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Comparing Culinary Arts Programs
By now you should have decided on the type of degree that you wish to earn, and whether or not you would like to enroll in a private or a public school. Since there a large number of culinary colleges in the Mount Pleasant area and across the USA, you need to develop a checklist of important qualifications so that you can begin limiting your options. Certain obvious qualifiers, for example location and cost are a good place to start. But selecting a school because it is the nearest or the least expensive is not the best way to decide on your education. There are other factors, for instance reputation and accreditation that you should assess as well. So following are some critical areas that you will need to investigate for each school as you compare them and make your ultimate choice.
Accreditation. It's essential that the culinary school you choose has some form of accreditation from either a local or a national organization. As aforementioned, the accrediting agency should be a U.S. Department of Education certified organization, for example the American Culinary Federation (ACF). ACF accredited schools have passed a thorough review regarding their course of study, teachers and facilities. Therefore not only does accreditation help establish that you will receive excellent training, but it can also help in acquiring a student loan or financial assistance which are frequently not accessible for non-accredited schools.
Age. Recently established schools generally have the benefit of having modern facilities and equipment. However, they may not have been open long enough to garner an accreditation or to cultivate a reputation. On the other hand, more established schools may still be using their original, dated equipment, but have established a long history of success and obtained one or more accreditations. Also, the much more a school has been in business, the more alumni the school can solicit for its job placement program. Obviously there is some give and take dependent on the age of the cooking schools. And older, more highly regarded schools typically update their equipment and facilities. The important 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. To begin with, find out what the graduation rates are for the cooking institutions you are assessing. Lower graduation rates are indicators that many students were unhappy with either the institutes or the training and dropped out. They might also suggest that the instructors were not competent to teach the course of study. Ask the schools to furnish their job placement rates as well. If a college has a high job placement rate, it will help affirm that it has a great or outstanding reputation within the culinary community, in addition to a wide network of professional associations. Be wary of any school that will not provide this information.
Location. The culinary arts institute that you attend should be within driving distance of your Mount Pleasant residence, unless you can move. You may look into attending school online, but you would still need to travel for your externship training. Alternatively, maybe you have chosen to go to a particular culinary college located in another state because of its prominence and courses offered. It would be a good idea to pay a visit to the campus before enrolling, to make sure that you are satisfied with the location and your prospective living conditions. Tour the training facilities in person to make sure they are modern and that the equipment is state of the art. Consider also that a number of schools focus their job assistance programs within their regional communities, so select a location where you will enjoy working.
Class Sizes. The most effective method to learn how to cook is with a lot of personalized instruction. If the culinary arts school you enroll in has large classes, you will probably receive limited personal attention from the instructors. The ideal way to evaluate the communication and interaction between teachers and students is to sit in on some of the classes. Ask some of the students what their experience has been. Find out if they are happy with the level of attention they receive in class as well as the entire course of training. Also, speak with some of the instructors and determine what their teaching approaches are as well as their backgrounds and qualifications.
Flexible Class Schedules. There is no point in enrolling in a culinary program if you will not be able to attend the classes. So make certain that the school you decide on has available class scheduling that can accommodate your hectic lifestyle. If you can only attend at night or on weekends near Mount Pleasant NY because of your job schedule, make certain that the school you pick offers either weekend or evening classes. If you can only attend on a part-time basis, make certain that the culinary institute has a part-time alternative. Also, check to see what the make-up policy is if you must miss a class as a result of family, work or other commitments.
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