SHOTS, rocks, cooking schools WAS:Re: [Sca-cooks] Re Oestgardians OOP

[Phil Troy/ G. Tacitus Adamantius]

Also sprach Isabella di Giovanni:

>I am going to NY to culinary school. At least that way I will have
>something to support myself with. I have been a stay at home
>mom/wife and am pretty much un-marketable (unlike if I were, say, a
>skinny little 19 year old blonde...ooops, outside voice again).
>      Anyway, any input out there on which is the better school...CIA
>or FCI? Both are 6-9 month programs, both cost 30k (hence the house
>sell) and both are in NYC. I really would like input. Actually, any
>others that I may not be aware of? Same price range but location in
>the US is no problem.
>Isabella....thankful that I don't need shots, anyway.

Bearing in mind that my latest experience with the local culinary
schools is close to twelve years old, you should take this with with
a grain of sel.

However...

The CIA probably has a slightly better reputation outside of NYC
proper, but it was also my understanding that they are A) outside of
NYC by a fairish distance (Hyde Park, NY) and B) did not (unless this
is a more recent development) offer a six-month program, but rather a
standard two-year associate's degree program. They are accessible
from NYC, but a fairly long drive or train ride unless you start out
in, say, The Bronx. If they've started some type of short-term
certificate program, that would put the two on a more even keel,
locally, apart from the travel situation. The FCI is more or less
right at the heart of things, geographically.

Other possibilities to consider are the Johnson and Wales school in
Rhode Island (I'm not sure what kinds of programs they offer, but
their reputation is impeccable), the hotel management school at
Cornell University in Ithaca, New York, and then there's always the
Art Institute of New York City, whose culinary arts program,
restaurant management and pastry chef programs are descended from the
New York Restaurant School. At one time they were the only six-month
program in the area, they're still cheaper than the others, and, I
suspect, their professional reputation is about as good as the
others, or almost as good. I would say their actual educational
services, or their quality as a school, is in large part up to you
and what kind of student you will be. In short, like most schools:
you will learn if you want to.

Adamantius