California has 42 schools with baking or pastry credentials, more than any other state in this directory. Thirty-seven are community colleges, where residents pay a statewide enrollment fee of $46 per unit, and five are private schools. Programs range from 6.5-unit skills certificates to associate degrees of 60 units or more, and several colleges also run tuition-free noncredit baking certificates.
Because the per-unit fee is the same at every community college, cost differences come mostly from program length, campus fees, and supplies. A short certificate often costs residents under $1,100 in enrollment and campus fees, and most baking associate degrees come to about $2,800 to $3,500 before financial aid.
Baking and Pastry Programs at a Glance
Jump to a region: San Francisco Bay Area | North Bay and Northern California | Sacramento, Central Valley and Sierra Foothills | Central Coast | Los Angeles County | Orange County, Inland Empire and Desert | San Diego County
San Francisco Bay Area
| School | Location | Programs, Units and Estimated Costs |
|---|---|---|
| City College of San Francisco | San Francisco | Baking and Pastry Certificate of Completion (noncredit): 1,020 hours – tuition-free |
| Contra Costa College | San Pablo | Culinary Arts: Training in Pastry and Baking Skills Certificate of Achievement: 48 units – about $2,208 Culinary Arts: Training in Pastry and Baking Skills A.S.: 60 units – about $2,760 |
| Diablo Valley College | Pleasant Hill | Certificate of Achievement in Baking and Pastry: 30 units – about $1,399 Associate in Science in Baking and Pastry: 60 units – about $2,780 |
| Laney College | Oakland | Baking and Pastry Certificate of Achievement: 40 units – about $2,120 Baking and Pastry A.S. Degree: 60 units – about $3,040 |
| Mission College | Santa Clara | Baking and Pastry Certificate of Achievement: 37–38 units – about $1,807 Baking and Pastry A.S.: 60 units – about $2,848 |
| San Francisco Baking Institute | South San Francisco | Bread and Viennoiserie Training Series (noncredit): 7 weeks – $9,975 |
North Bay and Northern California
| School | Location | Programs, Units and Estimated Costs |
|---|---|---|
| The Culinary Institute of America at Greystone | St. Helena | Baking and Pastry Arts AOS: 64 credits – $91,800 for four semesters of tuition, board and fees |
| Mendocino College | Ukiah | Beginning Baker Certificate of Skills: 6.5 units – about $330 |
| Santa Rosa Junior College | Santa Rosa | Culinary Arts: Baking and Pastry Certificate of Achievement: 19 units – about $995 |
| Woodland Community College | Clearlake | Baking Certificate of Achievement: 16.5–17.5 units – about $779 |
Sacramento, Central Valley and Sierra Foothills
| School | Location | Programs, Units and Estimated Costs |
|---|---|---|
| American River College | Sacramento | Baking and Pastry Certificate: 25 units – about $1,313 |
| Columbia College | Sonora | Bakery Staff Skills Attainment Certificate: 13.5 units – about $723 Baking and Pastry Arts Certificate of Achievement: 39.5–44 units – about $1,957 Baking and Pastry Arts A.S.: 60 units – about $2,900 |
| Institute of Technology | Clovis and Modesto | Baking and Pastry Specialist Diploma: 48 quarter credits – $20,394 |
| Lemoore College | Lemoore | Pastry and Baking Arts Certificate of Achievement: 23 units – about $1,062 |
| San Joaquin Delta College | Stockton | Baking and Pastry Certificate of Achievement: 26 units – about $1,252 Baking and Pastry, A.S.: 60 units – about $2,872 |
Central Coast
| School | Location | Programs, Units and Estimated Costs |
|---|---|---|
| Allan Hancock College | Santa Maria | Culinary Arts and Management: Baking Certificate of Accomplishment: 15 units – about $760 |
| Cabrillo College | Aptos | Entry Level Baking Certificate of Achievement: 16 units – about $994 |
