** The various titles of "chef" generally apply to more advanced roles in a professional kitchen Sous Chef. Graduates of a culinary arts training program should expect to pursue entry-level opportunities and should not expect to become chefs upon graduation but are encouraged to work toward becoming a chef through the course of their career. Le Cordon Bleu does not guarantee employment or salary.

Though the dessert is served at the end of a meal, it is also the most important part. You must have had a wide range of desserts. But have you ever thought whose innovative skills go in the making of breads, chocolates, pies, cookies, ice cream etc. The food service industry has a growing demand for chefs and cooks. A pastry chef (Patissier in French) is one of those careers that have always been required by the food industry. Today, candidates have the benefit of selecting from a multitude of accredited culinary or cooking schools where they can get trained to become a pastry chef or Patissier. The career of a pastry chef is both quite fulfilling and rewarding at the same time. The best part is you will never get bored while working as a pastry chef in a hotel chain, high end restaurant or a luxury resort.

A professional kitchen in a high end restaurant or hotel, there is a whole team dedicated to the pastry department, known as the classic brigade de cuisine. The pastry chef is a part of this brigade and holds the position of the station chef in the pastry department. In charge of the dessert menu, the pastry chef is responsible for performing daily tasks including planning of menu, cost control and food supply control. The pastry department also has a number of other assistant chefs or kitchen workers to help the pastry chef with his dessert preparation task. Besides menu planning, cost reduction and supply control, the job of a pastry also requires him to innovatively develop and create new recipes. The chef is responsible for research, testing and applying new concepts using their working skill and expertise.

It is very important to make well informed decisions when candidates aspire to become a pastry chef or patissier. To excel in your chef career, you should have a strong inclination towards cooking or the field of culinary art. While you join a degree program or a course, you get trained in the art of baking or pastry making. Planning and preparation are the core areas that you will be focusing on while being trained to become a pastry chef. After you have planned the recipe of the dessert and prepared it using all your cooking skills, it's time to make it look attractive to the eyes. Desserts need to be quite attractive so that people may order as soon as they notice them. To make desserts or the sweet dish likeable to all pastry chef has to take into account a number of things - taste, color, size, shape and the presentation.

Candidates, who want to know the secrets of how to become a pastry chef, must be aware of the skills that need to possess for making a great career in this field. Besides having expertise in the art of baking and dessert preparation, pastry chefs skills also include some great artwork. The chef needs to make use of his creative skills to make the desserts look good to the eyes as well. Paying attention to even the minutest details can sometimes make a lot of difference to the dish. The chef, therefore, should have a sense for minute details.

Becoming a pastry chef may look easy on the face of it. The career of a pastry chef, however, demands a lot of dedication, activity, innovativeness and an eagerness to excel always. Pastry chefs may be working on their toes for long hours without losing vigor or interest. Working hours will depend on the type of food establishment you join. Depending on your job or work profile, you may even need to start as early as 3 am or 4 am.

Culinary schools across America offer a number of degree programs, courses and training to train aspiring candidates in the field of pastry art. To kick start your career as a pastry chef you need to obtain a Baking and Pastry Certificate, an Associates Degree in Applied Science Culinary Art or a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Culinary Arts from an accredited culinary institution or cooking school. All these degree programs, training and certifications include both classroom study as well as hands-on experience in baking or pastry making. If you enroll in a course of one year duration or less like the certificate course, you will only be eligible to join at entry level position in the pastry department. A 2-year Associate's Degree in Applied Science Culinary Arts or a 4-year Bachelor of Arts degree will prepare for a successful career in the field of pastry art or baking. Entry level pastry chef positions include entry level pastry cook or helper and assistant pastry chef. A corporate executive pastry chef is a higher level and much respectable position in the culinary field.

If you have a keen inclination towards the art of cooking and do not mind standing in front of the hot stove tossing together a dinner of amaretto shrimp almandine, you are ready to kick start a cooking or a culinary career. Education as well as specialized training has a pivotal role to play in the shaping of your cooking career. While working in a small restaurant kitchen, you might learn a few of the cooking skills. But this will only make you acquainted with a specific type of cuisine or cooking skill. However, if you go for a formal training from an accredited cooking school, you can be ready to take up a full fledged career in the cooking industry. Obtaining formal education in cooking career helps you directly join at a high position. Choosing the right cooking school is must for all those candidates that want to have a competitive edge over their counterparts in culinary field.

If you take up the cooking career really seriously, you need to have a strong theoretical foundation of cooking as well as hands-on training. A degree program or a certificate course from an accredited cooking school does not only equip you with theoretical knowledge and techniques about a variety of food and cuisines, but it gives you an advantage to successfully establish your cooking career and make it one of the most profitable ones. Hands-on and on-the-job training may land you some low level kitchen workers positions, but it will not help those who are looking forward to becoming a top level cook or chef. Apart from that, an on-the-job training may take you comparatively longer to learn the skills.

While they attend a cooking school, candidates will be trained in three major field of cooking including culinary art, Patisserie and baking and hospitality and restaurant management. A degree in culinary art trains you in classic and contemporary techniques while the field of Patisserie prepares you in pastry and baking arts. Hospitality and restaurant management degrees train you in subjects like business operations, communication, finances etc. Obtaining a degree from a recognized cooking school brings a number of other benefits as well. Most of the cooking or culinary schools are provided with their own food services and restaurants. These facilities help students in learning the art of cooking through hands-on classes.

Many cooking schools also offer their students some exciting externship opportunities. While they get you trained in local restaurants, you have the opportunity to learn the art of cooking and food preparation from experienced professionals and top level cooks. Externships help students a lot in the advancement of their cooking career. After graduating from a cooking school, candidates have a wide range of careers to choose from. Equipped with a graduate degree in cooking, candidates can choose to join establishments like bakeries, hotel chains, high end restaurants, food service departments, luxury resorts and catering among others.

While you decide to go to a cooking school, you might be confronted with hundreds of culinary, hospitality and hotel management programs. Before you enroll yourself in a course of training program, you must ensure that the cooking school you want to attend has all the necessary accreditations. The U.S. Department of Education periodically evaluates multiple organizations that provide accreditation to cooking schools across America. Some of the most important accrediting organizations in America include Council of Higher Education Accreditation, Accrediting Commission of Career Schools and Colleges of Technology and the American Culinary Federation Accrediting Commission among others.

Therefore, obtaining formal education from an accredited cooking school is essential for making the most of a cooking career. Besides checking the accreditations of your selected cooking school, you can also have a look at the resumes of chefs that provide training at the school. Try to get in touch with candidates who currently graduated from the cooking school and find out if where they are employed. Remember only right education and appropriate training can help you make a fulfilling career in the cooking industry.

According to the National Restaurant Association, the restaurant industry (which employs 12.8 million people) has the privilege of being the second largest industry, next only to government. Another 2 million jobs will be created in the cooking industry through the year 2017. The cooking industry has, therefore, no dearth of jobs and career opportunities for skilled and aspiring candidates who are all geared up to establish their cooking career.