Guest blog written by Auguste Escoffier School of Culinary Arts
Have you found that your child learns best via the hands-on experiences and real-world lessons that come with a homeschool education? If so, then sitting through hours of traditional college lectures may not be appealing to them. Fortunately, there are other ways your child can continue their education–one of which is culinary school! We’re going to cover why your child might consider studying culinary arts after a homeschool education, and also answer some common questions about what to expect from culinary school.
Culinary Arts Involves a Variety of Subjects
Why study culinary arts? No matter if your child is interested in math, science, history, or business, they can explore their favorite subjects in the culinary world. Plus, the culinary arts can provide a way for them to continue learning about these subjects through hands-on experiences.
If your child already cooks for your family, they’re utilizing skills like reading comprehension, understanding of ratios, and attention to detail—but studying culinary arts will introduce them to more than just cooking! In culinary school, they can have the opportunity to explore the history of food across cultures, understand how elements like temperature and humidity affect how dough rises, and dive into the elements necessary to run a successful food business.
After your child finishes a culinary arts program and begins a culinary career, they can continue to call on a wide variety of skills and subject matters.
Students Can Study Culinary Arts Online
What? Culinary arts online? Yes, you read that right! While you may think it’s difficult to learn a hands-on subject like cooking via a virtual setting, modern online culinary school at an institution like Auguste Escoffier School of Culinary Arts makes it possible to receive a high-quality education from home.
Along with the well-rounded curriculum, online culinary school allows for a flexible schedule. This may be particularly attractive if your child is used to the freedom that homeschooling provides. By studying online, students can explore interests outside of the culinary arts or start working a restaurant job while they complete their program.
So, how exactly does online culinary school work? These programs were designed specifically for online learners and consist of reading assignments, discussions on group forums, video lessons, and lots of practice. By carefully inspecting and documenting their work, then submitting it to instructors for feedback, students can receive the education they may need to help them advance their culinary skills.
Culinary Arts Can Prepare Students for a Variety of Careers
Think everyone who studies culinary arts aims to become a chef or cook? Think again. While those career paths are possibilities, they’re just two options on a long list of culinary careers. So, if your child appears to be drawn to entrepreneurship, arts, or science during their homeschool career, but also wants to work in the food industry, they can find a culinary arts career that fits their interests.
Graduates of culinary arts programs can take the entrepreneurial route and open their own food truck, restaurant, or catering company. These positions not only allow individuals to express their culinary skills but also provide an opportunity to learn about running a business firsthand.
If your child is interested in arts and design, they can arrange and capture exquisitely plated dishes as a food photographer or food stylist. Or they can utilize their command of language to write stories that bring readers into kitchens and let customers experience the taste of dishes before they even take a bite.
Of course, students can also pursue a variety of careers that center around preparing food. They could become a personal chef who specializes in dinner parties, obtain a position as a cruise ship chef and travel the world, or work creating lunch and dinner plates for people in their community.
Students Won’t Be Stuck in a Classroom
If your child has come to love field trips, completing work from a couch rather than a desk, and practicing what they’ve learned in the real world, then they may not be excited by the prospect of entering a college classroom. Fortunately, studying culinary arts involves a lot more than lectures and readings.
Culinary arts students do attend traditional classroom lessons, but all material is related to the culinary arts. While traditional college programs often require students to take general education requirements that don’t relate to their interests or career goals, culinary school ties every lesson back to food. For example, rather than enrolling in generic algebra, students may explore how ingredient costs affect profit margins. And rather than taking introductory biology or chemistry, they can explore how the body absorbs nutrients or how different variables impact fermentation.
Along with enrolling in these specialized courses, students may also spend time putting their newfound knowledge into practice in cooking labs. This may involve taking what they’ve learned about knife skills and working to improve the precision of their cuts. Or it could mean cooking a complete dish to build on what they’ve explored about flavor development and cooking techniques.
With assignments that delight students’ brains and call on all of their senses, it’s hard to become bored! That’s why studying culinary arts could be a good choice if homeschooling has instilled a love for an active and interesting educational experience.
Consider the Culinary Arts As Your Child’s Next Step
If your child wants to experience the sizzle of a T-bone steak hitting the pan, feel the rush that comes with knocking out hundreds of dishes for dinner service, or embark on opening a successful food truck, culinary school could be a great next step. Even if your child isn’t sure where they want to be one year from now, studying culinary arts can set them up for a wide range of possibilities.