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Culinary & pastry schools in Hawaii
Hawaii has 5 accredited campuses awarding culinary credentials. If you finish and work as a chef in Hawaii, expect to start around $48,970–$54,530 and reach a median of $77,360 with experience; the top quarter earn $98,640 or more (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, May 2025, Hawaii). Graduates of these Hawaii programs — every graduate, whatever job they took — earned a median of $28,440 in their first year, against $24,208 nationally; that is the figure used to rank campuses below.
What chefs and head cooks earn in Hawaii
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025; 1,240 employed in Hawaii. National median: $62,470.
Campuses in Hawaii, ranked by what their graduates earned
Cities: HiloHonoluluKahuluiLihuePearl City
| Campus | City | Type | Grads / yr | Earnings, yr 1 | Program debt | Completion | Cost / yr |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| University of Hawaii Maui College | Kahului | Public | 18 | $38,887 | not reported | not reported | not reported |
| Kapiolani Community College | Honolulu | Public | 59 | $28,440 | not reported | 22% | not reported |
| Hawaii Community College | Hilo | Public | 17 | $27,843 | not reported | 33% | not reported |
| Leeward Community College | Pearl City | Public | 28 | not reported | not reported | 35% | not reported |
| Kauai Community College | Lihue | Public | 23 | not reported | not reported | 48% | not reported |
Earnings are median wages and self-employment income reported to the IRS (W-2 and Schedule SE) for graduates who received federal aid and were working and not enrolled, measured in the calendar year after finishing. They are pay only: health insurance, retirement contributions and other benefits are not included.
Ranked by median earnings of this program's graduates one year after completion (College Scorecard field-of-study, Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) 2022-23 Completions survey; College Scorecard June 2026; Database of Accredited Postsecondary Institutions and Programs (DAPIP), September 2026); campuses without a reported figure follow, by credentials awarded. "Program debt" is the median federal loan debt for graduates of this program at this campus. Completion is the campus-wide 150%-of-time rate. "Not reported" means the federal file suppresses the value for privacy.