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I need some feedback please

post #1 of 5
2/10/07 at 6:47pm
Thread Starter 
Hey everyone! Well, this morning I spoke with a admissions rep from the Atlantic Culinary Academy in New Hampshire. And I'm still deciding which school is the best fit for me. Being that I'm more than 60 miles away from the school, she conducted the interview over the phone. I'm still new when it comes dealing with Culinary Schools, and I have mixed feelings about the program. The program offers an associates degree in Culinary Arts from McLntosh College, (which I am looking for), plus a certificate from the Le Cordon Bleu Culinary Arts program. The program is a total of 15 months. The tuition is $39,500., plus an additional $3250 for books and supplies. But what has me worried is besides getting enough loans to cover the tuition is the living situation. Being that I'm over 200 miles away from the school, I was counting on living in the dorms, but I was told I couldn't. There was a cut off of 25 yr. old, over that age, you can't stay there, and I'm 32. So now I'm looking at finding a room or becoming a roommate in the town of Dover. So now, I'm worried about that. I knew I had to work on the side, but I was counting on using the money I made to live off of and send some home to my wife to help ease the bills there. I voiced my concerns to the rep and she was a little pushy, and I know that's her job, but I can't see taking on more bills when I'm gonna be up to my neck in then to begin with. Does anyone have any advice? Have any of you been through or are going through the same situation? I would really love your input. Thank you so much, good night.
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post #2 of 5
2/11/07 at 7:59am
Hi Nicky,

Greetings from the SGM! Here is my opinion and a few questions for you, based on the information provided. I would advise you to work in a local restaurant before seeking additional schooling. Even if you do have the passion for food required for success in the commercial environment, there are still issues to resolve with the amount of hours you will work (Lots!), the days of those hours (most weekends and most holidays), when you will work (are you ready for evenings?) and the general pressure of producing good products consistently (every single plate you send out). Working in a restaurant full-time will not only give you an idea as to what you are getting into, but will aid you as a filter for future instruction at a school, if you decide to pursue further education. There great places to work as well as places I couldn’t wait to leave! Your military experience can confirm that there are good leaders and ahem, the not so good leaders!

What is your goal? Where is it that you want to end up? If you want to open your own place, school can be a good way to acquire knowledge in areas that are critical for running it. Front of house operations, the Bar, legal issues, operational design and layout of kitchen and dining room, menu construction and so forth. That being said, nothing beats first hand experience! Certificates and degrees may get you hired, but ultimately is will be your ability to perform that will determine your longevity.

I would visit whatever school you would like to attend and talk with the instructors and students (hopefully in your age range) and get a better feel for the school rather than make your determination based on a counselor that is not food service. Are you going to use VA or GI Bill to defray the costs?
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post #3 of 5
2/11/07 at 9:32am
Thread Starter 
Thank you for the input SGM. I know your right about working in a local restaurant to see how it is in the "real world". I've already made a list of local places where I'm gonna apply, getting paid would be great, but even if I have to work for free a couple nights a week, would be great as well. I don't have restaurant experience but I did work for a caterer when I was younger. I've tried to educate myself as much as possible, as much as someone not in the business can I guess. But luckily I know working in a Restaurant isn't like you see on the Food Channels. And I think some people get caught up in that. Like you said, working in a commercial kitchen is nothing like cooking in your home kitchen. And there are many aspects to working in a commercial kitchen that we need to resolve. Going into this I know I'm not gonna make money, especially in the beginning. I know there are issues with benefits or the lack there of, the hours are long and physically demanding. Weekends and holidays are a given and the environment can be classified as controlled chaos. I think at this point in my life I am looking more for for personal enrichment than working in a job I hate and maybe making a few more bucks, but being miserable while doing it. Working in a commercial environment really appeals to me, I want that knowledge , the skills, the confidence and the challenge of turning out top quality products each and every time. I know I'm not there yet, but from all the networking I've done and speaking with professionals like yourself, I hope that I'll be "prepared". Like my old CSM once told me, "you can never be totally ready, you can only be prepared". One of the reasons why I'm pursuing a culinary degree is over time after I put my time in the commercial kitchens, I'd like to explore the world of being a personal chef. But, I do want to have that strong commercial kitchen foundation and along with a culinary degree, hopefully I can make myself more marketable. And in turn I can be a bit more free and creative with my work as a personal chef. There's more, but I've already written a book, sorry about that. Thank you so much SGM.
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post #4 of 5
2/11/07 at 12:39pm
Nick,
Have you exhausted all the possible local culinary education. Community College, etc.? There is nothing closer then 200 miles and 40 grand? One good thing about this industry is that any education or employment is a learning experience. Even fast food will educate you on consistancy and organization.
I'm concerned that you might be posting something similar in 15 months and 50 grand in debt.
If you are planning on marketing yourself and basically running your own business, even if it's personal chefing, I would definately get plenty of business classes under your belt.
Nick, this is like anything else in life. Try your best to find a school that practices education and not business. In your situation, I would be talking to current and former students. If someone is pushy, throw their stats in the garbage and go find out for yourself. How many instructors come from the private sector VS how many came up in school to become instructors? Questions of that nature.
If you're planning on spending this kind of money there should not be a problem spending some money now, visiting graduates in the field and getting every vital piece of information from reliable sources.
I don't want to come off as criticle or preaching. It's just that this same question is coming up more often. I, for one, who has decades in the industry, am very concerned for people in your situation. The comittment now a days seems to be very large. It is becoming more and more difficult to just get your feet wet to see if it's the path for you.
Nickydayfish, it sounds as though your level headed and doing your homework so I know you will make the right decisions. Please don't hesitate to ask even the smallest question here. They are all important and this thread will more then likely not only help you but others who have the same questions. We are blessed to have instructors, chefs, employers,students etc. here, use them for your answers.
Best wishes in your new venture.
panini
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post #5 of 5
2/13/07 at 10:54am
Thread Starter 
I thank you Panini for your input. I really do appreciate it. Well, I am living in Northern Vermont and I've looked at all the community colleges and universities in my area. I even looked across the lake to up state New York. So far I haven't found any schools with the program I'm looking for. As I mentioned in my above post, I can safely say that the Atlantic Culinary Academy is out. I can't afford to live off campus and still have my bills in Vermont. NECI would be perfect for me and it's only fifteen minutes from my house. But it is expensive and I do worry about the dept. Currently I only have 30 credits and I do want to finish my degree. So the way I was thinking, why not combine the two. That is why I'm really bent on going for a culinary degree. I want the best of two worlds. The way I see it, it's an investment not only in my culinary career but my college career as well. I'm not really looking for the "now", I'm trying to think ahead, maybe five, ten years down the line. And I really believe not only having my culinary degree mixed with experience, but an over all college education is the way to go...at least for me, you know? Luckily I have a great support system. My wife who is a counselor and has herself gone back to school to become a registered nurse, is totally supportive. She knows about the long hours, lack of benefits and $9. or $10. dollar an hour starting pay. As long as I'm happy and doing what I feel is best for me, then she's happy. So at this point I think I'm gonna go for it with NECI. They are having an open house at the Essex campus this weekend, so I'm gonna go and see what they are all about. Thank you very much for your words of advice. I know I'm gonna need more, thanks everyone.

Nick
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