Academics Cool Courses

Academic Programs

Cool Courses

Courses That Will Change You

If there鈥檚 one thing you should know going into these and many other courses at CIA, it鈥檚 this: expect the unexpected. Your classes will feed your passion…challenge you…and maybe even surprise you. They鈥檒l introduce you to a world of food you鈥檝e never seen before, and make you think about it in a whole different way. Take a look at some of these cool, wow-factor courses as only 澳门莲花赌城can deliver them. Whichever program you choose, you鈥檒l always find something new and exciting along the way…

Associate in Baking and Pastry Arts

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Presto Change-o!

Your challenge in Advanced Baking Principles class? Transform traditional recipes for breads, muffins, desserts, and other baked goods into new versions that accommodate special diets such as vegan, gluten-free, no-sugar-added, and dairy-free鈥攁nd are just as delicious as the original!

Two chefs in white uniforms and hats are working in a kitchen, focusing on a large rectangular chocolate slab. One chef uses a ruler for precise measurements, while the other observes closely. Cabinets and kitchen equipment are visible in the background.

If You Bake It, They Will Come

Put everything you鈥檝e learned about baking and pastry and back-of-the-house operations into practice in the college鈥檚 super-popular Apple Pie Bakery Caf茅. In Caf茅 Operations class, you鈥檒l create delicious breads, pastries, and savory items for hungry, appreciative customers.

A chef in a white uniform and tall hat is smiling and inspecting an item held in their hand. The background shows a bright kitchen environment with other chefs working, partially out of focus.

The Art and Craft of Cakes

Let your creativity run wild! In Confectionery Art and Special Occasion Cakes class, you鈥檒l design, bake, and decorate three-tiered wedding cakes; learn to work with ganache, gum paste, and pastillage; and pour, blow, and pull sugar (kinda like blowing glass鈥攙ery cool!).

Associate in Culinary Arts

A chef in a white uniform is cooking at a stovetop, with visible flames rising from the pan. Above, in the background, there is a sign with the partially visible words "...ING" and another one that appears to say "...THE JOBS...".

Turn Up the Volume

Here鈥檚 where the action gets fast and furious! Prepare breakfast, lunch, and dinner at The Egg for large numbers of hungry 澳门莲花赌城students in Non-Commercial Foodservice and High-Volume Production. Many of the dishes you create will focus on sustainable, plant-forward principles (how about waffles made with spent grains from CIA鈥檚 brewery?).

Several wine glasses filled with red wine are on a table, along with a plate of appetizers including cheese and grapes. A hand is seen writing notes on a piece of paper, likely part of a wine tasting event.

What鈥檚 on the Menu? That鈥檚 Up to You!

Design and create an actual menu that you would offer a guest in your hypothetical restaurant. You鈥檒l consider factors like demographics, your restaurant鈥檚 concept, the local economy, cost control, and pricing, then present your menu and analysis results to the class. It all happens in Principles of Menus and Managing Profitability in Foodservice Operations.

A group of chefs in white uniforms and hats are working in a kitchen, each stationed at a long table processing fish. Various tools and supplies are spread across the tables, and the chefs focus on their tasks with precision.

Fish Out of Water

Freshwater and saltwater fish, shellfish, crustaceans鈥ou鈥檒l learn how to choose, store, and prep them all in Seafood Identification and Fabrication. Even better? Knowing that 95% of the proteins you鈥檒l be working with meet Monterey Bay Aquarium Seafood Watch guidelines for being sustainably sourced.

Bachelor鈥檚 in Applied Food Studies

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Get Your Hands Dirty!

Dig in at the teaching garden, wield a hammer tapping maple trees, and discover the relationship between humans and nature. In Ecology of Food you鈥檒l explore questions related to our food supply like how and where food is grown, and what is involved in processing and transporting that food.

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A Blast from the Past

History is so cool, especially when you see what an important part food played in it! In Food History, you鈥檒l get the chance to curate an on-campus food-focused museum exhibit, recreate and reinterpret recipes from a 14th century cookbook, and discover how food opens a window into understanding societies, cultures, and the world.

A group of people, some in white protective beekeeping suits, observe and work with an open wooden bee box filled with bees. One person is holding a frame from the bee box, while another person is using a tool to manage the bees.

