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Culinary & pastry schools in Louisiana
Louisiana has 11 accredited campuses awarding culinary credentials. If you finish and work as a chef in Louisiana, expect to start around $32,320–$39,650 and reach a median of $45,570 with experience; the top quarter earn $59,020 or more (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, May 2025, Louisiana). Graduates of these Louisiana programs — every graduate, whatever job they took — earned a median of $15,998 in their first year, against $24,208 nationally; that is the figure used to rank campuses below.
What chefs and head cooks earn in Louisiana
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025; 1,990 employed in Louisiana. National median: $62,470.
Campuses in Louisiana, ranked by what their graduates earned
Cities: Baton RougeBossier CityChalmetteLacombeLafayetteLake CharlesNew OrleansThibodaux
| Campus | City | Type | Grads / yr | Earnings, yr 1 | Program debt | Completion | Cost / yr |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crescent City Bartending School | New Orleans | for-profit | 14 | $15,998 | $3,167 | 89% | $26,544 |
| SOWELA Technical Community College | Lake Charles | Public | 120 | not reported | not reported | 43% | not reported |
| Nunez Community College | Chalmette | Public | 67 | not reported | not reported | 27% | not reported |
| Louisiana Culinary Institute | Baton Rouge | for-profit | 49 | not reported | not reported | 73% | not reported |
| Delgado Community College | New Orleans | Public | 39 | not reported | not reported | 24% | not reported |
| Bossier Parish Community College | Bossier City | Public | 33 | not reported | not reported | 15% | not reported |
| Northshore Technical Community College | Lacombe | Public | 31 | not reported | not reported | 40% | not reported |
| South Louisiana Community College | Lafayette | Public | 29 | not reported | not reported | 30% | not reported |
| Nicholls State University | Thibodaux | Public | 14 | not reported | not reported | not reported | not reported |
| Baton Rouge Community College | Baton Rouge | Public | 3 | not reported | not reported | 31% | not reported |
| New Orleans Culinary and Hospitality Institute (NOCHI) | New Orleans | — | — | not reported | not reported | not reported | 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.