2022 Best Value Associate Degree Colleges for Culinary Arts (Income $30-$48k) in Colorado

Students have lots of options to chooose from today when trying to decide which college to attend. At College Factual, we’re committed to helping you make that decision by providing information such as that found in our “Best Value Culinary Arts Schools for an Associate in Colorado For Those Making $30-$48k” ranking.

In 2019-2020, 21,906 people earned their degree in culinary arts, making the major the 80th most popular in the United States. In 2017-2018, culinary arts graduates who were awarded their degree in 2015-2017, earned an average of $23,822 and had an average of $19,004 in loans still to pay off.

Across Colorado, there were 1,721 culinary arts graduates with average earnings and debt of $26,100 and $17,054 respectively. At the associate degree level specifically, there were 205 culinary arts graduates with average earnings and debt of $33,269 and $19,040 respectively.

For this year’s “Best Value Culinary Arts Schools for an Associate in Colorado For Those Making $30-$48k” ranking, we looked at 4 colleges that offer a degree in culinary arts. Not only do the schools that top this list have excellent culinary arts programs, but they also cost less that schools of similar quality.

Some of the factors we look at when determining these rankings are overall quality of the culinary arts program at the school and the cost of the school after aid is awarded among other things. See our ranking methodology to learn more.

One Size Does Not Fit All

When choosing the right school for you, it’s important to arm yourself with all the facts you can. To that end, we’ve created a number of major-specific rankings, including this “Best Value Culinary Arts Schools for an Associate in Colorado For Those Making $30-$48k” list to help you make the college decision.

In addition to College Factual’s rankings, you may want to take a look at College Combat, our unique tool that lets you pit your favorite schools head-to-head and compare how they rate on factors that most interest you. When you have some time, check it out - you may want to bookmark the link so you don’t forget it.

Best Value Culinary Arts Schools for an Associate in Colorado For Those Making $30-$48k

The following schools top our list of the Best Best Value Culinary Arts Schools for an Associate in Colorado For Those Making $30-$48k.

Top 4 Best Value Associate Degree Colleges for Culinary Arts (Income $30-$48k) in Colorado

#1

Pikes Peak Community College

Colorado Springs, Colorado

#2 in overall quality

$9,636 Average Net Price

$27,729 Average Early-Career Earnings

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Pikes Peak Community College. It ranked #1 on our 2022 Best Value Culinary Arts Schools for an Associate in Colorado For Those Making $30-$48k list. Pikes Peak Community College is a public institution located in Colorado Springs, Colorado. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 48 associates’s degrees in 2019-2020.

In addition to being on our colorado associate degree culinary arts students whose families make $30-$48k list, PPCC has also earned the #2 rank in our “Best Culinary Arts Associate Degree Schools in Colorado” ranking. It costs about $9,636 for colorado associate degree culinary arts students whose families make $30-$48k per year to attend PPCC.

Full Pikes Peak Community College Culinary Arts Report

#2

Colorado Mesa University

Grand Junction, Colorado

#3 in overall quality

$13,624 Average Net Price

$23,182 Average Early-Career Earnings

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Colorado Mesa University. It ranked #2 on our 2022 Best Value Culinary Arts Schools for an Associate in Colorado For Those Making $30-$48k list. Located in Grand Junction, Colorado, this medium-sized public school awarded 12 degrees to qualified associates’s culinary arts students in 2019-2020.

Colorado Mesa did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #3 on our “Best Culinary Arts Associate Degree Schools in Colorado” list. The yearly cost to attend Colorado Mesa is $13,624 for colorado associate degree culinary arts students whose families make $30-$48k.

Read full report on Culinary Arts at Colorado Mesa University

#3

Auguste Escoffier School of Culinary Arts - Boulder

Boulder, Colorado

#4 in overall quality

$11,752 Average Net Price

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Auguste Escoffier School of Culinary Arts - Boulder. It ranked #3 on our 2022 Best Value Culinary Arts Schools for an Associate in Colorado For Those Making $30-$48k list. Auguste Escoffier School of Culinary Arts - Boulder is located in Boulder, Colorado and, has a medium-sized student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 39 associates’s culinary arts degrees to qualified students.

Escoffier - Boulder also took the #4 spot in our “Best Culinary Arts Associate Degree Schools in Colorado” ranking. The yearly cost to attend Escoffier - Boulder is $11,752 for Colorado Associate Degree Culinary Arts students whose families make $30-$48k.

Full Escoffier - Boulder Culinary Arts Report

#4

Johnson & Wales University - Denver

Denver, Colorado

#1 in overall quality

$25,025 Average Net Price

$27,999 Average Early-Career Earnings

Out of the 4 schools in the Best Value Culinary Arts Schools for an Associate in Colorado For Those Making $30-$48k that were part of this year’s ranking, Johnson & Wales University - Denver landed the #4 spot on the list. Johnson & Wales University - Denver is located in Denver, Colorado and, has a small student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 80 associates’s culinary arts degrees to qualified students.

JWU Denver also took the #1 spot in our “Best Culinary Arts Associate Degree Schools in Colorado” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for JWU Denver is $25,025 for colorado associate degree culinary arts students whose families make $30-$48k.

Since the school has a student-to-faculty ratio of 6 to 1, those pursuing a degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors.

Read more about Culinary Arts at JWU Denver

• Best Value Associate Degree Colleges for Culinary Arts (Income $30-$48k) in the Rocky Mountains Region
• Best Value Associate Degree Colleges for Culinary Arts (Income $30-$48k)

Notes and References

References

• The Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), a branch of the U.S. Department of Education (DOE) serves as the core of our data about colleges.
• Some other college data, including much of the graduate earnings data, comes from the U.S. Department of Education’s (College Scorecard).
• Information about the national average student loan default rate is from the U.S. Department of Education and refers to data about the 2016 borrower cohort tracking period for which the cohort default rate (CDR) was 10.1%.

Read more about our data sources and methodologies

Footnotes

• *Average salary, average net price, and average tuition and fees are for the top schools only.
• Some schools otherwise deserving of recognition may have been removed from this ranking in the event that new data identified post-publication warranted it, or at the request of the school.

Credits

• Credit for the banner image above goes to U.S. Army Europe Images.

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