Create Sweet Emotions
There’s a certain feeling you get when someone takes a bite of something you baked, and is speechless. You can turn that feeling into a career, and prove the theory that if you do something you love, you’ll never work a day in your life.
The hands-on training and education at Walnut Hill College can help you turn your passion for creating sweet confections into a fulfilling career that brings joy to others.
Associate Degree
The Pastry Arts associate’s degree from Walnut Hill College teaches both the basics and specialized skills that you need to start a career as a pastry chef.
You’ll get experience working in operational pastry kitchens, where you’ll learn fundamental pastry techniques from expert instructors like John Gallagher, the 2012 ACF Pastry Chef of the Year, developing the creative and professional skills needed to succeed in the pastry field. Essential courses like Pastry Techniques, Professional Bread Baking, and Cake Baking and Decorating will give you the fundamentals, while more specialized courses like Chocolates and Confections, European Tortes and Gateaux, and Wedding Cakes help you refine and focus your skills.
Tuition-Paid Travel to France
Your learning experience culminates with a week-long gastronomic journey through France that transforms the charming villages, iconic vineyards and magnificent countryside of the Champagne and Burgundy regions of France into your own personal classrooms. Your teachers are local chefs, winemakers and food artisans who will guide you through fascinating tours, tastings and meals. You’ll discover the country and the culture that transformed fine cuisine and hospitality into an art form.
Pastry Arts Careers: Associate’s Degree in Pastry Arts
Upon completion of the program, you’ll be prepared to launch your pastry and baking career in a variety of settings, including:
- Pastry shops
- Independent or retail bakeries
- Other food service facilities
Bachelor’s Degree
The Bachelor of Science in Pastry Arts is a specialized program that refines the student’s pastry techniques while developing the creative and professional skills required for success in the pastry field. The goal is to combine the vision it takes not just to create great pastry, but to conceive entire arrays and menus, and to orchestrate the teams it takes to create and sell them. Advanced courses such as Artisan Breads and Contemporary Dessert Styling give students the opportunity to hone their baking and decorating skills. Meanwhile, upper-level training teaches the administrative, organizational, and leadership skills necessary to lead any pastry-making enterprise.
Students seeking admission into the college bachelor degree programs must complete an application with the admissions department and have an earned associate degree in the related program of study from Walnut Hill College or another accredited institution.
Tuition-Paid Travel to England
This week-long experience exposes students to all aspects of the industry, learning from professionals who truly understand the meaning of ‘hospitality.’ Students explore quaint pubs in small towns, including the oldest free-house in England, The Royal Standard. They’ll visit world renowned patisseries and chocolatiers such as Artisan du Chocolat, and visit Restaurant Gordon Ramsay to explore the world of fine dining and wines.
Pastry Arts Careers: Bachelor’s Degree in Pastry Arts
Upon completion of the program, you’ll be prepared for key roles in positions such as:
- Pastry chefs
- Retail or wholesale bakers
- Eventual roles such as executive pastry chef
Degree Path
Students who complete their associate’s degree in Pastry Arts are eligible to pursue a bachelor’s degree in Pastry Arts.
Financial Aid
You are about to make one of the most important decisions of your life. We can help with the finances.