Why should you earn a Masters of Culinary Arts? After all, your Bachelors Degree in Culinary Arts gave you the educational background you need to succeed because it included both cooking skills and business skills classes. Right?
Like any career, the more education you have the more attractive you will be to employers. A graduate degree takes your education to the next level and expands your knowledge base. Here are a few of the advantages a Masters Degree offers anyone working on their career in the culinary arts and hospitality industries.
Sets you apart from the others who did not pursue graduate education as higher level jobs come open
Includes more general management classes designed to prepare you for running a successful business whether for an employer or yourself
Gives you an edge when it’s time for a promotion or a pay raise
Enables you to be more competitive in what is often a global employment market in the hospitality industries
Learning New Management Skills
A Masters Degree in Culinary Arts focuses less on learning specific cooking and presentational skills and more on learning business based management principles and theories. You will have learned specific culinary skills in your undergraduate program, and the graduate program instead expands on management and business related topics. Following are some of the types of advanced topics that are included in graduate programs.
Budgeting and controlling costs for large events
Managing a diverse staff of hospitality workers
Food science and studies
Nutrition management in an institutional setting
International hospitality
Marketing
Business planning
A Culinary Arts Masters Degree can make you eligible for a higher culinary arts salary in both the private and government sectors. According to the U.S. Department of Labor, chefs in the Recreation Industries earned an average of $45,650 as of May 2008. Chefs in the full-service restaurants earned an average of $36,700. In other words, chefs in restaurants earn 80% of what chefs in recreation industries earn. The recreation industries include the higher paying jobs like banquet and event managers for convention centers and food planners for cruise lines.
Prove You Are Serious About Your Career!
A Masters Degree shows you are willing to put in the time and effort it takes to excel in your career. It can help you develop the expertise needed to move into the better paying jobs. A Masters Degree can also give you entry into the culinary arts educational field if you want to teach.
You can even combine your Masters Degree with additional certifications such as Certified Sous Chef or Certified Pastry Chef. The American Culinary Federation offers certification programs and accredits culinary arts programs.
A Masters Degree in the field of culinary arts is a fairly new creation. In the past the primary degrees offered were Associate and Bachelor’s Degrees so the addition of the Masters Degree is in recognition of the increasing need for business trained leaders in the industry.
