Culinary Arts for Life Long Learning

[Life Long Learning]

Culinary Arts for Life Long Learning?

Is the AAS in Culinary Arts degree and skill worth taking during retirement at the community college level?  Will it improve home cooking?

[hsfamfun]

My step dad is considering a similar move.  He went to college for a year and worked for the same company for 40 plus years.  He retired two years ago at 60.  We have something very cool here in Kentucky called the Donovan Fellowship for Academic Scholars that will allow those 65 and older to go to the State Universities or Community Colleges tuition free.  There isn't a Culinary Arts Program, but he has his eye on a Hospitality program with a handful of Culinary arts classes.  He was just hired as a dessert chef for a new restaurant.  He has always been an amazing cook!

I am not near that age yet, but I have a list of Graduate Certificates and individual classes that I would like to take in subjects that interest me that I am saving for when I meet the age qualification.

[dfrecore]

I'm not sure why you would need a degree if it was just for fun. Why not just take the courses you want, and not be locked into a degree program? Now that I have my degree, I plan on just taking things that interest me. Why take things you don't necessarily want to take, if you don't have to?

[Life Long Learning]

I'm not sure why you would need a degree if it was just for fun.  Why not just take the courses you want, and not be locked into a degree program?  Now that I have my degree, I plan on just taking things that interest me.  Why take things you don't necessarily want to take, if you don't have to?

I agree dfrecore, but I am so OCD that I need a goal to go with it.

[dfrecore]

I'm not sure why you would need a degree if it was just for fun.  Why not just take the courses you want, and not be locked into a degree program?  Now that I have my degree, I plan on just taking things that interest me.  Why take things you don't necessarily want to take, if you don't have to?

I agree dfrecore, but I am so OCD that I need a goal to go with it.

Make your own goal!

[cookderosa]

Culinary Arts for Life Long Learning?

Is the AAS in Culinary Arts degree and skill worth taking during retirement at the community college level?  Will it improve home cooking?

My guess is that every school you can find that offers an AAS also has a recreational cooking division. These may or may not be classes taught by Culinary Arts faculty, that varies by school and by course. But, the rec classes will certainly help you improve home cooking!! I have taught in both, so to compare, a rec program doesn't require any preliminary skills to begin- you simply register for the "Holiday Breads" class and show up. You'll learn a self-contained bit of information and the recipes for the class. You'll do cooking and tasting, and you'll not be graded- you'll go home with new skills and if you want to take additional classes later, none of those will build on your Holiday Breads course, they will also be self-contained.
Now, for culinary, step 1 is being trained in food sanitation and safety. That will be a requirement for any course/degree, and from there you'll begin a sequential program that will be nearly identical no matter where you go. You'll spend time first on your fundamentals: knife skills, mother sauces, and cooking methods. At good schools, you'll do a LOT of it (a year), at lesser schools, that might just be 1 semester or even 1 class. Those skills, fundamentals, will be the foundation of what you'll learn after- so all professional cooking stems from those 3 things. That is truly the 101 stuff, and you're not really learning recipes at that stage, you're learning methods/techniques/and ratios. Chefs use ratios for almost everything they make (note the contrast to recreational classes which use recipes). You're also graded on your ability to do the tasks consistently and precisely. For instance, your chef instructor will measure your vegetable cuts - they must be the same. Your food trim waste will be weighed to assure the % of yield is good. Your sanitation and safety will be critiqued - and of course your sauces and stocks will be evaluated for clarity, consistency, taste, texture, etc. I'll tell you now that you'll either develop a thick skin or you'll walk - being told daily that everything you're doing needs improvement can be hard on a person, but that is because every plate every day that you serve a guest - gets to be critiqued. So, it's part of the deal.
Once you learn the fundamentals, you'll spend at least another year practicing them through other classes- that's where you'll see classes "in" something (Regional cuisine, garde manger, breakfast cookery, baking, etc.). You'll also start taking the courses that give you foundational knowledge for work as a chef - your culinary math, purchasing, nutrition, menu planning, management, etc. Those can happen anytime sprinkled through a program or wherever they fit in. If any part of the program can be online, it is that set.
That said, I've mentioned my husband is a culinary professor at a 4-year uni, and he has a "retired military" in almost every class. Old guys living the dream - some want to have a food truck, others are just doing something they've always wanted to do. If Uncle Sam is footing the bill, I say go for it.

In my opinion, take a rec class, see if you like it. Enrolling in the AAS degree program is if you're thinking of changing careers or working in the business.

[Life Long Learning]

Culinary Arts for Life Long Learning?

Is the AAS in Culinary Arts degree and skill worth taking during retirement at the community college level?  Will it improve home cooking?

