The Culinary Arts Institute recently introduced a new curriculum format that will enable students to finish their programs and begin work sooner. Classes for full-time students begin Feb. 12; classes for evening, part-time students start Jan. 16.
The Culinary Arts Institute at Montgomery County Community College recently introduced a new curriculum format that will replace the semester-based courses and enable students to complete their programs sooner.
“This modification will allow students to finish the program and begin work significantly faster than the current configuration allows, thereby increasing the likelihood of program completion and job placement,” said Chef John De Pinto, director of CAI.
De Pinto said that in preparation for the change, he and CAI faculty and staff did a competitive analysis of the national culinary schools. They also called on the insight of other industry professionals.
“An important part of our day and evening classes is our immersion style format where students explore one topic in a condensed schedule. Through our hands-on approach, students are able to quickly develop the technical competencies needed for success in the industry,” said De Pinto, that this is the model followed by most culinary instruction today.
“Through this new format, we offer students additional levels of hands-on experience that better prepares them for employment and advanced coursework,” added Gaetan T. Giannini, dean of Business and Entrepreneurial Initiatives for MCCC. “And the externship requirement we have added throughout the program will allow students to apply knowledge and skills in an industry setting.”
He said that such externships will introduce students to the many regional opportunities within the restaurant industry and says they will have a variety of options to fulfill this new requirement.
“Additionally, we have added 210 hours of live-learning experiences through the practicums held at partner sites, which have been identified to match the outcomes of our programs in terms of cooking and customer service.”
Spring classes for full-time students begin Feb. 12, 2019. The 12-credit program runs from 2:30 - 8:30 p.m. Monday through Thursday. The part-time program (8 credits) begins Jan. 16, 2019, and runs Monday and Tuesday from 6 p.m. - 11 p.m.