| Monterey Peninsula College | Monterey | Baking and Pastry Arts, Certificate of Achievement: 10.5–14 units – about $547–$708 Baking and Pastry Arts, Noncredit Certificate of Completion: 348.5–408 hours – price not published |
| Oxnard College | Oxnard | Baking and Patisserie Proficiency Award: 12.5 units – about $670 Baking and Pastry Certificate of Achievement: 46–48 units – about $2,281 Baking and Pastry A.S.: 70–72 units – about $3,385 |
| Santa Barbara City College | Santa Barbara | Baking and Pastry Skills Competency Award: 8 units – about $551 |
Los Angeles County
| School | Location | Programs, Units and Estimated Costs |
|---|---|---|
| Cerritos College | Norwalk | Professional Baking and Pastry Certificate of Achievement: 22 units – about $1,075 Professional Baking and Pastry A.S.: 60 units – about $2,844 |
| College of the Canyons | Santa Clarita | Baking and Pastry Certificate of Achievement: 16 units – about $806 Baking Fundamentals Certificate of Completion (noncredit): tuition-free |
| Institute of Culinary Education | Pasadena | Career Pastry and Baking Arts diploma: 610 clock hours – $41,000 Pastry and Baking Arts and Management AOS: 60 credits – $53,000 The Techniques of Artisan Bread Baking: 200 clock hours – $9,950 |
| Long Beach City College | Long Beach | Baking and Pastry Arts Certificate of Achievement: 23 units – about $1,136 Advanced Baking and Pastry Arts Certificate of Achievement: 30.5 units – about $1,481 Baking and Pastry Arts A.S.: 60 units – about $2,864 |
| Los Angeles Harbor College | Wilmington (Los Angeles) | Professional Baking and Pastry Arts Certificate of Achievement: 21 units – about $1,004 Advanced Professional Baking and Pastry Arts Certificate of Achievement: 12 units – about $571 |
| Los Angeles Mission College | Sylmar | Baking Specialist I Skills Certificate: 12 units – about $573 Baking Specialist II Skills Certificate: 12 units – about $573 Professional Baking and Patisserie Certificate of Achievement: 30 units – about $1,443 Professional Baking and Patisserie A.A.: 71 units – about $3,350 |
| Los Angeles Trade-Technical College | Los Angeles | Baking Professional Certificate of Achievement: 48 units – about $2,292 Baking Professional A.A.: 69 units – about $3,258 |
| Mt. San Antonio College | Walnut | Baking and Pastry Level I Certificate: 21 units – about $1,072 Baking and Pastry Advanced Certificate: 40–42 units – about $2,012 Baking and Pastry A.S.: 72.5 units – about $3,531 |
| Pasadena City College | Pasadena | Certified Baker Certificate of Achievement: 19 units – about $1,015 Certified Baker A.S.: 60 units – about $2,948 |
Orange County, Inland Empire and Desert
| School | Location | Programs, Units and Estimated Costs |
|---|---|---|
| Chaffey College | Chino | Professional Baking and Patisserie Certificate of Achievement: 34 units – about $1,624 Professional Baking and Patisserie A.S.: 60 units – about $2,880 |
| College of the Desert | Palm Desert | Baker Certificate of Completion (noncredit): 64 hours – tuition-free Bread Baker Certificate of Completion (noncredit): 48 hours – tuition-free |
| Cypress College | Anaheim | Baking Fundamentals Certificate: 17 units – about $888 Baking and Pastry Arts Certificate: 39.5 units – about $1,926 Baking and Pastry Arts A.S.: 60 units – about $2,905 |
| Orange Coast College | Costa Mesa | Baking and Pastry-Basic Certificate of Achievement: 12–13 units – about $612 Advanced Baking and Pastry Certificate of Achievement: 40–41 units – about $1,960 Advanced Baking and Pastry A.S.: 60 units – about $2,880 |
| Riverside City College | Riverside | Baking and Pastry Arts Certificate of Achievement: 25 units – about $1,209 Baking and Pastry Arts A.S.: 60 units – about $2,878 Professional Skills in Baking and Pastry Arts Certificate of Achievement: 28 units – about $1,406 Professional Skills in Baking and Pastry Arts Certificate of Completion (noncredit): 810 hours – tuition-free Introduction, Intermediate and Advanced Professional Skills certificates: 10 units each – about $518 each |