What鈥檚 the Buzz?

Build, maintain, and harvest honey from an on-campus apiary. Create a seed library to preserve and propagate heirloom varieties of produce. Build a Student Garden at a local elementary school. All of these are experiential research projects developed in the Project in Applied Food Studies class. Got a great idea? Make it so!

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Tour Campus or Attend an Online Event

Whether you鈥檙e looking to visit one of our campuses or would prefer the convenience of a virtual event, there鈥檚 no better way to learn more about 澳门莲花赌城than with one of our admissions events.

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Bachelor鈥檚 in Culinary Science

A chef wearing a white uniform, apron, and hat concentrates on preparing food in a professional kitchen. Other chefs are visible in the background, busy with their tasks. The kitchen looks clean and well-equipped.

The Next Big Idea is Yours

In Culinary Research and Development, you鈥檒l work in teams to create and develop a product to present to the faculty and industry guests. Recent Cul Sci students designed meal kits (think: Blue Apron), bringing them from concept, product development, and consumer testing to packaging, marketing, and distribution.

A person in a chef's uniform, including a white hat and striped apron, is smiling and using a pipette to measure and transfer a liquid in a professional kitchen setting. Kitchen equipment and containers are visible in the background.

Power Up Your Cooking

Fun with hydrocolloids (xanthan gum, gellan gum, and other food substances that form gels) and more! That鈥檚 what awaits you in the Ingredient Functionality class. Through cool experiments鈥攍ike making a popping mango gel with sodium alginate and calcium lactate in a fruit pur茅e鈥攜ou鈥檒l begin to understand the power of your ingredients.

Close-up of a SousVide Professional PolyScience precision cooker showing a temperature reading of 48.0掳C with the target set to 48.0掳C. Two people in white coats are blurred in the background, along with red and green buckets.

Equipped for Success

Ready for a (food development) challenge? The Modern and Industrial Cooking Tools, Techniques, and Ingredients course has lots of them! Learn to think outside the box as you bring your food R&D knowledge and cooking skills together in hands-on projects like taking a classic Escoffier recipe and modernizing it for mass production.

Bachelor鈥檚 in Food Business Leadership鈥擮nline

澳门莲花赌城associate degree graduates only

Three professionals are in a discussion. One woman, wearing a white shirt and black vest, is engaged in conversation with a woman in a blue jacket and a man in a suit, who are both looking at a tablet held by the man. They all have name tags.

Discover What It Takes to Lead and Succeed

Develop your leadership skills to help grow your career with the Food Business Leadership course. Learn to lead from your strengths by assessing your personal style. You鈥檒l study major theories and models of leadership, then put them into practice by applying your own methods in a case study format.

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Learn How to Keep Things Running Smoothly

How do you maximize profits and ensure guest satisfaction? Find out in Advanced Food Service Operations, where you鈥檒l examine how to consistently achieve these through a deep understanding of menu development, staffing, production flow and timing, purchasing, and controlling costs for profitability.

Two people are working at a wooden table, reviewing a report with graphs and charts on a clipboard. One is pointing at the document with a pen while the other is holding the clipboard. A calculator and a tablet are visible on the table, with a bright window background.

Get Real with an Actual Food Company

In the capstone course Project in Food Business Leadership, you鈥檒l conduct extensive research and analysis of an existing business鈥攆rom company culture and internal systems to business strategies and competitors鈥攖hen develop recommendations and a plan to address problems or opportunities within that organization.

Bachelor鈥檚 in Food Business Management

Four people in a brewery laboratory are wearing white coats and hats, closely observing a brewing apparatus. One person in a gray shirt explains something while the others look on intently. Large metal brewing tanks labeled "BRIGHT" are in the background.

Crafting Your Future

Here鈥檚 your chance to learn about the ingredients, equipment, and techniques of making craft brews in our own on-campus brewery. The beers you鈥檒l make in Art and Science of Brewing will be served in CIA鈥檚 public restaurants. Two of our student-made brews even earned gold medals in the New York State Craft Beer Competition, and our brewery was named the 2019 Brewery of the Year!

