Cape Fear Community College in Wilmington runs a dedicated Baking and Pastry Arts department with its own BPA course sequence. Students can earn a 66–67 credit Baking and Pastry Arts AAS (A55130) or a 15-credit Baking and Pastry Arts Certificate (C55130), both drawn from the North Carolina Community College System baking curriculum.
What sets CFCC apart is the depth of its pastry coursework. The degree includes separate courses in petit fours, European cakes and tortes, confection artistry, chocolate artistry, and plated desserts, plus work-based learning. Baking and Pastry Arts students also help run Our Place, the college’s student-operated restaurant in the Emmart building on the downtown Wilmington campus. Details below come from the 2026–27 catalog.
Quick Facts
| Category | Details |
|---|---|
| School | Cape Fear Community College |
| Location | Wilmington, North Carolina; main campus at 411 North Front Street |
| Credentials | Baking and Pastry Arts AAS (A55130); Baking and Pastry Arts Certificate (C55130) |
| Credits | 66–67 or 15 credits |
| Typical length | Five semesters for the AAS; two semesters for the certificate, per the recommended sequences |
| Start term | Recommended sequences begin in fall |
| Program area | Baking and Pastry Arts department |
Baking and Pastry Program Options
Both credentials are listed on CFCC’s Baking and Pastry Arts program page, which also shows a recommended course sequence for each. The catalog describes the curriculum as preparation for work in restaurants, hotels, independent bakeries and pastry shops, wholesale and retail markets, and high-volume bakeries.
Baking and Pastry Arts AAS
The Baking and Pastry Arts AAS requires 66–67 credits. General education covers 15–16 credits in English, communications, humanities, math or natural science, and social science. The remaining credits include 11 BPA courses, Baking I and II, sanitation, hospitality human resource management, basic PC literacy, and work-based learning courses including a seminar.
The recommended sequence runs fall, spring, and summer in the first year, then fall and spring in the second. The heaviest production course, Dessert and Bread Production, comes in the final spring and carries five credits with eight lab hours a week.
Baking and Pastry Arts Certificate
The Baking and Pastry Arts Certificate has 15 credits, all of which also count toward the AAS. Students take Sanitation and Safety and Baking I in the fall (5 credits), then Artisan and Specialty Bread, Hot and Cold Desserts, and Cake Design and Decorating in the spring (10 credits). Unlike many short baking certificates, it includes no general cooking course.
Curriculum and Baking Courses
Across the two credentials, the catalog lists these baking and pastry courses:
- Baking I and Baking II
- Artisan and Specialty Bread: naturally leavened loaves, hearth breads, focaccia, and flatbreads
- Hot and Cold Desserts: frozen desserts, soufflés, strudel, and crepes
- Cake Design and Decorating: tiered cakes, fondant, gum paste, royal icing, and piping
- Petit Fours and Pastries, and European Cakes and Tortes
- Confection Artistry, Chocolate Artistry, and a Chocolate Artistry Lab
- Plated Desserts, Dessert and Bread Production, and Pastry and Baking Marketing (AAS only)
Sanitation and Safety and Baking I are state prerequisites for the bread and cake courses, which is why both credentials open with them. The certificate uses Baking I plus the bread, hot and cold desserts, and cake decorating courses; everything else on the list belongs to the AAS.
Tuition and Additional Costs
Under the schedule effective July 1, 2026, CFCC charges $76 per credit for North Carolina residents and $268 per credit for out-of-state students, capped at 16 credits per semester. Mandatory fees are a $3 per credit technology fee, an in-person CAPS fee of $75 for up to 6 credits or $100 for 7 or more, and a $50 student activity fee, which the catalog says is charged in fall and spring. These estimates follow the recommended sequences; for the AAS, one extra work-based learning credit was added to the summer term to reach the catalog minimum of 66 credits:
| Program | Credits | Estimated in-state tuition and fees | Estimated out-of-state tuition and fees |
|---|---|---|---|
| Baking and Pastry Arts AAS (5 semesters) | 66 | $5,914 | $18,586 |
| Baking and Pastry Arts Certificate (2 semesters) | 15 | $1,460 | $4,340 |
These totals include tuition and mandatory fees only. Textbooks, chef’s tools, uniforms, transportation, and living costs are extra. Choosing a 4-credit math elective would add one credit to the AAS, and if the activity fee is also charged in summer, the AAS total rises by $50.
CFCC does not publish a baking program supply list or kit price. The catalog notes that chef’s tools are among the educational tools some programs require, and that books and tools must be paid for at purchase. Current rates appear on the tuition and fees page, along with the college’s 2026–27 cost of attendance.
Admissions and Financial Aid
CFCC follows an open-door policy. To be admitted, students complete the admissions application, submit a residency application through the Residency Determination Service, and provide an official high school transcript or an approved equivalency such as the GED, HiSET, or TASC. Applicants with an associate degree or higher may substitute an official college transcript. The catalog’s getting started section explains provisional admission for high school seniors.
The college administers Pell Grants, FSEOG, Federal Work-Study, and Federal Direct Stafford Loans; loans require at least six credits per semester. Provisionally admitted students cannot receive aid until a final transcript arrives. CFCC does not say whether the 15-credit certificate is aid-eligible, so certificate students should ask the financial aid office.
Career Preparation and Transfer Considerations
The catalog names pastry or bakery assistant, area pastry chef, and assistant pastry chef as entry-level roles for graduates. It adds that American Culinary Federation certification may be available to graduates. Work-based learning in the AAS, along with service at Our Place, gives students experience outside the lab.
The AAS is a career-focused degree. Its general education courses carry standard titles such as Writing and Inquiry and Math Measurement and Literacy, but students planning a bachelor’s degree should ask the receiving school how the BPA courses would transfer.
Which Cape Fear Pathway May Fit You?
| Pathway | May fit students who want |
|---|---|
| Baking and Pastry Arts Certificate | A two-semester focus on bread, desserts, and cake decorating with a light fall load |
| Baking and Pastry Arts AAS | Full pastry training in chocolate, confections, plated desserts, and production, plus work-based learning and general education |
Questions to Ask Before Applying
- Can I begin either credential in spring, or do the baking prerequisites require a fall start?
- What uniforms, knives, and tools do I need, and what do they usually cost?
- Is the Baking and Pastry Arts Certificate eligible for Pell Grant funding?
- Which work-based learning placements are available, and how many credits will I take?
- Where are the baking labs located on the Wilmington campus?
Program details and costs can change. Confirm current requirements with Cape Fear Community College before applying.