Best Colleges for Culinary Arts
50 Culinary Arts programs ranked by real graduate earnings, debt, and completion — from the College Scorecard Field-of-Study data.
For Culinary Arts, Institute of Culinary Education (New York) ranks #1 by our outcome score, with median graduate earnings of $46,893. Rankings reflect earnings, debt, and completion — not reputation or cost — across 50 programs with published outcome data.
| # | School | Credential | Median earnings | Median debt | Completers | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Institute of Culinary Education New York, NY | Undergraduate Certificate or Diploma | $46,893 | $6,439 | 677 | 92.2 |
| 2 | Institute of Culinary Education | Undergraduate Certificate or Diploma | $46,893 | $6,439 | 317 | 92.1 |
| 3 | Miami Dade College Miami, FL | Undergraduate Certificate or Diploma | $50,344 | $10,500 | 137 | 90.8 |
| 4 | Dallas College Dallas, TX | Undergraduate Certificate or Diploma | $44,490 | $7,000 | 82 | 88.8 |
| 5 | Seattle Central College Seattle, WA | Associate's Degree | $53,946 | — | 55 | 87 |
| 6 | Arizona Culinary Institute Scottsdale, AZ | Undergraduate Certificate or Diploma | $44,800 | $9,500 | 155 | 86.6 |
| 7 | Culinary Institute of America Hyde Park, NY | Associate's Degree | $48,317 | $12,000 | 564 | 86.3 |
| 8 | Culinary Institute of America Hyde Park, NY | Undergraduate Certificate or Diploma | $62,294 | — | 23 | 86 |
| 9 | Scottsdale Community College Scottsdale, AZ | Undergraduate Certificate or Diploma | $52,191 | — | 24 | 84.1 |
| 10 | Connecticut State Community College Hartford, CT | Associate's Degree | $53,983 | — | — | 84.1 |
| 11 | Manchester Community College | Associate's Degree | $53,983 | — | 18 | 83.9 |
| 12 | College of DuPage Glen Ellyn, IL | Associate's Degree | $50,503 | — | 24 | 83 |
| 13 | Schenectady County Community College Schenectady, NY | Associate's Degree | $48,073 | — | 26 | 81.6 |
| 14 | Boston University Boston, MA | Master's Degree | $51,558 | — | 14 | 81.2 |
| 15 | Southern New Hampshire University Manchester, NH | Associate's Degree | $50,055 | — | — | 81.2 |
| 16 | SUNY College of Technology at Delhi Delhi, NY | Bachelor's Degree | $51,716 | — | 13 | 81.1 |
| 17 | Culinary Institute of America Hyde Park, NY | Bachelor's Degree | $61,944 | $26,750 | 74 | 81 |
| 18 | Southern Maine Community College South Portland, ME | Associate's Degree | $49,566 | — | 18 | 80.8 |
| 19 | Connecticut State Community College Norwalk | Associate's Degree | $53,983 | — | 6 | 80.6 |
| 20 | Johnson & Wales University-Providence Providence, RI | Bachelor's Degree | $55,056 | $27,000 | 159 | 80.5 |
| 21 | Connecticut State Community College Gateway | Associate's Degree | $53,983 | — | 5 | 80.4 |
| 22 | National Louis University Chicago, IL | Associate's Degree | $45,609 | $12,833 | 50 | 80.4 |
| 23 | Kalamazoo Valley Community College Kalamazoo, MI | Associate's Degree | $45,697 | $11,250 | 16 | 80.4 |
| 24 | Grand Rapids Community College Grand Rapids, MI | Associate's Degree | $45,302 | $12,319 | 33 | 79.4 |
| 25 | Miami Dade College Miami, FL | Associate's Degree | $44,371 | — | 51 | 79.2 |
| 26 | Joliet Junior College Joliet, IL | Associate's Degree | $44,605 | — | 39 | 79 |
| 27 | SUNY College of Agriculture and Technology at Cobleskill Cobleskill, NY | Bachelor's Degree | $48,346 | — | 12 | 78.9 |
| 28 | Iowa Western Community College Council Bluffs, IA | Associate's Degree | $50,785 | — | 6 | 78.6 |
| 29 | SUNY College of Technology at Delhi Delhi, NY | Associate's Degree | $50,208 | — | 7 | 78.2 |
| 30 | Dallas College Dallas, TX | Associate's Degree | $44,490 | — | 30 | 78 |
| 31 | Valencia College Orlando, FL | Associate's Degree | $41,850 | $11,422 | 83 | 77.9 |
| 32 | Madison Area Technical College Madison, WI | Undergraduate Certificate or Diploma | $44,206 | — | 34 | 77.8 |
| 33 | Montgomery County Community College Blue Bell, PA | Associate's Degree | $47,552 | $12,771 | 14 | 77.6 |
