Figuring out what you want to do for the rest of your life is no easy task. But for Katie Eurich, a student at SUNY Delhi in Delhi, N.Y., her career path was sparked at an early age, beginning with her mom. “My mother has a passion for cooking and I got that passion from her,” she explains.
Getting a head start
It was with that passion that she went through a BOCES program at her local high school that allowed her to start her culinary career early. This program allowed her to get a hands-on experience with culinary arts and gave a foundation of basic skills that helped her figure out if this was definitely a career she wanted to pursue full-time. As it turns out, Eurich’s experience showed her that this was a field she could see herself in long-term.
“BOCES [is a great option] for students who want to get a feel for the field of culinary arts,” Eurich suggests, “Pick [a program] that fits you best and allows you to get a lot of hands-on experience.”
Gaining experience
Upon graduation of high school, Eurich moved on to SUNY Delhi’s culinary arts program where she’s completed several externships and gained experience in a number of different culinary environments. Based on her experience, Eurich suggests that every student involved with this field should do an externship or get experience of some kind.
For Eurich, gaining experience allowed her to not only learn more about the field, but it also changed her mind as to what exactly she wanted to do with her career. “When I first went to school I wanted to do baking and pastry,” she explains, “but when I did my externship I found out that was not a great fit.” In addition to the resume-building experience you gain, doing an externship will give you organizational and professional skills as well.
Taking skills to competition
All of the hard work and passion that Eurich brought to the field of culinary arts paid off when she took first place at the Student Chef of the Year competition. After being nominated by a professor, Eurich prepared for the competition by researching the protein being used (duck) so she knew the best kind of cuisine that would go with this dish. “I didn’t expect to have to do additional research,” Eurich said, “but you can only learn so much in the classroom…[this allowed me] to educate myself!”
In addition to the knowledge that she learned from her research, Eurich also learned extreme time management through her experience in this competition as they were only given an hour to prepare their dishes. “This though me to be organized, what to do under pressure and how to keep your cool,” she explains. “That’s definitely knowledge I will use in this field!”
As a final note, Eurich advises potential future culinary students to talk with their instructors about their experiences and learn from their mistakes. “Your professors are there to help,” she advises, “and there’s nothing wrong with asking for help!”
Career outlook for chefs is expected to grow slightly by 2020. The average yearly salary for chefs and head cooks was $42,480 as of 2012 according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
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