Culinary Salaries

Just a question for those of you in the biz........what is the normal or standard salary for a person straight out of culinary school? The bf is beginning classes here in Elizabethtown in Janurary, then hoping to transfer to Sullivan in the Fall.

I would believe the normal beginner would be around somewhere between 20k and 30k. He had someone today trying to convince him he could make 50k+ straight out of school by working on a cruise ship. I immediately called bullshit and did some digging on the internet to find it was NO WHERE near that (just as I suspectted).

Just a question for those of you in the biz........what is the normal or standard salary for a person straight out of culinary school? The bf is beginning classes here in Elizabethtown in Janurary, then hoping to transfer to Sullivan in the Fall.

I would believe the normal beginner would be around somewhere between 20k and 30k. He had someone today trying to convince him he could make 50k+ straight out of school by working on a cruise ship. I immediately called bullshit and did some digging on the internet to find it was NO WHERE near that (just as I suspectted).

My first jobs out of school were about $8 an hour - $16k-$17K per year. About the same now.

To be fair, if your job is on a cruise ship, where there's "free lodging" and you don't need to pay rent on an apartment somewhere to store your stuff, it might equate to $20 or $25K

ditto to Marsha's post, $20K would be a high ceiling unless you got lucky.

Ok...so I'm hearing from other sources, too, that 20k is on the high end starting out. Sooooo.....I have a question for all of you.

If 20k is what you can expect as well as horrible hell hours, why should you spend $15k a year (or is it more now?) on Sullivan when you can go to the technical college? I asking based on reality, not prestige.

Quality.

I'm not attempting to knock any technical colleges. However, I'd be more interested in any employee with a degree from Sullivan or Johnson and Wales than JCC.

To tell you the truth, you could be a Sullivan Grad, a JCC Grad, or a JWU grad (my kid is JWU), but if you do not have the passion or the drive.... your degree may as well come from a Cracker Jack box.

The Culinary schools are a guide, they give you the basics. It is what you do with them, and your vision, and determination that will define who you will be in the job force. Your performance, and creativity will decide your salary.

Having a job in a restaurant before (and after of course), you attend Culinary school of any sort will help you understand what you are about to embark into. Not the other way around.

Salary will be determined on your value to the production of the menu, your ability to control food costs, and your creativity when no one is lookin'! Good luck !

Wow, this question comes up again.
I came up the old school way in my culinary career. I worked at a variety of establishments as I was coming up.
Somewhere along the line when I was about 20 years old or so, I became enamored with the idea of cooking food for others as a viable living.

My interest was at it's peak when I was one of the original staff that opened the BBC on Shelbyville Rd. I was still trying to live my failed "Rock Star" dream and realized I really didn't have the chops to make it as a "Rock Star".

At that time, there were plenty of "Old School Cooks" and culinary school grads around me; that I felt fortunate to have that much talent around to glean information from. On on particular evening, I can distinctly remember the conversation I had with Chef Mike....I asked him if I should enroll in a culinary program. His response to me was "You've got the ambition...Just read cookbooks and travel..You'll learn more by working with other chefs that you will in any cooking school". So that's what I did....The trendy term for that is called working "stages" now.

Long story short, At that time (25 years ago) I think that was the way to go...But now with the proliferation of celebrity chefs and food on cable TV, anybody can "Cook" what I do.

But aspiring culinarians need to know the operations of a busy restaurant or hotel . That's where you are really going to "learn" how things are done from the business side. Not only do you have to know how to cook good food that people will pay to eat; you need to have good relationships with your purveyors, learn how to read a P & L sheet, control inventory, find good help when you need it, learn something about equipment and how it works, etc...etc....

Ultimately, that's where someone will actually start making better than average wages. It only took me about 18 years before I stopped living paycheck to paycheck. And don't forget the things that are sacrificed along the way. Like having to work on every weekend and holiday, a meaningful realationship with someone who is not in the Bizz and living a normal life...Is it really worth it?

No one coming straight out of culinary school can expect to make more than $15,000 to $22,000. Unless they are very talented or very lucky or both.

