An associate's degree in culinary arts will normally take a student between 15 months and two years to complete with full time study. This degree usually consists of 18 months of course work and a semester of paid or unpaid externship work. Externship work consists of hands-on practice with a rotation of different hotels and restaurants. Course work expected during the two years of this degree include cuisines of Americas, Asia, and Europe, food safety courses, product knowledge courses, meat identifying courses, seafood identifying courses, baking and pastry skills, banquet production skills, and menu development.
A bachelor's degree in culinary arts will typically consist of the same coursework as an associate's degree in culinary arts and an in-depth third year of study and additional internships or externships. This additional two years of study increases the length of graduation to between 38 months and four years of full-time coursework. Coursework will consists of similar courses as an associate's degree in culinary arts, in addition to more advanced work such as gastronomy, foreign languages, computers in food business, history and cultures of the world, leadership, ethics in food, and human resource management.
Pastry arts degrees are offered at a variety of different schools in numerous different durations. The most common degree in pastry arts is a bachelor's degree. This degree is a launching pad for careers as a pastry chef, sous chef, food stylist, caterer, or even a cheese maker. Coursework in pastry-specific degrees consists of culinary history, culinary equipment, baking techniques, nutrition and sanitation. As with other bachelor's degrees, this degree can take between 38 months and four years to complete. An associate's degree specializing in pastry arts can take between 18 months and two years.
Degrees completing a food service management major typically consist of almost four years of coursework. A bachelor's degree in food service management is offered at many universities and consists of specialized areas such as restaurant management and food service management. A four-year degree in food service or restaurant management focuses on additional coursework in nutrition, safety, supply, menu design, and human resources skills.