Mary Schwenker graduated from the Pennsylvania Culinary Institute in 2005 and worked at a… Mary Schwenker graduated from the Pennsylvania Culinary Institute in 2005 and worked at a resort in North Carolina. She made salads every day, earned $6.50 an hour and was $50,000 in debt with school loans.

Now Mary is reevaluating her career.

The pretty faces and big personalities on the Food Network, along with cooking shows like “Iron Chef,” have influenced many soon-to-be chefs in Pittsburgh and across the country. Yet in 2005, only 115,000 of the 10.8 million food-service jobs were for chefs or head cooks, according to the U.S. Department of Labor.

“It’s difficult to find a good job,” Schwenker said. “It was not a fun experience.”

Still, enrollment at cooking schools reached a record high. According to Shawguide’s “The Guide to Cooking Schools,” in 1996 there were 269 cooking schools and 154 recreational cooking schools in the United States. By 2006, those numbers increased to 446 and 503, respectively.

“People see their ‘Iron Chef’ on TV and think they can do it. If all they go by is TV, they won’t make it,” PCI chef instructor Dominic Spatola said. “They are mesmerized by the media and TV, and who isn’t? A lot [of people] are affected by the media.”

The recent craze for TV cooking has helped increase respectability for the culinary profession.

“In 1993-94, cooks were getting retrained or others were changing careers to become chefs,” the dean of culinary arts at PCI William Hunt said. “Now there’s a lot more high school kids. It’s been a complete switch. It’s a young group, no doubt about it.”

According to Schwenker, classes emphasize performing while under pressure – otherwise known as “practicals.” Students are strictly evaluated on their cooking techniques, the taste and presentation of the food, and their ability to work within strict time limits. While in this real-life scenario, students must prepare a meal in one hour and 15 minutes.

“Forty percent of classes are practicals, and they cook,” Hunt said. “For some it is a rude awakening, and they quit. About two out of 10 drop out.”

Students often struggle to change their cooking habits and learn the proper techniques.

“Most come in thinking they know more than they actually do,” Ted Stevens, a third semester student at PCI, said. “They think they know it, but they don’t.”

Some students believe that the media attracts students by portraying a false image.

“TV shows will always get people interested,” Ammie Holland, a senior at PCI, said. “They are a bit extreme on TV. But TV shows definitely influence people to get into this.”

According to Hunt, all 991 students enrolled at PCI must complete an externship before graduating. This provides real-life work experience and gives students an opportunity to land a better job after graduation.

Chris Clark had his externship with Coal Hill Steakhouse on Mount Washington overlooking downtown Pittsburgh. After his graduation in 2005, Clark was hired as an executive chef and now makes more than $50,000 a year.

“I was lucky enough to have this job before I was out of school,” 31-year-old Clark said. “My class at culinary school was very good. We were all serious and passionate about it. Sometimes you get a bunch of young kids who are not serious about it. Sad to say, it is a very expensive school to just experiment with it.”

Tuition at PCI is $8,500 per semester. It costs Clark’s wife less to pay for her Master’s in Business Administration at Duquesne University.

Clark said that his older age made him more marketable to employers.

“My age has certainly helped,” Clark said. “Now that I go to the job fairs to hire, I look for the older chefs. We don’t want younger chefs who are just experimenting.”

According to Clark, the media has glorified the profession. Many think that what they see on TV is reality and don’t take into account the dirty work that goes on behind the camera, like scrubbing grills and mopping floors.

“There’s always a dirty side to it,” Clark said. “Usually you’re back in the kitchen and it’s not you going out on the plate, it’s the food. Very rarely do I get compliments, but I hear all the complaints.”

The media has helped elevate the profession, Clark said.

“It’s allowing people in the field to step it up a notch,” Clark said. “It has certainly upped the par level. They’re watching ‘Iron Chef’ and they’re watching the Food Network and gaining basic information, and it’s promoting a more knowledgeable market. You have to wow them with presentation. It separates people in the field who know what they’re doing from those who don’t.”

According to Hunt, the culinary field began gaining respect years ago when cooking first became a career. Once it became a profession, chefs had a higher social status. Recently, the media has become fascinated with cooking because of the respect chefs now have within society.

“More want to be like Emeril Lagasse, and everyone joins the bandwagon,” Hunt said. “But cooks now have a greater level of respect in society.”

The increase of culinary schools also creates speculations on how selective admittance to cooking schools should be.

“It’s really gotten almost too crazy with all these culinary schools opening,” Clark said. “They’re letting everyone in. I would like to see them be more stringent with admittance.”

According to Hunt, the students who are truly passionate about cooking are the ones who will succeed.

“It’s a primordial experience, like sitting next to a fireplace, and you get that desire,” Hunt said. “It’s the same with cooking. There’s a certain love that goes into it.”

Mary Schwenker, who finished culinary school at 24 years old, said that younger students should research details about the chef profession before enrolling. She said the job is more difficult than schools portray it.

“Sometimes their jobs are completely terrible, and if they work there, they will hate it,” Hunt said. “That’s why mentoring is so key. We try to give them a respect for the industry so they understand what they’re getting into.”