Most chefs get there by working up through professional kitchens, starting as a dishwasher, prep cook or line cook and moving to sous chef and then chef over several years. Culinary school or a culinary apprenticeship can speed up the learning, but it is not required. There is no chef license, though many places require a food handler card, and kitchens need a manager with food safety training.
The kitchen, honestly
Cooking for a living is very different from cooking for friends. It is speed, repetition and teamwork under pressure.
- The brigade: prep cooks prepare ingredients, line cooks run a station (grill, sauté, fry, garde manger), the sous chef runs the line and the chef (or executive chef) sets the menu, orders food, manages costs and leads the team.
- The conditions: heat, knives, burns, standing for long shifts, and nights, weekends and holidays when everyone else is eating out.
- The business side: higher up, chefs spend more time on food cost, ordering, scheduling, hiring and inspections than at the stove.
- Settings: restaurants, hotels, catering, corporate dining, hospitals and schools, cruise ships, private households and food manufacturing. Some have steadier hours than restaurants.
Ways to learn the craft
- Working your way up: the oldest route. You learn on the job, get paid from day one and advance by being reliable, fast and eager to learn.
- Culinary certificate or diploma: often several months to a year, focused on techniques, knife skills and sanitation.
- Associate degree: about two years in culinary arts or baking and pastry, with some business and nutrition classes and usually an externship.
- Bachelor’s degree: culinary management or hospitality, useful if you aim to run a business or food operation.
- Apprenticeship: registered culinary apprenticeships combine paid kitchen work with instruction.
- Military: culinary specialists in the armed forces get structured training and real volume.
Culinary school can be expensive. Many chefs recommend working in a kitchen for at least a few months before enrolling, so you know you love it first. Our comparison of trade school vs college helps frame that choice.
Food safety credentials
No license makes you a chef. Many states and counties require cooks to hold a food handler card, and many require a food protection manager credential for at least one person in charge. Requirements vary by state and county, so check your local health department. Optional professional credentials from national culinary organizations can strengthen a resume.
From high school to the line
- Take culinary or career and technical classes if your school offers them; many do.
- Get a restaurant job at 15 or 16 where allowed, even washing dishes. You will learn how a kitchen runs.
- Earn a food handler card and practice knife skills and basic techniques at home.
- Decide between working up, culinary school or an apprenticeship.
- Move from prep to the line, master stations and ask to learn ordering and inventory.
- Work toward sous chef, then chef, or specialize in pastry, catering or private cooking.
Trying it out
- Work a summer in a busy kitchen. One rush tells you a lot.
- Ask a chef if you can do a trial shift, often called a stage, to watch the line at full speed.
- Take a community college culinary class in the evening.
- Talk with cooks and chefs through informational interviews about hours, pay and what they would do differently.
Who sticks with it
Chefs who last love food, work well on a team, take feedback without falling apart, and stay organized when tickets pile up. People leave because of long hours, physical wear, low pay early on and difficulty balancing family life. Many move into catering, private cooking, food sales, product development, teaching or institutional kitchens with steadier schedules.
If you are switching careers
Plenty of people move into cooking later in life. Start by working part-time in a kitchen before you quit a stable job, because the pace and hours surprise most people. Our guides to career change, finding a career you love and building a career without a degree can help. For current pay and outlook, check the Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Outlook Handbook.
Where a mentor helps
A mentor helps a student or young adult explore whether a kitchen career fits, compare culinary school, apprenticeships and working up, stay accountable through long shifts and training, and prepare for interviews and the first job. Mentors are not credentialed career counselors or admissions counselors. Learn about our career and education mentoring and mentoring for high school students.
Related
- Career paths: guides to dozens of careers
- How to choose a trade
- How to become a welder
- Gap year ideas
Common questions
Do you need culinary school to become a chef?
No. Many successful chefs learned entirely in kitchens. Culinary school can teach fundamentals faster and help with connections, but experience is what kitchens value most.
How long does it take to become a chef?
It varies, but moving from entry-level cook to sous chef or chef usually takes several years of steady kitchen work.
What is the difference between a cook and a chef?
Cooks prepare food at a station. A chef leads the kitchen, creating menus, managing staff and running the business side.
Do chefs need a license?
There is no chef license. Many places require a food handler card, and kitchens typically need someone with a food protection manager credential.
Get started
Love cooking and want a plan to turn it into a career? Call (888) 305 5422, email contact@blackburnmentoring.com or start with a short assessment. A member of our team reviews every assessment personally and sets up a free intro call.