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2024 Best Culinary Arts Schools in the Southeast Region

42 Colleges in the Southeast Region
5,131 Culinary Arts Degrees Awarded
$21,782 Avg Early-Career Salary
Culinary Arts is above average in terms of popularity with it being the #97 most popular degree program in the country. As a result, there are many college that offer the degree, making your choice of school a hard one.

College Factual looked at 42 colleges and universities when compiling its 2024 Best Culinary Arts Schools in the Southeast Region ranking. When you put them all together, these colleges and universities awarded 5,131 degrees in culinary arts during the 2020-2021 academic year.

What's on this page: * Degree-Level Rankings

Choosing a Great Culinary Arts School

Best Culinary Arts Schools in the Southeast Region Your choice of culinary arts school matters, so we have put together these rankings to help you make your decision. We derive our Best Overall Culinary Arts School rankings by rolling up our degree-level rankings after weighting them by the number of degrees awarded at each school.

In order to find the schools that are the best fit for you, you may want to filter to one of the degree levels below.

Pick Your Culinary Arts Degree Level

Associate Degrees in Culinary Arts
Bachelor's Degrees in Culinary Arts

Since the program you select can have a significant impact on your future, we've developed a number of rankings, including this Best Culinary Arts Schools in the Southeast Region list, to help you choose the best school for you. If you'd like to restrict your choices to just one part of the country, you can filter this list by location.

In addition to our rankings, you can take two colleges and compare them based on the criteria that matters most to you in our unique tool, College Combat. Test it out when you get a chance! You may also want to bookmark the link and share it with others who are trying to make the college decision.

If you want to learn more about how we derive our rankings, see College Factual's Methodology.


 

Best Schools for Culinary Arts in the Southeast Region

The schools below may not offer all types of culinary arts degrees so you may want to filter by degree level first. However, they are great for the degree levels they do offer.

10 Top Southeast Region Schools in Culinary Arts

1
Valencia College crest
Valencia College
Orlando, FL
Associate Degree Highest Degree Type
342 Culinary Arts Degrees Awarded
26.3% Growth in Graduates

Any student pursuing a degree in culinary arts has to check out Valencia College. Valencia College is a very large public college located in the large city of Orlando. A Best Colleges rank of #523 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means Valencia College is a great college overall.

There were approximately 342 culinary arts students who graduated with this degree at Valencia College in the most recent year we have data available. Culinary Arts degree recipients from Valencia College earn a boost of around $2,384 over the average income of culinary arts majors.

More information about a degree in culinary arts from Valencia College

2
Associate Degree Highest Degree Type
206 Culinary Arts Degrees Awarded
1.5% Growth in Graduates

It is hard to beat Johnson & Wales University - Charlotte if you want to pursue a degree in culinary arts. JWU Charlotte is a small private not-for-profit university located in the large city of Charlotte. A Best Colleges rank of #425 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means JWU Charlotte is a great university overall.

There were about 206 culinary arts students who graduated with this degree at JWU Charlotte in the most recent data year. Those culinary arts students who get their degree from Johnson & Wales University - Charlotte receive $4,302 more than the average culinary arts grad.

More information about a degree in culinary arts from Johnson & Wales University - Charlotte

3
ECPI University crest
ECPI University
Virginia Beach, VA
Associate Degree Highest Degree Type
148 Culinary Arts Degrees Awarded
$22,745 Median Starting Salary

ECPI University is a great option for students interested in a degree in culinary arts. Located in the city of Virginia Beach, ECPI University is a private for-profit university with a large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #322 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means ECPI University is a great university overall.

There were roughly 148 culinary arts students who graduated with this degree at ECPI University in the most recent data year. Students who graduate with their degree from the culinary arts program state that they receive average early career earnings of $22,745.

More information about a degree in culinary arts from ECPI University

4
Sullivan University crest
Sullivan University
Louisville, KY
Associate Degree Highest Degree Type
86 Culinary Arts Degrees Awarded
$23,826 Median Starting Salary

It is difficult to beat Sullivan University if you want to pursue a degree in culinary arts. Located in the city of Louisville, Sullivan University is a private for-profit university with a small student population. This university ranks 11th out of 38 schools for overall quality in the state of Kentucky.

There were about 86 culinary arts students who graduated with this degree at Sullivan University in the most recent year we have data available. Culinary Arts degree recipients from Sullivan University receive an earnings boost of approximately $2,044 over the average earnings of culinary arts graduates.

