If you can stand the heat, Camosun has a kitchen for you
College waves fees, offers all the gear, even a bus pass
In response to the massive shortage of professional cooks facing restaurants and bars not only in Victoria but across the country, the college is putting its community awareness where its mouth is by offering free tuition to train in its professional cook program.
"The training students receive at Camosun prepares them to be successful in their future career,” said David Lang, chair of the culinary arts program, and Red Seal chef.
Tuition alone is $3,052, according to the Camosun website.
Not only will the tuition be waived, but students who qualify also will receive a knife kit, uniforms, lunch card, a bus pass, along with other supports, bringing the total value into the $5,500 range, a spokesman for Camosun told Capital Daily.
Up to 18 spaces will be made available to people facing pandemic-related career changes, new Canadians and anyone underemployed.
The tab is being covered by a combination of federal funding through the Canada-British Columbia Workforce Development Agreement, and the Chef’s Table Society of BC, a provincewide collaborative that supports the industry and promotes the exchange of culinary information and education.
The Professional Chef Level 1 course is an eight-month (28-week) course which starts Nov. 6 and runs Monday to Friday at the Helmut Huber Cook Training Centre on the college’s Interurban campus.
"We have graduated hundreds of chefs from this program," said Camosun spokesman Rodney Porter.
"It would be safe to say that the average Victorian’s life is touched every day by an alumni, whether the person cooking their meal in a restaurant, fixing their car, caring for their parent, doing their taxes or cleaning their teeth."
Trades will be in demand, government statistics indicate
Over the next decade, more than 83K job openings are expected in the skilled trades, according to the BC Labour Market Outlook, with chefs seen as one of the high-opportunity occupations.
The BC government anticipates more than 3,100 job openings for chefs in this province over the next 10 years.
People interested in the program should email Chef Lang directly at: langd@camosun.ca or phone 250-370-3778.
Learn more about the Professional Cook program at camosun.ca/cook.
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