Cut Your Culinary Teeth in a School in New Jersey

Talk about a vibrant and diverse state! New Jersey has it all when it comes to a culinary scene and education. And what you can’t find here you can certainly find just across the river in Manhattan where you really do have it all.

When you think of Jersey you might only think of the most congested area near Newark and Hoboken, but much of southern NJ is rural and includes the environmentally unique Pine Barrens and the rural agriculture heading out to Cape May. But don’t overlook Atlantic City and the beautiful beaches, both of which make for a thriving food service industry all on their own.

Take a look at the list of schools below. You’ll notice they run the gamut: community colleges, vocational and technical schools, and prestigious universities. Choose from degrees in culinary arts, pastry arts, or hospitality management.

Tips for Choosing a New Jersey Cooking School or Culinary Institute

Academically the school you choose should have a solid reputation in the industry and it should be able to provide you with all the skills necessary to compete in the very competitive culinary marketplace. You don’t necessarily need a 4-star education to “make it.” What you do need is a generous helping of ambition and motivation to succeed.

Make sure the school you choose can help prepare you to win a good job:

• Internships are almost a necessity
• State-of-the-art professional teaching kitchens are beneficial and ensure you know your way around
• Professional chef/instructors – in some schools the chefs work in the real world and teach part time
• Student-run kitchen gives you real world experience while under the guidance of a teaching chef
• Career guidance and job placement are essential

Digging Into the NJ Food Scene: An Educational Experience

Are you willing to immerse yourself in the New Jersey culinary scene as well? If you’re not sampling the dishes at the best reviewed local restaurants and delving into the culinary secrets of the area’s most talked about chefs then you are missing half of your education. Here is the real food business—taste it and experience it for yourself, know it.

Local food festivals and events to sample:

• Cape May Harborfest
• Summer Harvest Festival, Pittstown
• NJ State Ice Cream Festival, Toms River
• Epicurean Palate, Mercer County
• American Bakery Expo

Salaries for NJ chefs vary, but what’s clear is that many good job postings require a culinary arts education. Other factors include your professional experience and the location in which you’ll work. Salaries range from $25,000 for an entry-level line cook/station chef to $55,000 for an experienced sous chef. Of course salaries for executive chefs, personal chefs and chef/owners are much higher.

Add more credibility to your resume with a membership in a local chapter of a nationally recognized professional association:

• American Culinary Federation (chapters: Atlantic City, Monmouth, Merchantville, Northern NJ, Princeton, and Southern NJ)
• Research Chefs Association North Atlantic Region

Affiliation with groups like these buys you respect and career cred—means you’re serious. Technically you use these groups to network, forge valuable industry connections, gain access to private job lists, participate in educational events and conferences.

New Jersey State Colleges, Community and Technical Colleges Offering Culinary, Restaurant Management, and/or Hospitality Degrees

Atlantic Cape Community College - Mays Landing
Atlantic County Vocational Technical School - Mays Landing
Bergen Community College – Paramus
Bergen County Technical Schools – Hackensack
Brookdale Community College – Lincroft
Burlington County College – Pemberton
Camden County Vocational and Technical School – Sicklerville
College of Saint Elizabeth – Morristown
County College of Morris – Randolph
Fairleigh Dickinson University – Teaneck
Hudson County Community College - Jersey City
Mercer County Community College – Trenton
Middlesex County College – Edison
Monmouth County Vocational School District - Long Branch
Morris County Vocational School District – Denville
Ocean County Vocational Post Secondary Division - Toms River
Raritan Valley Community College – Somerville
Rutgers University - New Brunswick
Union County Vocational Technical School - Scotch Plains