| Saddleback College | Tustin | Introduction to Baking and Pastry Certificate of Achievement: 18–20 units – about $976 Advanced Baking and Pastry Certificate of Achievement: 38–40 units – about $1,924 Advanced Baking and Pastry A.S.: 60 units – about $2,872 |
| San Bernardino Valley College | San Bernardino | Baking Certificate of Achievement: 45 units – about $2,201 Baking Business Certificate of Achievement: 36 units – about $1,787 Professional Baking and Management A.A.: 60 units – about $2,928 |
| Santa Ana College | Santa Ana | Introduction to Baking and Pastry Tier 1 Certificate of Completion (noncredit): 128–312 hours – tuition-free Introduction to Baking and Pastry Tier 2 Certificate of Completion (noncredit): 218–402 hours – tuition-free |
San Diego County
| School | Location | Programs, Units and Estimated Costs |
|---|---|---|
| California Culinary Arts Institute | San Diego | Baking and Pastry Arts Certificate (noncredit): 1,000 clock hours – $14,000 |
| Grossmont College | El Cajon | Pastry Cook Certificate of Achievement: 13 units – about $654 Pastry Arts Certificate of Achievement: 42 units – about $2,016 Pastry Arts A.S.: 60 units – about $2,872 |
| San Diego College of Continuing Education | San Diego | Baking and Pastry Arts I Certificate of Completion (noncredit): 225 hours – tuition-free Baking and Pastry Arts II Certificate of Completion (noncredit): 225 hours – tuition-free |
| San Diego Mesa College | San Diego | Baking and Pastry Certificate of Achievement: 14 units – about $694 |
| Southwestern College | Chula Vista | Professional Baking and Pastry Certificate of Achievement: 16 units – about $832 |
Community college estimates use the $46 per unit California resident enrollment fee plus each college’s mandatory campus fees over its published plan, or an assumed number of semesters where no plan is published, before financial aid. They exclude course material fees, books, uniforms, tools, and living costs. Noncredit certificates are tuition-free, though material fees may apply. Private school figures are published program prices. Out-of-state estimates appear in each profile.
Which California Baking Program May Fit You?
Earn a Short Baking Certificate
Entry certificates of about 12 to 20 units are common. Examples include Grossmont College (13 units), San Diego Mesa College (14), Allan Hancock College (15), Cabrillo College, College of the Canyons and Southwestern College (16 each), and Santa Rosa Junior College (19). Mendocino College has the shortest, a 6.5-unit Beginning Baker certificate.
Earn a Baking Associate Degree
Twenty community colleges award a baking or pastry associate degree, including Laney College, Diablo Valley College, San Joaquin Delta College, Los Angeles Trade-Technical College, Long Beach City College, Orange Coast College, Riverside City College, and Grossmont College. Most pair a 34- to 48-unit baking major with general education.
Study Tuition-Free in a Noncredit Program
City College of San Francisco runs a 1,020-hour noncredit Baking and Pastry certificate, and Riverside City College has an 810-hour noncredit option. San Diego College of Continuing Education, Santa Ana College, College of the Canyons, and College of the Desert offer shorter noncredit certificates. Noncredit courses do not earn college units.
Study Evenings or in a Hybrid Format
Cypress College pairs campus labs with online lecture, and Los Angeles Harbor College schedules some lecture online. The culinary department at Cerritos College describes an evening program. Baking labs everywhere meet in person, so check each term’s class schedule.
