need some advice for future career

I don't see why a GED would possibly handicap you.

First off, it carries the exact same weight as a regular diploma. Second, nobody really pays much attention to high school. Had you completed the culinary course it would look nice on your resume. But otherwise, high school is just a line on an application.

Assuming you complete the culinary arts program, not too many employers are going to look past that. Mostly they'll be interested in your ability. The culinary arts degree may help open the door. Once you're through it, however, it's strictly up to you.

I too am contemplating a culinary career and I also have a GED.  I have started the degree process by enrolling in the required classes to earn an AAS in Culinary Arts.  I'm a late bloomer and was wondering what the thought of an older person starting a program like this.  Not that I'm a granny by any means, but I'm sure the students are younger than I am.  Any thoughts or comments would be appreciated.

I'm twice the age of most of the people at my school. There are a few others who are older too, and no one seems to have a problem with us. If anything, being older is a plus because I've worked a lot of jobs much harder than culinary, and this is easy compared to some construction jobs I've had. It also seems like some of the younger people can be lazy, and don't study as much as I do, not all of them of course, but some just don't seem motivated and I wonder why they even bother. I get A's on everything, plus I've worked in restaurants, so I think being older is not a problem, unless you have some kind of orthpedic problem and can't stand all day.  

Your HS diploma and/or GED will help you in culinary school, but makes no difference in the kitchen. If you can do basic reading/writing/math to function as an adult, you'll be just fine. 

Hey NREMTP,

I am assuming with your forum name your are a paramedic. I am a  paid paramedic and a firefighter in south florida. I am also 46 years old and have started my first semester at Miami Culinary Institute. Being older and working in a high stress job as first responders will make us Ideal for the culinary field. We do not have hang ups of doing dirty work or rookie work. We run on no hours of sleep and we are always able to adapt and over come unforeseen problematic situations. So I say yes to the older person in culinary school. We will be a grabbed up quickly, by a smart chef when we graduate.