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Culinary & pastry schools in West Virginia

West Virginia has 6 accredited campuses awarding culinary credentials. If you finish and work as a chef in West Virginia, expect to start around $40,520–$47,990 and reach a median of $61,100 with experience; the top quarter earn $82,480 or more (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, May 2025, West Virginia). Graduates of these West Virginia programs — every graduate, whatever job they took — earned a median of not reported in their first year, against $24,208 nationally; that is the figure used to rank campuses below.

What chefs and head cooks earn in West Virginia

$40,520starting (10th percentile)
$47,990early career (25th)
$61,100median, all experience
$82,480experienced (75th)
$88,690top earners (90th)

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025; 350 employed in West Virginia. National median: $62,470.

Campuses in West Virginia, ranked by what their graduates earned

6campuses in West Virginia
88credentials awarded / yr
not reportedmedian earnings, yr 1 (West Virginia)
$24,208median earnings, yr 1 (U.S.)

Cities: Charles TownCharlestonFairmontMartinsburgWheeling

CampusCityTypeGrads / yrEarnings, yr 1Program debtCompletionCost / yr
Pierpont Community and Technical College Fairmont Public 44 not reported not reported 42% not reported
Blue Ridge Community and Technical College Martinsburg Public 14 not reported not reported 32% not reported
West Virginia Northern Community College Wheeling Public 11 not reported not reported 33% not reported
American Public University System Charles Town for-profit 10 not reported not reported not reported not reported
Carver Career Center Charleston Public 8 not reported not reported 92% $9,947
James Rumsey Technical Institute Martinsburg Public 1 not reported not reported 77% $13,393

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.

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