Train at a Private School
The Culinary Institute of America at Greystone in St. Helena and the Institute of Culinary Education in Pasadena offer accredited diplomas and degrees at private-school prices. The Institute of Technology teaches a 40-week diploma in Clovis and Modesto, California Culinary Arts Institute runs a clock-hour certificate in San Diego, and San Francisco Baking Institute teaches a seven-week bread and viennoiserie series.
Focus on Bread
San Francisco Baking Institute concentrates on artisan bread and viennoiserie. Among the colleges, College of the Desert has a short noncredit Bread Baker certificate, and many degree programs include dedicated artisan bread courses.
Certificate, Noncredit Certificate, or Associate Degree?
Certificates of Achievement
A Certificate of Achievement is approved by the state and appears on the transcript. California baking certificates of this type run from about 12 to 48 units. Shorter ones cover core baking courses, and longer ones add advanced pastry, chocolate, bread, and work experience.
Skills and Proficiency Certificates
Some colleges also award short, locally approved certificates, under names such as Skills Certificate, Proficiency Award, Certificate of Accomplishment, or Skills Competency Award. They can be useful first steps, but they may not appear on the transcript or qualify for federal aid on their own, so ask the college.
Noncredit Certificates
Noncredit Certificates of Completion are measured in hours, carry no enrollment fee, and do not earn college units. They suit students who want kitchen training without a degree plan. Material fees, uniforms, and tools may still apply.
Associate Degrees
An Associate in Science or Associate in Arts adds general education to the baking major, for a minimum of 60 units. Colleges that publish a full plan sometimes show more, such as 69 to 72.5 units. These are career degrees, not associate degrees for transfer, so students planning on a bachelor’s degree should meet a counselor early.
Tuition and Additional Costs
California sets one enrollment fee for all community colleges, $46 per unit for residents. Each college adds small mandatory fees, typically a health fee of about $19 to $28 per semester and sometimes student center, representation, or transportation fees. Non-residents pay tuition on top of the enrollment fee, for a combined rate of about $374 to $660 per unit depending on the district.
The California College Promise Grant waives the enrollment fee for eligible residents, and many colleges run local Promise programs for first-time, full-time students. Estimates on this page are before any aid.
Baking students should also budget for:
- Course material or lab fees, where the college charges them
- Uniforms, slip-resistant shoes, and knife or baking tool kits
- A food handler card or food safety manager certification
- Textbooks and supplies
- Parking, transportation, and living expenses
Programs No Longer Listed
Feather River College no longer lists a baking certificate in its catalog, and Palomar College’s 2026–27 catalog has no baking or culinary program. Napa Valley, Shasta, Lake Tahoe, Fresno City, Bakersfield, Glendale, and MiraCosta colleges teach culinary or hospitality programs with baking courses but no baking-titled credential.
Several private schools have closed. Le Cordon Bleu closed its Pasadena, San Francisco, and Sacramento campuses in 2017, and the Art Institutes’ California campuses closed in 2018 and 2019. The International Culinary Center in Campbell, San Diego Culinary Institute, New School of Cooking, San Francisco Cooking School, and CulinaryLab in Tustin have also closed.
Questions to Ask Before Applying
- Is the certificate a state-approved Certificate of Achievement, a local skills certificate, or noncredit?
- Which baking courses are offered each semester, and how many terms does the prerequisite sequence really take?
- Is the certificate eligible for federal financial aid or only for the California College Promise Grant?
- What material fees, uniforms, and tool kits are required, and what do they cost?
- Are labs held during the day or in the evening, and at which campus or site?
- Will my certificate courses count toward the associate degree later?
Baking Schools in the San Francisco Bay Area
City College of San Francisco
City College of San Francisco offers baking as a tuition-free noncredit program: the Baking and Pastry Certificate of Completion, made up of two 510-hour courses with a two-semester minimum. In Fall 2026 the introductory course meets five afternoons a week in the Statler Wing kitchen on the Ocean Campus. Each course charges a $75 material fee, and the certificate carries no college units.
See the City College of San Francisco baking profile for curriculum, costs, and admissions details.
