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Evaluating Culinary Arts Programs
At this point you should have made a decision regarding the type of degree that you want to earn, and whether or not you would like to enroll in a public or private institution. Since there a large number of culinary arts institutions in the Irvington area and across the United States, you must develop a checklist of important qualifications so that you can begin narrowing your choices. A few obvious qualifications, for example location and cost are a good place to begin. But picking a school because it is the nearest or the least expensive is not the optimal way to make a decision regarding your education. There are other considerations, for example accreditation and reputation that you should review as well. Therefore, below are some crucial areas that you need to investigate for each school as you compare and contrast them and make your ultimate choice.
Accreditation. It's very important that the culinary school you decide on has some form of accreditation from either a regional or a national authority. As mentioned previously, the accrediting authority should be a U.S. Department of Education certified authority, for example the American Culinary Federation (ACF). ACF accredited schools have successfully completed a detailed review pertaining to their curriculum, teachers and facilities. So not only does accreditation help establish that you will receive excellent training, but it can also assist in obtaining a student loan or financial assistance which are generally not offered for non-accredited schools.
Age. Recently established schools frequently have the benefit of possessing modern equipment and facilities. However, they may not have been operating long enough to garner an accreditation or to cultivate a reputation. Conversely, more established schools may still be using their original, outdated equipment, but have established a long track record of success and received one or more accreditations. Also, the longer a school has been in operation, the more graduates the school can solicit for its job assistance program. Naturally there is some give and take dependent on the age of the culinary schools. And older, more reputable schools typically modernize their facilities and equipment. The valuable takeaway is that in the best case scenario, your chosen school will have an exceptional reputation, accreditation and a state-of-the-art facility with modern equipment.
Job Placement Rates. Initially, ask what the graduation rates are for the cooking institutes you are looking at. Lower graduation rates are indicators that numerous students were unhappy with either the colleges or the courses and quit before graduating. They might also indicate that the instructors were not competent to teach the course of study. Request that the schools provide their job placement rates also. If a college has a higher job placement rate, it will help validate that it has a good or outstanding reputation within the culinary arts field, as well as a large network of professional relationships. Be wary of any school that will not provide this information.
Location. The culinary arts school that you attend must be within driving distance of your Irvington home, unless you are able to move. You may consider attending classes online, but you would still need to travel for your externship program. On the other hand, maybe you have opted to attend a specific culinary school located in another state due to its ranking and courses offered. It would be a wise decision to check out the campus before enrolling, to make sure that you are comfortable with the location and your future living conditions. Look over the training facilities personally to make certain they are up to date and that the equipment is state of the art. Remember also that some schools target their job assistance programs within their regional communities, so pick a location where you will satisfied working.
Class Sizes. The best way to learn how to cook is with a lot of personalized instruction. If the cooking program you enroll in has larger classes, you will most likely get minimal personal attention from the instructors. The ideal manner in which to assess the interaction between instructors and students is to audit a few of the classes. Ask a couple of the students what their experience has been. Ascertain if they are happy with the amount of attention they receive in class as well as the overall training. Also, talk with some of the instructors and find out what their teaching approaches are as well as their experiences and qualifications.
Flexible Class Schedules. There is no point in enrolling in a culinary arts program if you will not be able to attend the classes. So make sure that the school you decide on provides class scheduling that will work with your active lifestyle. If you can only attend in the evening or on weekends near Irvington NJ due to your job schedule, verify that the school you decide on offers either weekend or evening classes. If you can only attend part-time, confirm that the culinary college has a part-time option. Also, find out what the make-up policy is if you need to miss a class as a result of family, work or other responsibilities.
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