Examine the school's curricula. A comprehensive culinary program provides practical coursework in cooking techniques, regional cuisines, meat fabrication, wine and spirits and baking and pastry. Well-rounded programs offer classroom-based instruction in kitchen safety and sanitation, nutrition and dietetics, restaurant operations and restaurant law. Schools that offer degree programs should also provide liberal arts courses, such as written communication, mathematics and humanities.
Research the school's teaching staff. Culinary school teaching staff must meet school-established requirements to receive accrediting; however, the backgrounds and curricula vitae of culinary school chefs varies greatly among culinary schools. Following certain guidelines, such as making sure the chef's experience fits the type of program she teaches, helps when rating a school's quality. For instance, a culinary school based in French technique should have classically-trained chefs with extensive experience in food service operations that specialize in French cuisine. Also, high-profile schools tend to attract teaching staff with high-profile resumes. However, this does not imply that chefs who work at unrecognized schools, such as community colleges, have less teaching ability or qualifications than those at schools with widely-recognized names.
Consider the costs. Two-year culinary programs taught at community colleges or trade schools have lower tuition costs than high-profile institutions. For example, an associate in occupational science (AOS) degree program at a community college ranges from $2,000 to $5,000 as of February 2011; an AOS program at a culinary institute ranges from $7,000 to $52,000 as of February 2011. Several culinary schools also offer four-year bachelor's programs, which cost as much as $73,866. Keep in mind that if attending culinary school in the U.S., federal financial aid is available that can offset some or all of the costs.
Tour culinary school campuses and keep detailed notes. Culinary schools encourage potential students to schedule campus tours; this allows the student to familiarize herself with the school's offerings, see students working in classroom kitchens and, in some cases, dine at the student-staffed, school-operated restaurant. Scheduling tours of several schools, if possible, allows a potential student to compare programs.