More information about a degree in culinary arts from Sullivan University

5
Associate Degree Highest Degree Type
122 Culinary Arts Degrees Awarded
$31,816 Median Starting Salary

Wake Technical Community College is a very large public college located in the large suburb of Raleigh. A Best Colleges rank of #693 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means Wake Technical Community College is a great college overall.

There were roughly 122 culinary arts students who graduated with this degree at Wake Technical Community College in the most recent year we have data available. Degree recipients from the culinary arts program at Wake Technical Community College get $10,034 more than the typical college grad with the same degree shortly after graduation.

More information about a degree in culinary arts from Wake Technical Community College

6
Associate Degree Highest Degree Type
3rd Most Popular In GA
63 Culinary Arts Degrees Awarded

Savannah Tech is a small public college located in the city of Savannah. A Best Colleges rank of #423 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means Savannah Tech is a great college overall.

There were approximately 63 culinary arts students who graduated with this degree at Savannah Tech in the most recent data year.

More information about a degree in culinary arts from Savannah Technical College

7
Associate Degree Highest Degree Type
154 Culinary Arts Degrees Awarded
17.5% Growth in Graduates

MDC is a fairly large public college located in the city of Miami. A Best Colleges rank of #891 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means MDC is a great college overall.

There were roughly 154 culinary arts students who graduated with this degree at MDC in the most recent data year. Degree recipients from the culinary arts major at Miami Dade College earn $6,335 above the standard college graduate with the same degree shortly after graduation.

More information about a degree in culinary arts from Miami Dade College

8
Associate Degree Highest Degree Type
58 Culinary Arts Degrees Awarded
$25,910 Median Starting Salary

Located in the city of Fort Lauderdale, Keiser University - Ft Lauderdale is a private not-for-profit university with a fairly large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #176 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means Keiser University - Ft Lauderdale is a great university overall.

There were roughly 58 culinary arts students who graduated with this degree at Keiser University - Ft Lauderdale in the most recent data year. Those culinary arts students who get their degree from Keiser University - Ft Lauderdale make $4,128 more than the standard culinary arts graduate.

More information about a degree in culinary arts from Keiser University - Ft Lauderdale

9
GTC crest
Gwinnett Technical College
Lawrenceville, GA
Associate Degree Highest Degree Type
8th Most Popular In GA

GTC is a medium-sized public college located in the large suburb of Lawrenceville. A Best Colleges rank of #533 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means GTC is a great college overall.

There were approximately 23 culinary arts students who graduated with this degree at GTC in the most recent data year.

More information about a degree in culinary arts from Gwinnett Technical College

10
Associate Degree Highest Degree Type
85 Culinary Arts Degrees Awarded
61.2% Growth in Graduates

Located in the city of Charlotte, Central Piedmont Community College is a public college with a fairly large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #931 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means Central Piedmont Community College is a great college overall.

There were roughly 85 culinary arts students who graduated with this degree at Central Piedmont Community College in the most recent year we have data available. Those culinary arts students who get their degree from Central Piedmont Community College earn $3,149 more than the typical culinary arts grad.

More information about a degree in culinary arts from Central Piedmont Community College

Best Culinary Arts Colleges by State

Explore the best culinary arts schools for a specific state in the Southeast Region .

State Colleges Degrees Awarded
Georgia 287 192
Florida 282 298
North Carolina 279 401
Virginia 274 261
Tennessee 269 36
South Carolina 248 85
Kentucky 244 109
Louisiana 242 132
Mississippi 234 105
Arkansas 234 53
Alabama 233 64
West Virginia 207 33

View All Rankings >

Culinary Arts is one of 4 different types of Personal & Culinary Services programs to choose from.

Culinary Arts Focus Areas

Major Annual Graduates
Culinary Arts/Chef Training 2,597
Baking & Pastry Arts/Baker/Pastry Chef 883
General Cooking & Related Culinary Arts 591
Restaurant, Culinary, & Catering Management/Manager 429
Food Preparation/Professional Cooking/Kitchen Assistant 418
Institutional Food Workers 100
Bartending/Bartender 65
Other Culinary Arts & Related Services 20
Food Service, Waiter/Waitress, & Dining Room Management/Manager 16
Meat Cutting/Meat Cutter 10

View All Culinary Arts Focus Areas >

Majors Similar to Culinary Arts

Related Major Annual Graduates
Cosmetology 30,513
Funeral & Mortuary Science 739
Casino Operations and Services 192

View All Culinary Arts Related Majors >

Notes and References

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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