Salaries of the Culinary Industry

If you love to prepare food and work with people, then the culinary industry is an excellent place to make your living. However, not all culinary careers require the immediate handling of food. Since most people are eating three meals a day, there is a constant demand for chefs, pastry chefs, other food preparation workers, and restaurant and hotel managers. The average salaries for these careers are listed below.

Chef: $41,575
Pastry Chef: $36,848
Manager: $36,798

However, these salaries are not only based on experience and skill. Even in the culinary industry, it pays to have an education. Below are the national averages for salaries based on the level of education a person has achieved. In fields like the culinary industry, culinary training specific to the career you plan to pursue (i.e. Associate's Degree, or certificate in your specialty) can take the place of a more general higher education degree and serve to not only enhance your skills, knowledge, and experience, but also to increase your salary. Since the salaries for the culinary industry listed above are averages, the numbers can increase or decrease greatly based on a combination of many factors, one of which is education. As you can see by the salary averages listed below, the level of education and the degrees that you possess can make a big difference in what you will get paid.

No high school diploma $20,110
High school graduate $28,307
Associate's Degree $36,392
Bachelor's Degree $50,056
Master's Degree $63,220

Learn more about earning your college degree in culinary arts, hospitality, baking and pastry arts, and restaurant management by clicking on any of the school links below.

Sources:
Foodservice.com
US Census Bureau 1998 Data