what you put in to it'), I just don't want to go down that road again. I've tried to find message boards with school specific answers from graduates or current students but haven't came across any as of yet. I've researched, requested packets and visited some schools and still you get all the same information. No administrator is going to tell you his school is not a great school or that they are overpriced and understaffed and that their true job placement is actually 98% as stated in the brochure but everyone works at McDonalds....LOL I'll just keep checking and go with my gut I suppose, just a lot of money to spend on nothing more than a gut feeling, hence my original question :)

Thanks for everyones input and I'll keep reading :)

Just wondering how it is that you are a recent high school graduate, but have a degree in mechanical engineering? :confused:

HUH????

I never said I was a recent high school graduate.....I am an adult returning to school for a career change, I graduated high school 12 years ago :)

GrobieBaker is the one who said they recently graduated from high school. :D

OPPS

I so appologize! I was reading too fast, and not looking at the names.
Please accept my applogies.:o :o

Re: OPPS

No apology needed....I was just confused as to how I had confused you....LOL I wished I was a recent high school graduate and then I think there would be a lot more doors opening up for me, when you're 30 returning to school it's hard to qualify for a lot of the financial help.

Evaluation...

When looking at schools you really want to do some serious evaluation. I'm really big at doing an apples to apples comparison.

First, and most basic, do a quantitative evaluation. What is the cost per hour? This may only be an estimate, but try to get it as exact as possible. What is the student to instructor ratio? How old is the school? Is it a Le Cordon Bleu school and if so, how did it rank the last time it was evaluated? What percent of students graduate? What is the job placement rate? What percent of students are fresh from high school (>20 years old) and what percent are career changers? What percent of the time in school is spent doing hands on work? Lecture?

Next, do a qualitative evaluation. This is much more introspective, but you need to be honest with yourself. Try to dream impossibly big. Are you willing to go to school out of state? Are you willing to perminently relocate? Where do you see yourself in 3-5-10 years? Be brutally honest. Don't expect to have too many answers here, just as long as you have spent some time thinking about these questions.

I recommend making up a nice Excel spreadsheet for this evaluation. I'd only look at 3-4 schools, but make sure you get a couple of good names from a couple of different parts of the US. Depending on what you are looking at I would recommend: California Culinary Academy (West- personal bias!), The French Pastry School (Midwest), Culinary Institute of America or French Culinary Institute (East). The costs vary greatly, but you will get a well rounded, useful education from each of these. Yes, you will still start from the bottom once you get out of school, but you will progress more quickly because you will understand the why and how behind what you are doing.

Last, but not least, don't over think this too much. Sometimes you just need to know that you are passionate about something and then dive in. All the questions will be answered along the way. Yes, it is scary. Yes, it is a lot of money. Yes, you will suck at the beginning, but everyone sucks at the beginning. It all works out. Lots and lots of practice and learning patience.

Good Luck!

my 2 cents

I have to say that I am bias as a alumni. The CIA in NY has an excellent Baking and Pastry Program. It is expensive, but the equipment and training is top notch.

Just wondering, do you mean CHIC? The Cooking and Hospitality Institute of Chicago? If so, I agree. I graduated from there last year.

Baking and Pasty program second to none.

RJ