| 34 | Saint Paul College Saint Paul, MN | Undergraduate Certificate or Diploma | $47,176 | — | 13 | 77.5 |
| 35 | Des Moines Area Community College Ankeny, IA | Associate's Degree | $40,878 | $8,334 | 25 | 77.4 |
| 36 | Grand Rapids Community College Grand Rapids, MI | Undergraduate Certificate or Diploma | $40,542 | $7,705 | 26 | 77.1 |
| 37 | Drexel University Philadelphia, PA | Bachelor's Degree | $48,094 | — | 5 | 76.6 |
| 38 | Kirkwood Community College Cedar Rapids, IA | Associate's Degree | $42,218 | $9,511 | 17 | 75.8 |
| 39 | University of Alaska Anchorage Anchorage, AK | Associate's Degree | $46,231 | — | 10 | 75.7 |
| 40 | Johnson & Wales University-Providence Providence, RI | Associate's Degree | $42,395 | $14,167 | 375 | 75.1 |
| 41 | Johnson & Wales University-Charlotte Charlotte, NC | Associate's Degree | $42,395 | $14,167 | 217 | 75 |
| 42 | Niagara County Community College Sanborn, NY | Associate's Degree | $41,072 | $11,970 | 51 | 74.7 |
| 43 | Texas State Technical College Waco, TX | Associate's Degree | $42,361 | $11,000 | 15 | 74.6 |
| 44 | Wake Technical Community College Raleigh, NC | Associate's Degree | $42,564 | — | 26 | 74.4 |
| 45 | Saint Paul College Saint Paul, MN | Associate's Degree | $42,842 | — | 20 | 74.2 |
| 46 | Atlantic Cape Community College Mays Landing, NJ | Associate's Degree | $41,359 | $11,000 | 22 | 74.1 |
| 47 | College of Lake County Grayslake, IL | Associate's Degree | $43,967 | — | 15 | 74 |
| 48 | Pittsburgh Technical College Oakdale, PA | Undergraduate Certificate or Diploma | $40,386 | $9,500 | 30 | 73.9 |
| 49 | Nicholls State University Thibodaux, LA | Bachelor's Degree | $46,969 | $25,000 | 33 | 73.7 |
| 50 | Walnut Hill College Philadelphia, PA | Bachelor's Degree | $47,308 | $27,000 | 38 | 73.2 |
How we ranked this
Programs are scored 0–100 within the Culinary Arts field (CIP 12.05) using three College Scorecard figures: median graduate earnings (weighted 70%), median federal-loan debt (20%, inverted so lower debt scores higher), and completer count (10%, log-scaled). Each input is percentile-ranked against the other Culinary Arts programs, so the score is robust to outliers and comparable across schools. Programs with no published earnings are excluded — never given a fabricated number. This is the same engine that powers our interactive Major Rankings. Minimum 5 scorable programs required to publish.
Frequently asked questions
Which college has the best Culinary Arts program?+
By our outcome score, Institute of Culinary Education (New York) ranks #1 for Culinary Arts, with median graduate earnings of $46,893.
How are these Culinary Arts programs ranked?+
Each program gets a 0–100 outcome score from three real College Scorecard figures: median graduate earnings (70%), median federal-loan debt (20%, lower is better), and completer count (10%). Programs are compared within the major so the score reflects the best schools for this field specifically.
Where does the earnings and debt data come from?+
The U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard Field-of-Study file, which publishes median earnings and median debt by institution and major (4-digit CIP). Figures are post-graduation medians; programs without published earnings are not scored and are omitted from this ranking.
Can I filter Culinary Arts programs by state or degree level?+
Yes. This page shows the national top programs; use the interactive Major Rankings tool to filter the same data by state, and by credential level (bachelor’s, master’s, doctoral).
Keep exploring
Data sources: U.S. Dept. of Education College Scorecard (Field of Study) · IPEDS Completions. Figures are the most recent values published in each federal dataset; cells with no published value are shown as “—” and never estimated. CertiHomes Education does not sell rankings or accept placement fees.