Contra Costa College
Contra Costa College in San Pablo offers Culinary Arts: Training in Pastry and Baking Skills as a 48-unit Certificate of Achievement and as an Associate in Science degree. The major is five 9-unit lecture and lab courses plus a 3-unit ServSafe course, mapped by the college over three full-time terms. Students train in the Culinary Academy, which operates the Aqua Terra Grill teaching restaurant and the Pronto takeout counter.
See the Contra Costa College baking profile for curriculum, costs, and admissions details.
Diablo Valley College
Diablo Valley College in Pleasant Hill offers a 30-unit Certificate of Achievement and an Associate in Science in Baking and Pastry with a 39-unit major. The baking labs run in sequence from Baking I and Baking II to Frozen Desserts, Survey of Bread, Cake Decorating, and, for the A.S., Candies and Chocolates. The program page describes a retail pastry shop and a restaurant open to the public, and California residents pay $46 per unit.
See the Diablo Valley College baking profile for curriculum, costs, and admissions details.
Laney College
Laney College in Oakland publishes a four-semester, 40-unit Baking and Pastry sequence that can be completed as a Certificate of Achievement or as the major for a 60-unit A.S. degree. Courses move from two foundation baking classes through artisan breads, cake decorating, international patisserie, and confiserie to a 6-unit plated desserts capstone. Baking classes meet in Building E, and California residents pay $46 per unit plus about $70 in fees each semester.
See the Laney College baking profile for curriculum, costs, and admissions details.
Mission College
Mission College in Santa Clara offers a Baking and Pastry Certificate of Achievement of 37 to 38 units and a 60-unit Associate in Science. Both share a 35.5-unit core that combines five 2-unit baking, bread, and chocolate labs with food preparation, cost control, supervision, restaurant operations, and work experience. The catalog says instructional material fees have been eliminated, and district-area residents may qualify for a free tuition award.
See the Mission College baking profile for curriculum, costs, and admissions details.
San Francisco Baking Institute
The San Francisco Baking Institute is a private school in South San Francisco devoted to artisan bread, viennoiserie, and pastry. Its career offering is the seven-week, full-day Bread and Viennoiserie Training Series, limited to 16 students and priced at $9,975 in 2026. The series is noncredit, and SFBI states no accreditation, state approval, or federal aid eligibility.
See the San Francisco Baking Institute baking profile for curriculum, costs, and admissions details.
Baking Schools in the North Bay and Northern California
The Culinary Institute of America at Greystone
The Culinary Institute of America teaches its 64-credit Baking and Pastry Arts associate degree at the Greystone campus in St. Helena, following the same curriculum as its main campus in Hyde Park, New York. It is a private college, and 2026–27 charges are $22,950 per semester for tuition, board, and the general fee. The CIA has campuses in three states, so its programs are covered on one national page.
See the The Culinary Institute of America national baking profile for curriculum, costs, and admissions details.
Mendocino College
Mendocino College offers a 6.5-unit Beginning Baker Certificate of Skills, a short locally awarded certificate made up of Baking I, Baking II, a food safety course, and a cost control course. Hands-on labs meet at the Ukiah campus only, and the college lists the certificate at two semesters. The baking courses also count as electives in the 25.5-unit Culinary Arts Management Certificate of Achievement and the A.S.
See the Mendocino College baking profile for curriculum, costs, and admissions details.
Santa Rosa Junior College
Santa Rosa Junior College offers a 19-unit Culinary Arts: Baking and Pastry Certificate of Achievement at the B. Robert Burdo Culinary Arts Center on Mendocino Avenue. After an introductory baking course, students take two 4-unit production courses rotating through the stations of the student-run retail bakery that sells to the public. Courses run in 8-week blocks, the recommended sequence covers three semesters, and California residents pay $46 per unit.
See the Santa Rosa Junior College baking profile for curriculum, costs, and admissions details.
