Diverse and Exciting Career Options
There are many diverse and exciting career options for you in the food world. Foodservice is the nation’s second-largest private employer, it has been outpacing overall job growth for the past two decades, and it’s projected to grow even more in the next 10 years. There are plenty of career paths to follow, each calling for unique talents and skill sets. And a degree from the Culinary Institute of America will open those doors and get you there.
The top trending careers in the food business include titles you might expect, such as executive chef, chef, pastry chef, and baker. They also include roles like restaurateur, food entrepreneur, food and beverage manager, food stylist, food writer, research and development (R&D) chef, media personality, sommelier, caterer, chocolatier, educator, food policy influencer, and more!
A CIA bachelor’s or associate degree is the proven route to a successful career in food and hospitality. Our gold-standard programs feature follow hands-on kitchen instruction in world-class facilities and high-level college academic courses taught by expert faculty, to prepare graduates for positions in culinary and management leadership.
“The CIA drove me to achieve a level of performance I had not seen before in myself,” says Steve Ells ’90, the founder of Chipotle Grill. “It not only prepared me to enter the working world as a chef, but also helped me get mentally prepared for everything that has followed.”
Explore and Pursue the Many Dimensions of the Food World
There is a waiting list for top restaurants, hotels, resorts, supermarkets, health care management, foodservice contract providers, and other food and hospitality management companies to attend the CIA’s Career Fairs—where they actively recruit students and recent grads for both kitchen and management-track jobs with opportunities for rapid advancement. And, because they know of the quality of a CIA education and the skills that graduates leave campus with, 76 percent of employers say they prefer to hire CIA alumni.
If food is what you’d love to do for a living, the options are endless for you to satisfy that passion. With majors in Applied Food Studies, Culinary Science, Food Business Management, and Hospitality Management complementing Culinary Arts and Baking and Pastry Arts—and even more concentrations—students have the opportunity to explore and pursue the many dimensions of the food world. A culinary degree from CIA can lead you to a wonderful career in the restaurant industry, and it can lead you down paths that will take you places you’ve never even imagined!