One culinary art scholarship that you should check into is the American Academy of Chefs Chairs Scholarship. The ACF offers scholarships to high school students, college students, and even current culinary professionals. The amount of the awards varies, but it is typically about $1000 for each award, and approximately ten are awarded each year.
You also need to seriously consider the scholarships for culinary arts program offered by the International Franchise Association. These include the Franchising Entrepreneurship Program, the Veterans Scholarship Fund, worth $2500, the Certified Franchise Executive Scholarship Fund, valued at $2500, and the Minority Entrepreneurs Scholarship Program, valued at $3000.
The National Restaurant Association Educational Foundation also has scholarships for culinary arts available for culinary arts students. These culinary scholarships are specifically for culinary arts students who will be working in the restaurant and foodservice industry upon their graduation. These arts scholarships are worth $2500. The organization also offers scholarships and grants for culinary arts to educators in this field, in the amount of $1750.
Scholarships.com also offers a scholarship program for culinary art students, in the amount of $1000. In order to be eligible for this award, you must be a citizen of the United States, be a registered user of the website, and be an undergraduate student or high school student planning to enroll in college upon your graduation. You must also either be in a culinary arts program or a food science or food industry program, or planning to enter such a program.
Along with outside scholarships, you should also look for random scholarships at the culinary school that you will be attending. Many do have such programs. One great example of this is the Institute of Culinary Education. Each year, the institution awards ten partial tuition scholarships that are valued up to $5000. These funds come from the James Beard Foundation, the Culinary Trust, the Women Chefs & Restaurateurs Association, the Les Dames D’Escoffier Fund, and the American Institute of Wine and Food.
Remember that this institution is not the only one that offers culinary art scholarships, grants, and competitions to their students. Make sure that you check with the culinary arts school that you will be attending for additional funding opportunities. You should also check with companies within the food industry for competitions and culinary school scholarships, as well as other food industry related organizations.
Resources
For more information about the American Academy of Chefs Chairs Scholarship, visit http://www.acfchefs.org/Content/NavigationMenu2/Schools/Scholarships/default.htm. For more information regarding the International Franchise Scholarship programs visit http://www.franchise.org/. For information about scholarship opportunities available through the National Restaurant Association Educational Foundation, visit nraef.org/scholarships/. For information about the scholarship program at Scholarships.com visit scholarships.com/financial-aid/college-scholarships/scholarships-com-scholarships/area-of-study/scholarships-com-culinary-arts-scholarship.aspx. For information about the scholarships for culinary arts available through the Institute of Culinary Education, visit http://www.iceculinary.com/career/scholarships.shtml.