Cake Decorator: Education and Job Training Requirements for Cake Decorators

Published Sep 02, 2009

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Cake Decorators can work in hotels, resorts, bakeries and grocery stores. These pastry professionals use techniques like piping, sugar crafting, crimping and lettering to decorate wedding, birthday and other specialty cakes. Cake Decorators have no requirements for formal education or job training; however, tcertificates and degrees are available to those seeking an educational background in cake decorating.

Cake Decorator Career Summary

Depending on the size of the company, Cake Decorators may bake the wedding cakes, birthday cakes and other special order pastries as well as assemble and garnish them. To embellish cakes, decorators employ techniques like air brushing, piping, crimping, lettering and sugar crafting using specialty ingredients, such as gel, icing, fondant, marzipan and chocolate. Cake Decorators should be creative, and meticulous, with above-average hand skills. These pastry professionals may be self-employed or employed by hotels, resorts or retail and wholesale bakeries and grocery stores.

Education Required to Become a Cake Decorator

While many Cake Decorators learn as entry-level workers or apprentices, others may look to technical and 2-year schools for advanced training. Examples of cake decorating programs include pastry arts certificate programs and associate degree programs in baking and pastry arts. Courses may include cakes and decoration, quantity baking principles, application of baking and pastry arts and principles of working with chocolate, says the Pennsylvania College of Technology, www.pct.edu, a school accredited by the American Culinary Federation.

Job Training and Certification Required to Become a Cake Decorator

Typically, Cake Decorators learn alongside more experienced workers. However, some employers prefer Cake Decorators with six months to one year of experience. While there are no certifications required to become a Cake Decorator, some educational programs require students to earn ServSafe sanitation certification, such as Brookdale Community College's ' pastry arts certificate program, 'www.ux.brookdalecc.edu.

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