A chef wearing a white uniform and tall white hat smiles and walks down a hallway. He has a headset on and is holding a utensil in his right hand. The hallway has brick walls and is lined with windows. Tables with cloths are visible on the right side.

The Big Event

Put everything you鈥檝e learned at 澳门莲花赌城into designing and executing a themed dining event that benefits scholarships and community organizations. You and your Foodservice Management classmates will divide up into marketing, finance, culinary, baking and pastry, and service teams to deliver an amazing customer experience.

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Sell Your Restaurant Concept

Market research, segmentation, consumer behavior…the principles you鈥檒l learn in Marketing Principals come together as you create a restaurant concept. From menu and pricing to interior design and marketing (and a simulated budget of $10K), you鈥檒l sell your vision to your class and choose a winner.

Bachelor鈥檚 in Hospitality Management

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Trends: Are You Ready for the Future?

What鈥檚 just a fad and what鈥檚 a trend with staying power? Together in Contemporary Topics in Food and Beverage, we鈥檒l examine issues like sustainability, food sourcing, molecular gastronomy, food allergies, nutrition, and culinary science. And we鈥檒l talk about each one鈥檚 importance to the many different segments of the hospitality industry.

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This is What it Takes to Be a Leader

Equality, liberty, integrity…what do these concepts have to do with leadership in the hospitality world? Everything. In Justice, Ethical Leadership, and Truth, you鈥檒l discover how principles as varied as empathy and justice will inform and shape your ability to be an ethical decision-maker and effective people manager.

A person in a blue suit and white shirt is smiling while adjusting a virtual reality headset on their head. The background appears to be an indoor setting with a blurred projection screen and other people in the vicinity.

Tech-Savvy Hospitality

Technology is just as vital to the hospitality business as it is to your everyday life. In Managing Technology in the Hospitality Industry, you鈥檒l learn how to choose, implement, and manage tech solutions for a variety of settings. And you鈥檒l hear about up-and-coming technologies and evaluate their potential for hospitality.

Accelerated Culinary Arts Certificate Program

A chef in a white uniform and chef's hat is focusing while sprinkling a pinch of seasoning into a dish. The background is blurred, showing kitchen equipment. The chef is smiling gently, conveying her passion and dedication to her culinary craft.

You Can Play with Food!

Think of Contemporary Topics in Culinary Arts as your culinary sandbox. Through an experimental kitchen approach, you鈥檒l explore taste and flavor; plant- and protein-based diets; food and wine pairing; healthy cooking techniques; and the flavors of the global kitchen.

A chef wearing glasses and a white chef's uniform with a hat is focused on preparing food in a kitchen. The background is blurred, emphasizing the chef's concentration and the professional kitchen setting.

Olives, Wheat, Garlic, and Wine

California cuisine is known for its Mediterranean influence, so it makes perfect sense to dive deep into the ingredients and cooking methods of Spain, France, Italy, Morocco, Tunisia, Greece, and Egypt. In Cuisines and Cultures of the Mediterranean, you鈥檒l discover how each country鈥檚 food is shaped by geography, history, and culture.

Chefs in white uniforms and tall hats are focused on cooking in a busy, professional kitchen. Flames can be seen rising from a stovetop as they work with various utensils and ingredients.

Get Fired Up

鈥淥rder, fire, pickup!鈥� In Introduction to 脿 la Carte Cooking, you鈥檒l experience the energy of the production kitchen as you prepare multi-course menus for fellow students. And you鈥檒l do it all using the techniques you learned in Culinary Fundamentals and by practicing batch cooking and 脿 la carte-style service.

Three chefs in white uniforms stand at the entrance of a modern restaurant with large glass windows, surrounded by lush greenery. One chef chats with the other two, who sit on the steps outside. The scene is peaceful and inviting.

admissions

The business of food and hospitality is your future鈥攁nd there鈥檚 no better place to start than here.

Throughout the year we offer campus tours, open houses, and online events so that you can ask questions, learn more about our degree programs, and chat with admissions counselors.

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Are you curious about what it鈥檚 really like to attend CIA? We鈥檝e got you covered. Our students are ready to answer the questions you haven鈥檛 asked anyone else, share their own personal experiences, and give you genuine advice鈥攂ecause they鈥檝e gone through it, too.