What career path is a chef?

A culinary associate degree is the most common route that leads to a career as a chef. This type of culinary degree can generally be found at community colleges and culinary schools. Students taking an associate culinary degree program will gain in-depth knowledge of food, food procurement and food safety. The Sous Chef is the assistant to the head chef or executive chef and is the second in command in the kitchen.

He or she helps manage the kitchen, plans menus, creates schedules, oversees kitchen orders, and manages customer relationships. A Sous Chef is required to be expert in all aspects of food preparation and is expected to replace the executive chef when necessary to do so or replace any of Partie's chefs. The executive chef takes care of the entire kitchen, plans and executes the menus, hires and supervises staff, sets the budget, costs, quality control, conversations with the media, and more. The executive chef sets the tone for the restaurant and works closely with the general manager of the restaurant and creates the vision of the restaurant.

There are a few career paths to becoming an executive chef. Many executive chefs work for years as sub-cooks, line cooks and even kitchen assistants to acquire the required skill level. Many culinary professionals opt for a culinary arts degree program early in their career. Some simply gain work experience over time.

The experience, calm, and leadership skills that an executive chef should have can only be acquired through years of experience. In addition to changing your job search, it might be useful to find a career path for your specific job. Now, what is the career path you're asking yourself? Well, it's practically a map that shows how you can move from one job to another. Our career paths are especially detailed by salary changes.

So, for example, if you started out as a subchef, you could progress to a position as executive chef eventually. Later in your career, you could end up with the title of general manager. Still, there are no strict educational or training requirements to become a chef. Most people gain knowledge and skills during those long hours in the kitchen.

However, those who want to become head chef can opt for the culinary degree and the learning path. Especially when you're in the early stages of your career (commis chef, chef de partie), don't spare the opportunity to hone your skills and master your craft. Either way, you'll have to commit to spending at least two years in a new kitchen to settle down and make a worthwhile investment in your professional advancement. When you want to become a truck driver, attending one of the best CDL schools helps you prepare for the race and for the driver's license test itself.

Learning on the job exposes you to the real dynamics of a kitchen right from the start, so you can develop stronger skills while building your network of contacts and acquiring mentors early in your career. There are other careers to consider, besides working in a commercial kitchen, that are exciting and challenging to enjoy as a chef. From the Army to the Air Force, from the Navy to the Marine Corps and the Coast Guard, learn more about careers in the military.