Great cooking is an art that takes both talent and skill to master. If the kitchen is your happy place and cooking or baking is your passion, you can make it your career through the OCC Career Advantage Culinary Arts/Baking and Pastry programs. Our award-winning competition teams and long list of alumni working in top restaurants and hotel kitchens across the region demonstrate the quality of our basic and advanced programs. Our Advanced Culinary Arts program will prepare you to take the industry exam to become a Certified Culinarian, a designation recognized as a mark of excellence in the restaurant industry. OCC graduates are in demand and recruited directly into the numerous hot restaurants and top hotels and resorts in the LA/OC region. If you want a career at the top of this exciting, fast-paced restaurant industry, then read on to learn more.
A sampling of courses for these careers
- Sanitation and Safety
- Introduction to Hospitality Industry
- Principles of Baking
- Menu Planning and Purchasing
- Bar Management
- Garde Manger
ALUMNI SUCCESS SPOTLIGHT
HEAR FROM KATHERINE, TAYLOR, AND KACY ABOUT WHERE THEY DECIDED TO MAKE THE SMART CHOICE.
Complete our certificate program, and you'll be well-prepared to enter a career in culinary arts.
Build upon your skills if you're already employed in the field. Or earn an associate degree for even greater advancement opportunities.
- IN LESS THAN 2 YEARS EARN: CERTIFICATE OF ACHIEVEMENT
- OR EARN YOUR ASSOCIATE DEGREE IN UNDER 4 YEARS
- U. S. Coast Guard Career Advantage Partnership
View all program details in course catalog
Advanced Baking and Pastry
Gain a solid foundational knowledge of the baking and pastry industry as you prepare to become a pastry entrepreneur. This program also prepares you for a position as head baker, assistant pastry chef, pastry chef and executive pastry chef at restaurants, hotels, resorts, clubs and bakeries.
Advanced Culinary Arts
Prepare for a position as a professional culinarian, and gain the knowledge and skills needed to pass the industry exam to become a Certified Culinarian, a credential awarded by the American Culinary Federation. Gain solid foundational knowledge of the restaurant and hospitality industry in this program accredited by the American Culinary Federation Accrediting Commission.
Baking and Pastry - Basic
Prepare for an entry-level position as a baker, pastry cook, or pastry entrepreneur in a retail, wholesale or entrepreneurial setting. Gain a fundamental knowledge of baking science, and learn about classic and contemporary patisserie and baking processes.
Culinary Arts - Basic
Prepare for an entry-level position in a commercial kitchen. Learn the basic methods and techniques of cooking through hands-on instruction in a commercial kitchen environment, as well as how to use culinary tools and equipment safely and properly, sanitary work habits and elements of professionalism.
View all program details in course catalog
Advanced Baking and Pastry
Complete the Advanced Baking and Pastry Certificate of Achievement and the Associate in Science graduation requirements to earn an associate degree. You will be prepared to become a pastry entrepreneur or for a position as head baker, assistant pastry chef, pastry chef and executive pastry chef at restaurants, hotels, resorts, clubs and bakeries.
Advanced Culinary Arts
Complete the Advanced Culinary Arts Certificate of Achievement and the Associate in Science graduation requirements to earn an associate degree. Prepare for a position as a professional culinarian and gain the knowledge and skills needed to pass the industry exam to become a Certified Culinarian, a credential awarded by the American Culinary Federation.
View more information & details
Culinary Specialist
Graduates of the Culinary Arts Program will have a guaranteed specialty of the Culinary Specialist rating entering the U.S. Coast Guard through this partnership. Students who hold certificates or an associate degree from the specialty program can enlist with a guaranteed specialty, at a higher starting level of pay and responsibility at the E-4 or E-5 level.
Frequently Asked Questions
Other Programs That Might Interest You
CULINOLOGY AND FOOD SCIENCE
Train to become a food science assistant in food research and advance in the field with an associate degree
FOOD SERVICE MANAGEMENT-COMMERCIAL
Explore our certificate programs preparing you for careers in catering or restaurant supervision
NUTRITION AND DIETETICS
Choose from our various programs to get your start in the field of nutrition
Did you know?
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, people who have a certificate as
their highest level of education earned, on average, 20 percent more than
those whose highest education level is a high school diploma.
Our Team
Katie Ottoson, M.S.
Counselor, CTE and
Career Services
Andrea Lane
Counselor, Hospitality
Programs
