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Jenifer Arreola
Dr. Bragg
3rd Period Brit. Lit
2 March 2015
Career Link: Cooking
There are many different career paths available within the branch of culinary arts.
Culinary Art is the study of food and the culture of where the food originated. In the industry, an
interested person can pursue jobs such as a head cook or chef, food preparation worker, food
industry manager, and many other jobs. A lot of the jobs in the industry are low paying jobs, but
once at the top of the industry, the payroll is significantly higher. The food industry requires
mental and physical stamina and the ability to adapt to new surroundings. Climbing up the ladder
of culinary arts takes many years to do, but once accomplished, it is possible that a person would
be able to land a job anywhere in the food industry.
Becoming a head chef doesn’t require a degree, but at most work environments it is
preferred. Head cooks typically work long hours, ranging from early morning to late at night. In
June of 2012 the median pay for head cooks and chefs was about $42,000 to $68,000, which is
close to the average income of an American worker (Chefs and Head Cooks). The amount that a
chef made in 2014 was $67,240 to $98,551. The amount a chef makes depends where they work.
While in the kitchen, chefs and head cooks have several different responsibilities such as:
checking food and ingredients for freshness, coordinating and supervising workers in the kitchen,
developing recipes and making the food look presentable, planning menus and enforcing the
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dress code, hiring and training employees, maintaining inventory, and making sure that the
health and safety procedures are met. Head cooks require great dexterity skills because they are
constantly using knives and other equipment. They are also the people that make sure that the
customers are completely satisfied, and are kept happy. Head chefs and cooks work in a variety
of different environments. They work in restaurants, hotels, grocery stores and many other places
(Occupational Outlook Handbook, “Chefs and Head Cooks”).
Working in a kitchen is extremely fast paced and can sometimes be dangerous when using
dangerous equipment. Injuries are common on the job but are seldom serious. Some injuries
include cuts, burns, and slips and falls. Depending where a chef works it is typical to work
Monday through Friday. A chef’s hours can vary depending on what type of chef he or she is.
Some chefs can work up to more than fifteen hours in a day. A chef may also be required to
work holidays and weekends (“Culinary Careers Working”). Many schools offer educational
programs for culinary arts, which can be two or four years long. While enrolled in school, many
students choose to take up an internship program with a professional cook or chef. They do this
so they can obtain experience in the arts of food and producing it. While at their internship, they
learn all the aspects of kitchen work and gain experience. These skills include menu planning,
food sanitation procedures, and purchasing methods as ways to keep inventory. Most chefs begin
working in different positions like a line cook who work under supervision of a higher positioned
cook. To take part in these programs, students must be at least seventeen years old, have a high
school diploma or equivalent, and they must be drug free. Important skills to have going into the
industry would be good business skills, communication skills, and creativity, dexterity, and
leadership skills. These are just a few of the qualities a person should have if they are interested
in pursuing a career as a chef or cook.
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Recorded in 2012, chefs and head cooks held over 100,000 jobs. And over two million
jobs were held by normal cooks. Most of the people holding these careers worked in restaurants
and other dining establishments. The jobs are usually full time, and have long extensive hours,
which is why mental and physical stamina are required in this line of work. The average head
cook or chef makes about $20 an hour. Given this is after years of training and experience. In
today’s society this is a solid paying job and can help you live a normal life with all the
necessities that a person might need. Employment of Head cooks is growing very slowly, and is
said to grow only five percent by the year 2020. This does not mean that obtaining a job in this
industry is impossible, but with a lack of experience it may be hard (McKay). Culinary arts will
continue to flourish as the year’s progress. As long as the demand is still high there will always
be a need for chefs.
There are many different schools that offer education to those wanting to be the head cook or
chef. They all require a high school diploma or equivalent. Some of the well-known schools for
their culinary programs would be Stanford University, Harvard University, Brown University,
Duke University, and many more schools. These Universities are very difficult to get into and
may require a large amount of money to go there. Fortunately there are many other schools in the
United States that will offer the education with easy requirements and at low cost. University of
Phoenix is a great example because it requires a GED or high school diploma, and will offer the
student the education at a very small cost ("Chef: Educational Requirements for Becoming a
Professional Chef”).
Becoming an executive chef or head cook can take many years of training. To be very
successful in this career, it is better to have a bachelor’s degree or higher. This is because it
shows that you have gone out of your way to pursue the dream of becoming an executive chef.
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Once the position has been obtained, the person becomes the person in charge. The executive
chef controls the kitchen and instructs everybody on what to do and how to do the task given to
them at hand. They control payroll and inventory and widely arrange the types of foods that will
be made. They are considered the “know it all” of the culinary industry ("Executive Chef Job
Description, Salary and Career Information").
Some pros of being in this industry would be getting a better outlook on the culture of food,
and obtaining a very much needed skill in life, cooking. Some cons of working as a chef would
be working very long hours, and the employee needs a large mental capacity to handle
everything going on in the kitchen. It is also hard to manage time as a head cook while keeping
the customers satisfied and happy. Another con in this career is that one barely spend any time
with their family. This career is often compared to bartenders, flight attendants, food business
manager, and many other careers.
I did more research on this career by interviewing Chef Paz, who has worked as head chef for
the past 12 years at Noca and Zest. He sat down with me and we discussed the aspects of this
career. He also told me that there is traveling involved, he currently has to travel back and forth
between Boston to Atlanta for work. The benefits that chefs and cooks are not that great. The
benefits depends where one works. He told me that his least favorite aspect is the amount of time
that one must work and the time away from family because of once in the life time opportunities
such as being at his youngest daughter graduation this year because of traveling. A piece of
advice that he gave me was “You have to have a passion for what you do.” His favorite aspect
would be that he enjoys what he does and he gets to teach his children how to cook for
themselves and that he knows he has a stable career and meeting new people.
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My newly found knowledge about this career has made me think more about pursuing this
job. This research project has given me an outlook on the culinary arts and I am excited to learn
more and begin practicing the things I need to become an executive chef if I choose to follow
this career.
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Works Cited
Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor, Occupational Outlook Handbook,
2014-15 Edition, Chefs and Head Cooks,
"Chef: Educational Requirements for Becoming a Professional Chef." Education-portal.com.
N.p., 2014. Web. 12 June 2014
“Culinary Careers Working Conditions.” Culinary Careers. 2003-2011. Web. 9 June 2011.
"Executive Chef Job Description, Salary and Career Information." Educational-portal.com. N.p.,
2014. Web. 12 June 2014
McKay, Dawn Rosenberg. "Culinary Careers: Chef or Cook." About.com. N.p., 2014. Web. 12
June 2014.