OMG! WAHOO!

[FuzzyKitten99]

Don't know if I ever mentioned it here, but I am attending culinary school this fall to get my AAS in Culinary Arts.

Up until Monday, I was still $9300 short for tuition for the semester (one semester is $25,000) and was desperate for a 'credit-worthy' cosigner for the Sallie Mae loan because my credit sucks due to lots of things i don't care to share right now. I even went as far as to ask a couple friends I know only via message boards (but we chat on the phone and email regularly) because I was so hell-bent on going on time.

anyway, they called me down there to 'go over some stuff', and here I was thinking they were gonna say 'sorry, gonna have to postpone your start because of not enough $$', because i was set to start this coming monday 8/17. However they instead 'granted' (i call it 'gifted') me $8100 of that, only leaving $1200 to pay out of pocket, and they are letting me pay that in monthly payments!

Granted it extends my graduation date out by 6 months, so instead of a 15-month program, it is 21 months. But once I establish some grades, I can apply to some scholarships and hopefully get the timeframe back down.

but my point is I can start on time, which is this Monday!!! Funny thing is I have my 10year HS reunion this coming Saturday...

[Crescent Cat]

Sweet! That's so awesome! I'm happy for you!

I'm also starting school on 8/17 so I feel your excitement! Good luck!

[ZumZum]

Congrats! I am so happy for you!
Please keep us updated on your adventures in school.

[Jester]

As much as I don't want to be a professional chef, I am still jealous....I would love to do culinary school!

[tropicsgoddess]

Awesome!!!

[telecom_goddess]

congrats .....

25,000 dollars tuition?

That must be why I am not going to school for anything

[FuzzyKitten99]

congrats .....

25,000 dollars tuition?

That must be why I am not going to school for anything

AAS in Culinary Arts program at Le Cordon Bleu College of Culinary Arts is $42,700 (as of right now) for 15 months. Though due to my funding situation, it is pushed to 21 months.

there are only two schools in the Twin Cities that offer the AAS program and the tuition for the other one is over $52,000, and that doesn't include lab fees and starting tool sets that are all included in LCB's total tuition.

[NightWatch]

I'm going to tell the cautionary tale to you, cuz that's a butt load of money. I knew a girl who really wanted to work at this fancy-pants restuarant, and she moved out of state to go to the same expensive school. When she applied at her dream restaurant, they told her that she didn't need the degree, they would have started her as a sous (sp?) chef and she would have been able to work her way up to head chef w/o the degree. It would have taken a couple of extra years, but she wouldn't have dished out 50G either.

[fireheart]

congrats .....

25,000 dollars tuition?

That must be why I am not going to school for anything

My boyfriend's IT tuition is $20,000 Australian.

[DeltaSierra]

That is wonderful news!!!! I'm in the same boat, I have to come up with $12,000 for a program I'm starting in January.

[Gravekeeper]

As much as I don't want to be a professional chef, I am still jealous....I would love to do culinary school!

This ^

I wouldn't want to be a professional chef either but I'd love the lessons.

That is wonderful news!!!! I'm in the same boat, I have to come up with $12,000 for a program I'm starting in January.

Yes, but is the program at BC's resident mountain fortress?

[DeltaSierra]

Yes, but is the program at BC's resident mountain fortress?

LOL

BCIT

[FuzzyKitten99]

I'm going to tell the cautionary tale to you, cuz that's a butt load of money. I knew a girl who really wanted to work at this fancy-pants restuarant, and she moved out of state to go to the same expensive school. When she applied at her dream restaurant, they told her that she didn't need the degree, they would have started her as a sous (sp?) chef and she would have been able to work her way up to head chef w/o the degree. It would have taken a couple of extra years, but she wouldn't have dished out 50G either.

She should have researched it beforehand.

I wish to own and operate my own restaurant, well, preferably more than one, within 5 years of graduation.

Any restaurant around here that is mid to high as far as average cost, wants at least a certificate in culinary arts. That is about half the cost of what I am doing, but I want the full monty because my AAS will apply not just to restaurants but pretty much anywhere in the hospitality industry. That means hotels, catering, etc.

Starting in a restaurant itself might gain you experience, but is it the 'right' experience? Picking up bad habits and even dangerous ones, and then trying to go work for another restaurant, likely having to reverse those habits, might prove detrimental to the career of a chef.

It is best to learn a set of basic, industry-universal skills first and then branch out to different styles and techniques.

Besides, my classes will also teach about how to run the office-work of a restaurant, cost-analysis, wine & liquor in-depth, etc. Basically more than just following recipes and how to use knives.

[Gravekeeper]

LOL

BCIT

Pfft, BCIT. BCIT doesn't have a fortified position in the event of an alien attack. Which, if Stargate SG-1 taught me anything about Vancouver, happens at least once a month.

[AccountingDrone]

She should have researched it beforehand.

I wish to own and operate my own restaurant, well, preferably more than one, within 5 years of graduation.

Any restaurant around here that is mid to high as far as average cost, wants at least a certificate in culinary arts. That is about half the cost of what I am doing, but I want the full monty because my AAS will apply not just to restaurants but pretty much anywhere in the hospitality industry. That means hotels, catering, etc.

Starting in a restaurant itself might gain you experience, but is it the 'right' experience? Picking up bad habits and even dangerous ones, and then trying to go work for another restaurant, likely having to reverse those habits, might prove detrimental to the career of a chef.

It is best to learn a set of basic, industry-universal skills first and then branch out to different styles and techniques.

Besides, my classes will also teach about how to run the office-work of a restaurant, cost-analysis, wine & liquor in-depth, etc. Basically more than just following recipes and how to use knives.

Agreed, I did the apprentice thing and even though I am quite good, sometimes I get the "where did you go to school" thing with a sort of Hmpf when I say I apprenticed ... though I have not cooked professionally in over 20 years.

Though to be perfectly honest, I learned classic french cordon bleu from a chef that had trained at the original Cordon Bleu *before* WW2 ... and I can make the *ancient* classics in my sleep [I have NO idea how many hours of prep work I had done over the years, but I can whip off a perfect batch of hollandaise for eggs benedict over a camp fire =) though my variant of it is actually crepes benedict so it can be eaten around a camp fire ... scrambled eggs, diced canadian bacon, asparagus tips and hollandaise sauce rolled inside a crepe]

I still adore cooking, and we are finally in the process of rebuilding my kitchen to be wheelchair accessable so I can actually start cooking more again =)