Best Culinary & Pastry Schools in Lake City, Florida (2026)

Quick answer: Culinary professionals in Florida earn a median of $58,240 per year (BLS OEWS, May 2025). This page lists accredited culinary professional schools near Lake City, Florida with local wage data and median graduate earnings for each school.

Choosing a culinary professional program near Lake City, Florida comes down to accreditation, schedule, and how each school prepares you for the field. For context, the state median annual wage for this occupation is approximately $58,240 (BLS OEWS, May 2025).

Lake City Quick Facts

MetricValueSource
State median annual wage$58,240BLS OEWS, May 2025
Florida pay range (10th to 90th percentile)$31,920 to $92,300BLS OEWS, May 2025
Top-paying Florida metro for this fieldNaples, FL, $68,830BLS OEWS, May 2025
National job outlook (2024 to 2034)+7.1% growth, about 24,400 openings per yearBLS Employment Projections, 2024-2034
State employment19,670 workersBLS OEWS, May 2025
Columbia County establishments40BLS QCEW, 2024
Columbia County industry employment1,100BLS QCEW, 2024
Columbia County unemployment rate4.0%BLS LAUS, 2024
Florida location quotient1.54BLS OEWS, May 2025

Nearby Cities

Explore the Culinary professional Career

What You’ll Find Below

The school listings below are sorted by proximity to Lake City. Each entry includes the school name, address, and the credentials offered. Use the Columbia County and Florida figures above as a reference point when comparing program length, schedule, and tuition.


Culinary & Pastry Schools near Lake City

#1

Riveroak Technical College

Live Oak, FL 21.6 miles away
Tuition Contact school for pricing
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Key stats
  • Completion rate: 70.7% (College Scorecard)
  • Programs offered: 30
  • Annual completions: 218
  • Median graduate earnings, 4 yrs after completing: $42,040 (College Scorecard)

Source: ACCSC IPEDS College Scorecard

#4

Coastal Pines Technical College

Waycross, GA 72.5 miles away
Tuition Contact school for pricing
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Key stats
  • Completion rate: 47.1% (College Scorecard)
  • Programs offered: 87
  • Annual completions: 2554
  • Median graduate earnings, 4 yrs after completing: $42,956 (College Scorecard)

Source: ACCSC IPEDS College Scorecard

#5

Marion Technical College

Ocala, FL 76.0 miles away
Tuition Contact school for pricing
Contact
Key stats
  • Completion rate: 76.2% (College Scorecard)
  • Programs offered: 42
  • Annual completions: 969
  • Median graduate earnings, 4 yrs after completing: $38,674 (College Scorecard)

Source: ACCSC IPEDS College Scorecard

Culinary And Pastry Salary Snapshot

U.S.
U.S. Median Pay $40,078 $19.27 per hour
Job Outlook 12.9% 245,100 jobs (2024–2034)
315,000 openings/yr

Culinary-And-Pastry Salary in U.S.

Median Salary $40,078 $19.27/hr
Average Salary $41,729 $20.06/hr

Salary Range

$37,900 10th pctl
$40,078 Median
$98,560 90th pctl
10th Percentile $37,900 $18.22/hr
25th Percentile $48,440 $23.29/hr
75th Percentile $78,750 $37.86/hr
90th Percentile $98,560 $47.39/hr

Employment & Outlook

Total Employed1,846,130
Growth (2024-2034)12.9%
Annual Openings315,000
Jobs per 1,0001.3

Chefs and Head Cooks (35-1011) • BLS OEWS, May 2025 • bls.gov/oes

Next Steps


About this guide: Researched and written by the TradeCareerPath Editorial Team. Our editorial team researches and sources every trade career guide using BLS, DOL, and state licensing data. We follow the editorial standards documented at /editorial-policy/.