Culinary arts degrees and programs are available online, but the most effective programs typically combine additional in-person components with online coursework.  Given the nature of the field, this makes sense.  Aspiring chefs and other food professionals need hands-on experience.  For this reason, culinary arts programs tend to require an apprenticeship or internship in commercial kitchens.  Additionally, some culinary arts schools offer degree completion programs.  Students might first spend time in vocational training and then use online schools to complete their degrees.  Classes online often include courses in hygiene, food safety, restaurant management, and finance, for instance.

Careers in the culinary arts tend to include a lot of time interacting with the public, so prospective students should be people-oriented.  Workers in food service can also have long or unusual hours, so students need to have strong work ethics.  Further, working with food requires attention to detail.  Although culinary arts jobs all deal with food and food preparation, not all culinary arts graduates aspire to be cooks in restaurants.  Caterers, personal chefs, restaurant managers, and even food critics can come from a culinary arts background.

The job outlook for professionals in the culinary arts field is mixed.  On one hand, there is a lot of turnover in the profession, and graduates can benefit from the frequent job openings.  On the other hand, competition can be fierce, especially at top restaurants with a bigger payroll.  Salaries vary by position, but some comparisons of pay ranges in different culinary arts occupations can be viewed here.

Although there are many schools that offer online support for culinary arts education, two of the more well-known ones are The Art Institute and Le Cordon Bleu.   Additionally, the Education Online Search site lists other schools that offer culinary arts degrees and programs.  Because culinary arts degrees require more hands-on work, it’s important to contact individual schools to find out program details.