Ditto to what Dan said, I am from the culinary school of "Hard Knocks", I started in Fast Food, then Casual (chain) dining and then fine dining. Some places pay better than others. In this economy, gone are most of the $13.00 an hour cook jobs for newbies, more like $8-$10 an hour. Put your time in and you will grow your earnings. The most important part of getting a good culinary salary is experience and longevity, not switching jobs every year, which I have been guilty of at times. It also depends on what type of operation you work at. Private clubs generally have better pay, benefits and hours, but the culinary envelope doesn't get pushed much. Privately owned restaurants pay less usually but they tend to be on the cutting edge more often. Stable money comes from the corporate chains, but there is hardly any creativity. I remember my first non fast food or casual chain job, I started at $8.00 an hour and quickly worked up to $12.00 an hour in 1 year, with overtime, I was pulling $35,000 a year, but like Dan said, I worked every weekend, holiday, and 60-70 hours a week. That was when the economy was good, I have held executive chef level positions that only paid $35,000 a year. If you have ambition and are choosing this carrer path for love of food, then salary won't always be great, but you may have more creative opportunities. If you're in it for the money, which it is really the wrong career choice to make bank. You will have to sacrifice alot and unfortunately, the chains tend to pay higher. It's a trade off, I was happier making in the low $30K's and having Carte Blanche in the kitchen than making $50k with a corporate mandated menu and specials. Just my opinion.

Ok...so I'm hearing from other sources, too, that 20k is on the high end starting out. Sooooo.....I have a question for all of you.

If 20k is what you can expect as well as horrible hell hours, why should you spend $15k a year (or is it more now?) on Sullivan when you can go to the technical college? I asking based on reality, not prestige.

Like the two talented men posting before me, I came up through the ranks the hard way, and I can echo what everyone else has said, you do this because you love it, not for the big bucks (mainly because they are rare and tend to come late in the career if at all). From what I have seen, culinary school gives you what you put into it, and if you are going to go, you may as well go wherever gives you the best opportunity to get the most out of it. That may be the best reason to choose a Johnson and Wells or a Sullivan before you go to a technical school. It all depends on the drive and motivation.

I'm happy to hear all opinions!!!

He's worked in fast food (Moby Dick's, etc). He's worked in places like Red Lobster and Rafferty's.

He has a passion for trying new things. When he has time, he whips up creative dishes for us. He's willing try ANYTHING once. He lives for shows like Chopped and Iron Chef. He's even challenged me to a cook off Iron Chef style.

At this point in his life (37), he's just looking for a career that he can love versus a job that he hates. He's applied to the culinary program here in Etown at Elizabethtown Community and Technical College. He has all his basic ed requirements from YEARS ago, so he should start culinary classes in Janurary. I KNOW he'd rather just go to Sullivan, but I'm concerned about the cost versus the pay off. He does need to learn the basics in a school setting. I just am thinking he may do as well here in Etown where it it considerably cheaper ($1500 a semester plus books and supplies). I LOVE Sullivan. I had actually been acceptted myself and had all ready to go until I found I was pregnant with my youngest. I think it is a great school.

It's disappointing to hear that starting out with a degree from Sullivan would not make him much, if any, more money than he was making two years ago at Red Lobster.

Part of the problem is that the economy has changed a lot in the last two years. And there is at least one more option in the culinary field and that's creating your own work. I love what I do, but I'm a one-woman operation. I had a friend in culinary school who made a living as a personal chef. He loved it, had regular customers and was well paid. Another option.

Of course I do think it makes a difference what school's name is on your diploma. You make contacts at school both with other students and with the culinary faculty, along with administrative people. These will be the people who help advance your career with recommendations, placements, and referrals. And people at the "name "schools tend to know people.

How do ya'll pay for all those tattoos on 20K a year...just wondering

(sorry, guess I've been watching too much Top Chef)

How do ya'll pay for all those tattoos on 20K a year...just wondering

(sorry, guess I've been watching too much Top Chef)

they're all "trust fund kids" Man!

Honestly the culinary world is a little different than your average job, school is not a big factor in how far you advance. The biggest thing is who you work for and where, almost like doing apprenticeships. If you want to make some money, you need to work under some top chefs to get the experience needed. Working at a top restaurant under a top chef is far more valuable than where you go to school. Of course it may be easier to get your foot in with a quality degree, but some of the good local chefs never went to culinary school, they worked their way up.