Guide to Becoming a Pastry Chef

Baking & Pastry Schools - Baking & Pastry Arts Schools

A skilled pastry chef can make even the most ho-hum eatery seem special. After all, all's well that end's well, particularly when it's your meal that ends with a great dessert. Get your pastry arts degree or certificate at one of these baking & pastry schools and become a star at one of the nation's premiere restaurants.

What are my baking & pastry school options?

• Earn a Bachelor of Arts or Bachelor of Professional Studies degree from a culinary academy that offers specialization in the pastry arts. (Some culinary academies even offer bachelor degrees in the baking and pastry arts.)
• Attend an intensive certificate program, ranging from 25 to 54 weeks, at a culinary academy or pastry arts school.
• Earn a two-year Associate of Applied Science degree from a vocational college or baking pastry school

What will I study?

• Learn specialty techniques for crafting a variety of high-end, luxury pastries and a la carte desserts. Master advanced skills such as molding chocolate and blowing and pulling sugar for buffet showpieces.
• Here is a sample of what you'll learn to make: French pastries; pies, tarts, and special-occasion cakes; chocolate mousses, custards, and flans, frozen desserts and sorbets; and spectacular chocolate-sugar sculptures.

What else should I know?

• Qualified chefs in the pastry arts have a number of career options, including working for a high-end restaurant, hotel or resort, cruise ship, private or corporate catering company, or specialty baker.
• Pastry art schools often provide job-placement assistance for their graduates.
• The American Culinary Federation offers four pastry chef certificates: the Certified Working Pastry Chef (CWPC), Certified Pastry Culinarian (CPC), Certified Executive Pastry Chef, and Certified Master Pastry Chef.

Take the first step towards your baking and pastry career by requesting information from one of these baking & pastry schools.

Check our culinary school directory and start becoming a chef today!