Los Angeles Harbor College (LAHC) is a public community college at 1111 Figueroa Place in Wilmington, in the harbor area of Los Angeles, and part of the Los Angeles Community College District. Its 2026–27 catalog lists two baking credentials, both state-approved Certificates of Achievement: Professional Baking and Pastry Arts (21 units) and Advanced Professional Baking and Pastry Arts (12 units). The second builds on the first.
Harbor teaches baking under its own subject code, Professional Baking (PROFBKG), separate from the culinary arts courses, and the first certificate is laid out as a fixed two-semester block with courses taken together. The Fall 2026 schedule shows the two entry courses meeting back to back on Fridays, with lecture hours online. California residents pay $46 per unit, which puts the first certificate at about $1,004 before aid.
Quick Facts
| Category | Details |
|---|---|
| School type | Public community college (Los Angeles Community College District) |
| Location | 1111 Figueroa Place, Wilmington, California |
| Baking credentials | Professional Baking and Pastry Arts Certificate of Achievement (21 units); Advanced Professional Baking and Pastry Arts Certificate of Achievement (12 units) |
| Published length | Professional certificate: two semesters; Advanced certificate: no plan published |
| Format | Kitchen labs on campus; Fall 2026 sections list online lecture hours |
| Resident enrollment fee | $46 per unit |
| Non-resident tuition | $397 per unit in addition to the enrollment fee (2026–27) |
| Baking degree | None; the A.S. is in Culinary Arts |
| ACF programmatic accreditation | Not stated in the catalog |
Baking and Pastry Program Options
Both awards appear in the 2026–27 general catalog, which is posted with earlier editions on the college’s schedules and catalogs page. Every required course must be passed with a C or better.
Professional Baking and Pastry Arts Certificate of Achievement (21 Units)
The catalog lays this certificate out as a two-semester sequence. In the first semester, students take Food Sanitation and Safety, Principles of Baking and Pastry Skills I, and Principles of Bread and Artisan Bread I together, for 9 units. In the second, they take two 6-unit courses together: Artisanal Breads, Specialty Breads and Multi-Component Desserts and Pastries. Both second-semester courses require the two first-semester baking courses.
Advanced Professional Baking and Pastry Arts Certificate of Achievement (12 Units)
The advanced certificate requires Chocolate, Confections, Decor and Showpieces and Specialty Cakes, which are corequisites and both require the two second-semester courses from the first certificate. It also requires Restaurant Management and Hospitality Cost Control. No semester plan is published for it. One point to settle with a counselor: the catalog’s description of Restaurant Management lists culinary arts prerequisites that baking students would not otherwise take.
Curriculum and Baking Courses
Six PROFBKG courses carry the hands-on baking content:
- PROFBKG 100 Principles of Baking and Pastry Skills I (3 units): quick breads, pies, pâte à choux, tarts, cakes, cookies, mixing methods, and ingredient function
- PROFBKG 110 Principles of Bread and Artisan Bread I (3 units): lean, rich, and laminated yeast doughs, natural leavening, and baker’s percentage
- PROFBKG 122 Artisanal Breads, Specialty Breads (6 units): artisan and laminated doughs, advanced quick breads, and adjusting formulas and yields
- PROFBKG 132 Multi-Component Desserts and Pastries (6 units): contemporary plated desserts, including classical and international styles
- PROFBKG 130 Chocolate, Confections, Decor and Showpieces (3 units): tempered and molded chocolate, marzipan, nougatine, pastillage, and sugar showpieces
- PROFBKG 135 Specialty Cakes (3 units): classical, modern, and wedding cakes, buttercreams, fondant, and gum paste
The 3-unit courses each list 18 lecture and 108 lab hours. In the Fall 2026 schedule, PROFBKG 100 runs as an eight-week hybrid class with a Friday lab from 7:00 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. and its lecture online, and PROFBKG 110 has a Friday lab from 2:00 to 8:30 p.m. with weekly online lecture hours. The college also schedules a noncredit course, Culinary: Baking Skills, which is not part of either certificate.
Tuition and Additional Costs
The college’s tuition and fees page lists a $46 per unit enrollment fee for California residents and a $19 health services fee each fall and spring semester. Non-residents pay $397 per unit in 2026–27 in addition to the enrollment fee, or $443 per unit. Estimates use the catalog’s two semesters for the first certificate and, because no plan is published, one semester for the 12-unit advanced certificate.
| Program | Credits | Estimated in-state tuition and fees | Estimated out-of-state tuition and fees |
|---|---|---|---|
| Professional Baking and Pastry Arts Certificate of Achievement | 21 | $1,004 | $9,341 |
| Advanced Professional Baking and Pastry Arts Certificate of Achievement | 12 | $571 | $5,335 |
Method: units times the per-unit rate, plus the $19 health fee for each semester. The estimates leave out the $2 student representation fee, the $10 Associated Student Organization fee, and the $20 parking fee, which the catalog describes as optional, along with books, uniforms, and tools. The catalog publishes no kit or uniform price for baking and says materials fees vary by course. All figures are before financial aid.
Admissions and Financial Aid
Harbor is open to high school graduates, to anyone who has passed the California High School Proficiency Examination, and to people over 18 who can benefit from instruction. Applicants apply online and receive a student ID number and registration appointment by email. The catalog describes no separate application for the baking certificates.
The catalog states that the California College Promise Grant waives the enrollment fee for eligible California residents, and students apply for federal and state aid, including Pell Grants, with the FAFSA. Aid requires enrollment in an eligible program, which the catalog defines to include certificates; confirm with the financial aid office that each baking certificate qualifies.
Career Preparation and Transfer Considerations
The first certificate targets entry-level bakery and pastry positions, with outcomes built around ingredient function, baker’s percentage, and production practice. The advanced certificate adds recipe costing and retail bakery management. Food Sanitation and Safety fulfills ServSafe certification, according to its course description.
Harbor does not offer a baking degree. Students who want an associate degree can look at the college’s Culinary Arts A.S., which shares Food Sanitation and Safety and Restaurant Management with the baking certificates. Only PROFBKG 100 and 110 are marked as transferable to the California State University system, so the certificates are mainly job preparation.
Which LAHC Pathway May Fit You?
| Pathway | May fit students who want |
|---|---|
| Professional Baking and Pastry Arts Certificate | A two-semester start in breads, pastries, and plated desserts at community college prices |
| Advanced Professional Baking and Pastry Arts Certificate | Chocolate, showpiece, and specialty cake skills plus cost control, after finishing the first certificate |
| Culinary Arts A.S. | An associate degree, with baking as one part of broader kitchen training |
Questions to Ask Before Applying
- Are the second-semester and advanced PROFBKG courses offered every year, and in which terms?
- What prerequisites apply to Restaurant Management for students on the baking track?
- What uniform, tool, and materials costs should I expect for the lab courses?
- How much of each lecture is online, and which days do labs meet?
- Are both certificates eligible for federal and state financial aid?
Program details and costs can change. Confirm current requirements with Los Angeles Harbor College before applying.