Help with Culinary School? Also, what about my LDR?

[jennyjellybeans]

I was wondering if anyone on this site had any advice on culinary school, particularly baking and pastry programs.

I've always been indecisive when it came to what I was going to do in life, I know what I want to have: a family, a home, a job that I enjoy. It seems to me that baking has been one thing I love to do, though I do it rarely because of lack of ingredients and such. My dad has given me the chance to bake cakes and pies, and when I did so I had fun with it. I'm artistic and creative so I think I have a chance at being good at this type of career.

The fact of the matter is I need to understand it more, so I was wondering if anyone is in a culinary career or school and can shed some light on what its like. Are the classes typically fun, do they have things rushed like in a resteraunt, what did it cost you to go? etc etc. I'd just like to know your experiences! Yes, I am most likely going to get information from the schools themselves its just I'd like people with personal experience to give me some advice on how it was for them, especially if their in or were in the baking side of culinary. :]

I'm really not sure if this is what I'll be doing, but I believe after this last year of high school I'm going to go to community college and study culinary management/science for 2 years, and then possible transfer to a culinary school. The only problem being I don't know how this will affect my LDR seeing how my SO wants us to live together in at least 2-3 years...which would be fine and dandy if my parents were the type to allow their children to go to other states for schooling. :/ Which I'm pretty sure their not, especially since my hometown has its own culinary school. My SO and I discussed it, and he seemed really bothered by waiting 4 years just to BE TOGETHER. And I have to admit, that is ridiculous... but I don't see how it'll all work. My sister is 20 and going to a UC and still lives at home, my parents told me that she still isnt old enough to be out on her own and that "18" really isnt the age they consider a kid to be an adult. That troubles me, legally when I'm 18, I can move out and be on my own. But my parents are the only ones who can pay for my schooling, and knowing them, they'll want me too to stay at home and go to a local college. Now that makes it difficult because I really want to move in with my SO at maybe 20 years old. I feel that's a good age for us to start out together. I don't know what to do, basically I have to stay here for schooling, which may take up to 2-3 years. But he doesn't want to live here, and frankly neither do I. I was thinking of going to Arizona, but my dad (who travels alot) told me they have water problems, drouts, heat waves, and its basically all desert, and the places that ARE nice are expensive. :/

It's like I'm stuck, I want to move and be with my SO, but at the same time I DO need to do the schooling, and then somehow persuade my parents to let me go out on my own. I know my SO doesn't want to wait 4 years for me just to finish schooling...and neither do I! I know I'm probably thinking way too far ahead, but I'm a planner, I like to organize a general idea of what I want to do and have in the future.

Maybe those two years of community college culinary management classes will be enough to get me a okay job, and enough money to buy an apartment with my SO...I'm not sure. :/ I just don't want to disappoint my parents or my SO...

*sigh* Sorry that was long everyone, but that will be my situation next year.

EDIT:

I forgot to mention, apparently if I do the culinary management courses at CRC (the community college I plan to go to) I can get an A.A in Culinary Management, I'm not sure if that's a good degree to have when it comes to wanting to be a pastry chef? Do I need to have diploma in baking and pastry specifically? or do you think that's enough to land a job?

[13000km]

I don't know much, but I have a good friend who is in culinary school and working towards being a pastry chef. The system of the classes seem to change with each class she takes, but she's also works at a fancy hotel restaurant as part of her field practicum experiences. Her parents weren't fully supportive of her culinary career either, so she looked up and applied for various scholarships and grants and ended up being awarded with a full ride. (: I'm not sure what your AA will do for you in terms of looking for a job, but it will come in very handy when transferring to culinary school.

As soon as you turn 18, you have the choice of whether or not you want to rely 100% on your parents for schooling or try to work it out on your own. Consider your relationship when making the decision, but try not to let it be the sole deciding factor.

[Xanahtas]

My SO is doing Culinary Management at George Brown (Canada) and from that course he can go straight into being a chef. I would think that then you can take any kind of chef job thats avalible, at least thats how it works with my SO.

[PucasKitten]

I start culinary pastry program this fall Im taking it at a community college so its not that expensive but still it hurts lol supplies alone have cost me around 300. thatsa not counting tuition/books. but it seems fun

[Sora1101]

Coming from someone who lives in Arizona let me tell you that actually most of this state isn't a desert, we just get a lot more recognition for the desert part and while yes we do have problems with heat and droughts it's not like we're the only state that has problems, I mean if you went to Maine you'd have trouble with cold temperatures and snow, so if those were the reasons you stopped considering it then I'd say you could easily live in the many forest areas we have here.

