You want to be a cook. You want to prepare food for hotels, restaurants and other eating establishments. You are passionate about flavour and nutrition and love using ingredients in new and exciting ways.

But you want to learn more, like how to classify meat, fish and poultry and to determine menu costs. Perhaps you want to expand your cooking repertoire to include soups, salads, gravies, vegetables, desserts, sauces, casseroles, pastries and desserts common to the food service industry.

At NAIT, where we’ve been training cook apprentices since 1963, we’re here to teach you everything you need to know.

Here are some other subjects covered in the Cook apprenticeship program at NAIT:

-producing wholesome food within required sanitation standards and regulations

-demonstrating a thorough knowledge of meat cutting, grading and classifications of meat, fish and poultry

-estimating food and menu costing and portion control

-using knives and other power tools safely and cleanly

Quick Facts

Credential: Journeyman Certificate

Hands-on and expert-led apprenticeship and industry training for skilled trades and technology professionals.

Campus: Main

Any in-person components of your courses will be delivered at NAIT's Main Campus in Edmonton. View map

Delivery Options:

  • Both On-Campus and Virtual - Some of your coursework will be in-person, on campus and some will be done online.

Periods: 3

Apprenticeship is a method of gaining the expertise needed to become a skilled tradesperson. This is done through a combination of on-the-job experience and classroom training.

Most apprenticeship programs are 3-4 periods in length, with an average of 8 weeks for each training period. In addition, there are specific allotments of on-the-job training hours associated with each period, so most apprentices complete 1 period per calendar year.

Hands-on, industry-relevant skills

If you enjoy creative challenges and working in a high paced environment, then you’ll enjoy working as a cook.

Cooks often work under pressure in time-sensitive situations. Shift work and working on weekends and holidays is typical.

Training at NAIT

The Cook apprenticeship term is:

  • 3 years (three 12-month periods)
  • minimum of 1500 hours on-the-job training each year
  • 8 weeks of technical training each year
  • See all period descriptions

Cooks train in the well-equipped state-of-the-art Hokanson Centre for Culinary Arts on NAIT Main Campus (11762-106 St NW).

You can expect to spend, on average, 30 hours per week in class and labs.

Cook student

Enter the workforce with confidence

As a cook, you'll be employed in private and public eating establishments, including hotels, clubs, restaurants, catering companies, cafeterias, institutions, homes, food outlets and sometimes bases and camps. Some jobs are seasonal.

Experienced cooks can become sous-chefs, chefs, executive chefs, banquet managers, food service administrators, general managers or food editors.

You can also pursue the Certified Chef de Cuisine (CCC) designation, which is the highest level of accreditation for cooks in Canada. As a certified cook, other career options include marketing, media, education, product development, consulting and owning your business.

Resources

Cook

Want to learn more about this program?

Thank you for your interest! We want to get you in contact with the right person to answer your questions.

Please contact the Student Service Centre for general inquiries such as:

  • Student application support
  • Program entrance requirements, tuition & fees, and how to apply
  • Program admissions process
  • Enrolment support
  • Student funding options
  • Fee and refund inquiries
  • General program and course withdrawal procedures
  • Navigating nait.ca and MyNAITPortal

Contact Student Service Centre

Please fill out the form below if you have any program-specific questions relating to:

  • Program details
  • Work-integrated learning and cooperative education
  • Advance credit and Prior Learning Assessment & Recognition (PLAR)
  • Program and course withdrawal

Periods

Tuition & Fees

The tuition and fee amounts below are estimates based on current academic year’s rates. For financial planning purposes, please use these totals as an approximate estimate of your costs. Actual fees may vary by term and enrolment activities. Students who take all of their courses online are exempt from U-Pass, Health & Dental, and Recreation & Athletics fees. All fees are subject to change. Please refer to the tuition and fees page for more detailed information.

View the technical equipment requirements (PDF)

Scholarships & Awards

How to Apply

Complete an apprenticeship application & contract form

Effective November 1, 2014, you must fillout the application located on the MyTradesecrets website for Alberta Apprenticeship and Industry Training Board staff to determine if you are eligible for status as an indentured apprentice.

Dates & Deadlines

Once you are an indentured apprentice, you can review the availability and start and end dates of the program you are interested in. Log into your MyTradesecrets profile and do a search under the Class Registration section. Then you can determine the schedule that best fits your needs.

We recommend submitting your program application at least 90 days before the application deadline.

Apply to Program

Apply to the program with step-by-step instructions on how to complete the application process. Please note, processing time may vary for applicants, so we recommend starting early.

Apply nowHow to apply checklist

Want to learn more about this program?

Thank you for your interest! We want to get you in contact with the right person to answer your questions.

Please contact the Student Service Centre for general inquiries such as:

  • Student application support
  • Program entrance requirements, tuition & fees, and how to apply
  • Program admissions process
  • Enrolment support
  • Student funding options
  • Fee and refund inquiries
  • General program and course withdrawal procedures
  • Navigating nait.ca and MyNAITPortal

Contact Student Service Centre

Please fill out the form below if you have any program-specific questions relating to:

  • Program details
  • Work-integrated learning and cooperative education
  • Advance credit and Prior Learning Assessment & Recognition (PLAR)
  • Program and course withdrawal



The personal information on this form is being collected under the authority of the Post-secondary Learning Act and section 33(c) of the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act (FOIP). The information will be protected by the provisions of FOIP, and will be used for the purpose of registration and administration of the event. If you have any questions or concerns about the collection, use, security or disclosure of the personal information, please contact General Council at 780.471.7664 or legal@nait.ca.

Apply for Apprenticeship and Industry Training

Begin the application process through MyTradesecrets.

Apply Now How to Apply

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