Haha yeah I totally agree with munak.. its hard work all the way, pay or no pay (face saving purposes most of the time)  split shifts are normal is hotels/resorts/restaurants.

I've trained in CM cherating, a restaurant in KL and a restaurant in France, and everywhere is the same.. split shifts. The culinary line requires lots of physical stamina and of course mental stability ( chefs tend to vent their frustration in 'colourful' languages, much like Gordon Ramsay ). Most importantly like what munak said, passion for cooking keeps you going.

There are other options as well to be doing office work but yet related to food industry, e.g. stock taking/ordering, advisor, HACCP agent etc. The food industry has lots to offer, just find which one you're comfortable and confident in then start working hard and climb up the ranks. Nothing in life is easy eh 

Not to mention.
70% of student graduated dont stuck with hotel lines

Not tough is just, cant take the suffer anymore.
Chef,Doctor, Nurse, all those practical ppl are the same

wa i scare i cannot tahan oso. 

Maybe you can try working part time first, scout around haha.. it will definately give you an idea or two bout this line of work. For all you know you may end up liking it. 

but the part time like kinda hard find.
those part time u mean is waiter or working in the kitchen ? lol.
if working in kitchen without cert or what those restaurant will employ kah?

anyway how is the salary ah? 

Try before u enter this course.
That's what our parent tell us and we are passing to u all

part time waiter is easier to find jobs. However I think most hotels requires you to have the Typhoid jab taken, and a certificate as proof you've taken it. Cuz you're handling food, so to reduce bacterial transmission etc, Typhoid is like part of the requirement for you to work in the kitchen and maybe now, in the restaurant as a server.

salary wise, depends on your qualification, experience and performance. Hotels/resort usually use the point/star system.. a base salary and if you have more points..then they'll add additional income to your base salary. European countries pay better but also have to consider the high standard of living there. Well i guess if you have a good relationship with the head chef/manager/owner then its easier to get a pay rise..of course hard work does most of the talking.

Try before u enter this course.
That's what our parent tell us and we are passing to u all

Soooo, Ya try before u enter. If u really passionate about it, Why not? Go for it!

Anyone here in Academy of Pastry ARts?

speaking of arts.......
how do all of you attain what they call "Culinary Personality"?
something like yourself on a plate.
I've been flipping recipes all over and there doesn't seem to be anything that fancies me.

Then i've seen plating designs that are really just amazing... how do they do that?
"a wok through time" by Sam Leong shows amazing plating and designs even i thought was impossible for oriental cuisines.

My bro's quite clear bout being a chef. He likes cooking and experimenting this with that when it comes to food. But he's insisting to get into arts to learn accounting and business management. Which my family thinks he can do the same if he enters science. We don't know much bout arts actually. All of us went into science and all geeks at home. haha.

He doesn't want to enter plants, food r & d, not these... I don't really know to describe him but er... he has his own sets of knifes, utensils, cutleries, makes his own brand of spices during weekends (which is really really good), whip up a new recipe every week, some that are just so delicious while others are just... ewww... He wants to be those chef you see on tv. yes, that's the right description.

Back to the topic; still science?