Change to Pastry ChefHello All, I' m thinking of a career change (from IT) to Pastry Chef. It' s something I' ve been interested in for years, but have been afraid to make the leap. I have a few questions for those that are already in this field. 1.) What is your (and the industries) opinion of the Culinary Institute of America? From what I have read, this seems to have the best reputation. 2.) Average salary? From what I' ve read, there seems to be a wide range. I already have a B.S. in another field, but only want to go back for an AOS in Baking/Pastry for financial and time issues. 3.) Any general advice? Thank you in advance. 1). You are correct about the CIA. Their reputaion is the best regardless of all the other schools that tout a reputation of being just as good. The CIA is the most expensive and certainly doesn't offer many locations. You may want to do some research on Le Cordon Bleu schools of North America. They currently have 13 locations and cost a lot less. 2). The salary is very broad. First off, no one and I mean no one starts off as a Pastry Chef. You will start off as a baker then progress to a pastry cook I, II, III, IV and then to chef. If you want to make a decent buck and have time for yourself, your goal should be a country club. 3). Hotel Pastry Chef: 45 -60K (12-16 hour day). The higher end hotel the better the pay. High end county club where a member has to recommend someone for membership? 60 - 90K (10 hour day). A high end casino? 90 - 120K and up (12-16 hour day). General suggestions: Try to stay out of a restaurant... they don't pay well and don't offer benefits. Unless it's Charlie Trotter, working conditions suck. You'd do better at Starbucks. Catering companies are a good choice for learning and good money, sometimes benefits. Casinos, country clubs and hotels offer excellent learning and benefits, but the hours can be challenging. I am a LCB graduate with a Culinary degree. I enjoy baking and pastry over culinary because the work is calculated and calm. Everbody loves pastry. It's the last thing they see, and the most memorable. Good luck to you. I have been reading through all of these posts trying to find something I can relate to, and I think my situation mirrors about all of them! This one in particular because I too have an interest in a career as a future pasty chef!! I have worked in manufacturing practically all of my life and I am currently at the local community college taking classes to get into the respiratory therapy program. Sometimes, I just see myself jumping around constantly trying to find something I enjoy. I have gone to school on many different occasions taking up many different programs thinking, "okay, this is the career I want" and spending good money after bad in the process. I am "cursed" with being a good interview taker so I end up getting jobs that I apply for and then eventually hate/quit. I have quit at so many things in my life it is pathetic. Well, getting back to the pastry thing, I started getting dessert books and making things as a stess reliever. Then, since I am diabetic and enjoy making the pasties more than eating them, I started giving my creations away to family, friends, and co-workers, and now I am the new Paula Deen (since I love her "Just Desserts" cookbook the best)! I have even been PAID to make stuff! This is so crazy!! But like I said, it started off as a stess reliever, and now I realized that I really like doing it!! Since I am a 38 year old female, I am afraid that I may encounter age discrimination if I try to get work in the pasty department of a restauant. My plan was to get some lowly job as a dishwasher or something and work my way up in an upscale hotel. But then another thing I think about is if I can handle the physical aspect of the job. Other than the diabetes, I am pretty healthy, but you know how things can creep up on you that you never even knew about!! I am just so tired of watching TV and seeing other people live their dreams and all I can do is watch. I don't know if anyone has an answer for this, but I guess the question that I always ask myself is...is this the real thing for me, or am I chasing another pipe dream? A Pastry Chef is a fine choice, but as I tell others, you will start as a baker. Then as you do better you'll move up the ranks to a Pastry Cook. There are levels such as I, II , III and ususally up to IV. Then comes Pastry Sous Chef and then Pastry Chef. Do keep in mind that once Chef level is attained, 75 % of your day will be meetings, employee relations, and administration. You'll be overseeing the operations and the Pastry department. Doing the work will be a once in a while or special project. As for your searching of the soul "dream job", that's like looking for the perfect relationship. It's unrealistic. I, became a chef because I was cooking for 21 years. I enjoyed holding dinner parties with friends and baking pies and cookies, cakes, and tortes and then just giving them away as good will. It wasn't until I was 40 years old that I finally decided to earn a formal degree. I didn't worry about age discrimination because people could feel my confidence and they wanted someone who was confident. You being 38 years old is a perfect age to enter the culinary/pastry fields. Graduates of the age group 21-32 are seen as lazy and unwilling to bust their butt. They want the title, the cash and then they want to sit on their fanny and watch the clock for their next coffee break. What this country needs is plenty of career changers between the ages of 35-45 that are "can do" workers. Career changers are independent thinkers. We have learned business through other independent thinkers such as the baby boomers that were born between 1942-48. But unfortunately they are starting to retire. We must step up to the plate. Those that make the hiring decisions are between 35-45. They envy are bold moves. They will hire us before they hire the "entitled crowd" between 21-32. Mark my words. You are in a great position for upward change. I must cursed with being a great writer with facts and figures and news you can use, as you are an interviewer. DO NOT be afraid. Be confident. If you choose to be meek and timid and play this "what if" game your finished. And forget about the people on TV. Food TV is entertainment and mostly make believe.
Good luck to you, Sincerely, hotchefnick For even more reasons to avoid working in a restaurant, be sure to read Anthony Bourdain' s "Kitchen Confidential." It' s gut-wrenching. Literally There' s some great insight on this thread, but whenever you' re going to merge a passion for something (especially something artistic) with a j-o-b, keep in mind that you may kill off your passion. What I mean is, if you love cooking and baking at home, even extravagantly, that' s great, but working as a pastry chef is a different animal. As noted, you don' t start as the Chef, you start as the worker bee. You' ll be baking the same things over and over, hour after hour, day after day, exactly the way the Chef wants them done. You won' t be in the position to put your artistic flair into much for a long time. Just like many other artisitic fields, the burden of doing this for pay can suck all the joy out of it for you. I know a lot of graphic designers that have gotten into corporate graphic design in an effort to make this merge. After 6 months of measuring to be sure the company logo sits exactly 2.458" from the top of the letter head and that the logo is rendered in PMS 345 not PMS 456, they' re pretty much done. On the other hand, if you can keep that joy and get paid for it too, you' ve won the lottery. Just give a good long think to whether you should really pursue this as a paid job or keep it as a pleasant hobby. Thank you all for the input. As a person who has "started from the bottom" on many occasions, I am very well aware of the fact that that is exactly where I will be. I know of a "mom & pops" bakery close by that really has great desserts. I have been fiddling with the idea of asking them if I can "appentice" in their shop just to see what it would be like to work in or own my own bakery. Also, I really want to find something that I can do that can be my own, that I can do to support myself and not have to answer to 50+ people like I do now. I just want something of my own. I also dabble in cupcakes, cobblers, you name it. I live near the Univesity of South Carolina and they have a culinary institute. It's not CIA, but they have basically the same classes and it is run by professional chefs. Just writing about this gets me excited! I feel like I may have actually found something that can make me self-sufficient and satisfied, and from my investigation of the field, only those with some type of certification or degree are taken seriously. I have also come to the realization that becoming a respiratory therapist is just another escape for me and not something that I am seriously interested in pursuing, but just to be on the safe side, I am still going to keep myself of the list. I feel like I am getting to the point where I need to find a career and stick with it so that I don't end up sleeping on a park bench in my "golden" years. I think that that is what really scares me and keeps me jumping from job to job. I guess it's time to grow up, huh? I read this quote recently where this guy said being at a job you hate is like going to prison everyday. I laughed really hard at first and then realized it really is true!! | |
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