My guess is that every school you can find that offers an AAS also has a recreational cooking division.  These may or may not be classes taught by Culinary Arts faculty, that varies by school and by course.  But, the rec classes will certainly help you improve home cooking!!  I have taught in both, so to compare, a rec program doesn't require any preliminary skills to begin- you simply register for the "Holiday Breads" class and show up.  You'll learn a self-contained bit of information and the recipes for the class. You'll do cooking and tasting, and you'll not be graded- you'll go home with new skills and if you want to take additional classes later, none of those will build on your Holiday Breads course, they will also be self-contained.
Now, for culinary, step 1 is being trained in food sanitation and safety.  That will be a requirement for any course/degree, and from there you'll begin a sequential program that will be nearly identical no matter where you go.  You'll spend time first on your fundamentals: knife skills, mother sauces, and cooking methods.  At good schools, you'll do a LOT of it (a year), at lesser schools, that might just be 1 semester or even 1 class.  Those skills, fundamentals, will be the foundation of what you'll learn after- so all professional cooking stems from those 3 things.   That is truly the 101 stuff, and you're not really learning recipes at that stage, you're learning methods/techniques/and ratios.  Chefs use ratios for almost everything they make (note the contrast to recreational classes which use recipes).  You're also graded on your ability to do the tasks consistently and precisely.  For instance, your chef instructor will measure your vegetable cuts - they must be the same.  Your food trim waste will be weighed to assure the % of yield is good. Your sanitation and safety will be critiqued - and of course your sauces and stocks will be evaluated for clarity, consistency, taste, texture, etc.  I'll tell you now that you'll either develop a thick skin or you'll walk - being told daily that everything you're doing needs improvement can be hard on a person, but that is because every plate every day that you serve a guest - gets to be critiqued.  So, it's part of the deal.
Once you learn the fundamentals, you'll spend at least another year practicing them through other classes- that's where you'll see classes "in" something (Regional cuisine, garde manger, breakfast cookery, baking, etc.).  You'll also start taking the courses that give you foundational knowledge for work as a chef - your culinary math, purchasing, nutrition, menu planning, management, etc.   Those can happen anytime sprinkled through a program or wherever they fit in.  If any part of the program can be online, it is that set.  
That said, I've mentioned my husband is a culinary professor at a 4-year uni, and he has a "retired military" in almost every class.  Old guys living the dream - some want to have a food truck, others are just doing something they've always wanted to do.  If Uncle Sam is footing the bill, I say go for it.    

In my opinion, take a rec class, see if you like it.  Enrolling in the AAS degree program is if you're thinking of changing careers or working in the business.

Great advice so thank you. I just saved this as a pdf. I was hoping you would jump in with your 2-cents  

[cookderosa]

Culinary Arts for Life Long Learning?

Is the AAS in Culinary Arts degree and skill worth taking during retirement at the community college level?  Will it improve home cooking?

My guess is that every school you can find that offers an AAS also has a recreational cooking division.  These may or may not be classes taught by Culinary Arts faculty, that varies by school and by course.  But, the rec classes will certainly help you improve home cooking!!  I have taught in both, so to compare, a rec program doesn't require any preliminary skills to begin- you simply register for the "Holiday Breads" class and show up.  You'll learn a self-contained bit of information and the recipes for the class. You'll do cooking and tasting, and you'll not be graded- you'll go home with new skills and if you want to take additional classes later, none of those will build on your Holiday Breads course, they will also be self-contained.
Now, for culinary, step 1 is being trained in food sanitation and safety.  That will be a requirement for any course/degree, and from there you'll begin a sequential program that will be nearly identical no matter where you go.  You'll spend time first on your fundamentals: knife skills, mother sauces, and cooking methods.  At good schools, you'll do a LOT of it (a year), at lesser schools, that might just be 1 semester or even 1 class.  Those skills, fundamentals, will be the foundation of what you'll learn after- so all professional cooking stems from those 3 things.   That is truly the 101 stuff, and you're not really learning recipes at that stage, you're learning methods/techniques/and ratios.  Chefs use ratios for almost everything they make (note the contrast to recreational classes which use recipes).  You're also graded on your ability to do the tasks consistently and precisely.  For instance, your chef instructor will measure your vegetable cuts - they must be the same.  Your food trim waste will be weighed to assure the % of yield is good. Your sanitation and safety will be critiqued - and of course your sauces and stocks will be evaluated for clarity, consistency, taste, texture, etc.  I'll tell you now that you'll either develop a thick skin or you'll walk - being told daily that everything you're doing needs improvement can be hard on a person, but that is because every plate every day that you serve a guest - gets to be critiqued.  So, it's part of the deal.
Once you learn the fundamentals, you'll spend at least another year practicing them through other classes- that's where you'll see classes "in" something (Regional cuisine, garde manger, breakfast cookery, baking, etc.).  You'll also start taking the courses that give you foundational knowledge for work as a chef - your culinary math, purchasing, nutrition, menu planning, management, etc.   Those can happen anytime sprinkled through a program or wherever they fit in.  If any part of the program can be online, it is that set.  
That said, I've mentioned my husband is a culinary professor at a 4-year uni, and he has a "retired military" in almost every class.  Old guys living the dream - some want to have a food truck, others are just doing something they've always wanted to do.  If Uncle Sam is footing the bill, I say go for it.    

In my opinion, take a rec class, see if you like it.  Enrolling in the AAS degree program is if you're thinking of changing careers or working in the business.

Great advice so thank you. I just saved this as a pdf. I was hoping you would jump in with your 2-cents  

Happy to! If you're anywhere near Charlotte, I can get you into my classes for free

[Ideas]

Jennifer, I wondered if you knew about the UL NCCRS course in "Food Styling" and some others.
http://www.nationalccrs.org/organization...lting#n422

[cookderosa]

Jennifer, I wondered if you knew about the UL NCCRS course in "Food Styling" and some others.
http://www.nationalccrs.org/organization...lting#n422

I hadn't! Thanks!!