But I can tell you we do have a very bad economy down here, like insanely so, colleges are expensive and special trade schools like culinary school cost even more.

[XX, Lexi]

I'm going to be going into a baking and pastry program that is fairly cheap in the Orlando area within the next year or so. From what I've seen just looking online, it seems like (at least in the classes I take), they teach you a lot of different techniques, including making pies, cakes and such. The A.A will definitely help you as far as what they teach you. I think some culinary management is included in some courses (It is in the classes I'm taking in Orlando), so if you already have that under your sleeve, those are less classes you have to take.

As far as your parents go and everything, see if there's anyway they'd be a little more lenient as far as schooling goes. Of course, when you're 18, you can choose to move away regardless of what they say, but it IS nice to be on your parent's good side. If they won't budge on schooling, I would talk to your S.O and see what compromise you guys can come up with. As 1300km said, there are scholarships and grants and (worst case scenario) loans to pay for school.

Hoped I helped a teeny bit! Good luck

[jennyjellybeans]

Thanks everyone for replying! This may change as time goes on but I believe I'm going to focus on getting that A.A in culinary management once I graduate highschool, I'll spend two years doing that and hopefully it'll land me a job at a resteraunt. From what I've read, the course teaches me all I'll need to know and I get hands on experience in the school's cafeteria. After those 2 years are said and done, I'll join culinary school if I feel I need to, I'll need to take it into consideration because of the expense. It seems to me that I could save alot of my parents money (because their the type to fully pay for my education) and hopefully move out and to my SO sooner without the school, but I may really need it, only the future can tell that.

It's just hard to tell what will happen with my SO, his wildland firefighting and now he's even considering going to UTI to learn more about automechanics. But! I'm determined to make it work somehow, whether it means we have to move to Arizona or not.

Coming from someone who lives in Arizona let me tell you that actually most of this state isn't a desert, we just get a lot more recognition for the desert part and while yes we do have problems with heat and droughts it's not like we're the only state that has problems, I mean if you went to Maine you'd have trouble with cold temperatures and snow, so if those were the reasons you stopped considering it then I'd say you could easily live in the many forest areas we have here.

But I can tell you we do have a very bad economy down here, like insanely so, colleges are expensive and special trade schools like culinary school cost even more.

I didn't think so, but my dad (who has been there a couple times) said it was and I trusted him because he travels to all kinds of places for his work. If me and my SO were to move into together, it'd probably be near Avondale, Pheonix, or Scottsdale. Although that would just be temporary during his schooling. We wouldn't live there because were more of rural liking people, meaning we want to live maybe 20 min away from the city (so it will be easy to get groceries and other supplies) but we'd like to live away from lots of buildings, cars, and such. We'd rather have a home in the forest area like you mentioned. But is it expensive to live out in the forest areas of Arizona? Bad Economy? Yikes. :/ Thats not good, especially for us if we move into an apartment together... *sigh* Very complicated. On one half, I have my parents telling me I can't move out of state, and if I choose to do so there's no way they'll pay for culinary school if I decide to actually do it in say Pheonix and on another I have my SO very iffy about a LDR for 4 years. He seems to be willing, but he hates the idea, which I can understand completely. :/

[Sora1101]

I'm pretty sure it's more expensive in phoenix than it is in the northern part of Arizona you might have better luck just starting out there rather than phoenix and scottsdale is VERY expensive because it's one of the more upper class areas in lower Arizona, it's like the posh area. The economy is also more stable up there because there's a lot less people living in the forest areas most are just fresh outta high school kids going to college up there or retirement folks who want to get away from the hustle and bustle of the city. It's definitely a way nicer community up north.

[jennyjellybeans]

I was concerned it might be, just thought it would be more convenient for him to live there if his school is in Avondale. Plus it might be easier to get an apartment there, but considering what you said, that would be difficult on us. (We need it pretty cheap considering once I move I'll have to look for a job and he'll have to pay for his school) So North Arizona certainly sounds like a nice place, I'd love to live in a small community there away from the city but within easy traveling distance of it. Do you know of any towns specifically? Like ones you'd recommend for us? Sorry I'm asking alot, I'm just seriously considering a move there when I hit about 21 or 22, its the state in between my SO and I and seems more my style living and location wise.