Woodland Community College
Woodland Community College lists its Baking Certificate of Achievement at the Lake County Campus in Clearlake, home of the student-run Aromas Restaurant and Café, not at the main campus in Woodland. The 16.5 to 17.5-unit certificate combines Principles of Baking and Advanced Baking and Pastry with a food preparation course, a 54-hour internship, catering, and a ServSafe Manager class. Every required course also counts toward the Culinary Arts A.A. major.
See the Woodland Community College baking profile for curriculum, costs, and admissions details.
Baking Schools in Sacramento, the Central Valley and Sierra Foothills
American River College
American River College offers a 25-unit Baking and Pastry Certificate of Achievement through its Hospitality Management department in Sacramento. The college’s part-time roadmap spreads it over four semesters and ends with Bakery Management and Production, which places students in the Oak Cafe Bakery two days a week. California residents pay $46 per unit, and the certificate is on the college’s list of financial aid eligible programs.
See the American River College baking profile for curriculum, costs, and admissions details.
Columbia College
Columbia College in Sonora lists baking as its own program of study with three stacked awards: a 13.5-unit Bakery Staff Skills Attainment Certificate, a 39.5 to 44-unit Baking and Pastry Arts Certificate of Achievement, and a 60-unit Baking and Pastry Arts A.S. The college publishes semester-by-semester advising guides for all three, and its program page says the certificate is accredited by the American Culinary Federation Education Foundation. California residents pay $46 per unit.
See the Columbia College baking profile for curriculum, costs, and admissions details.
Institute of Technology
Institute of Technology is a private, ACCSC-accredited career college that offers a Baking and Pastry Specialist diploma at its Clovis and Modesto campuses. The program runs 890 clock hours (48 quarter credits) over 40 weeks, Monday through Thursday, with a 160-hour externship and start dates about every five weeks. The 2026 program cost is $20,394 in Clovis and $20,449 in Modesto.
See the Institute of Technology baking profile for curriculum, costs, and admissions details.
Lemoore College
Lemoore College (formerly West Hills College Lemoore) offers a 23-unit Pastry and Baking Arts Certificate of Achievement mapped over a fall and a spring semester. Two baking labs are paired with sanitation, a foods lab, three hospitality courses, and 3 units of work experience. California residents pay $46 per unit, about $1,062 for the certificate before aid.
See the Lemoore College baking profile for curriculum, costs, and admissions details.
San Joaquin Delta College
San Joaquin Delta College in Stockton trains baking students in its own Artisan Bakery, a campus retail bakery that students run on select days each semester. The Summer 2026 – Summer 2027 catalog lists a 26-unit Baking and Pastry Certificate of Achievement and a Baking and Pastry A.S. of at least 60 units built on the same eight courses, including separate retail bakery production and service courses. California residents pay $46 per unit.
See the San Joaquin Delta College baking profile for curriculum, costs, and admissions details.
Baking Schools on the Central Coast
Allan Hancock College
Allan Hancock College in Santa Maria offers a 15-unit Certificate of Accomplishment in Culinary Arts and Management: Baking. The 2026–27 catalog’s suggested sequence finishes it in a fall and a spring semester, with basic and advanced baking and pastry courses and a specialty cakes course that covers wedding cake sales. California residents pay $46 per unit, and non-residents taking 6 or fewer units in a term are exempt from non-resident tuition.
See the Allan Hancock College baking profile for curriculum, costs, and admissions details.
Cabrillo College
Cabrillo College offers a 16-unit Entry Level Baking Certificate of Achievement taught at the historic Sesnon House on its Aptos campus, home to the student-run Pino Alto restaurant. The ten-course certificate pairs basic and advanced baking with one-unit classes in chocolate, cake decorating, and wedding cakes, and the catalog’s program map spreads it over four terms. California residents pay $46 per unit plus campus fees that include a Santa Cruz Metro bus pass.
See the Cabrillo College baking profile for curriculum, costs, and admissions details.
Monterey Peninsula College
Monterey Peninsula College builds its Baking and Pastry Arts Certificate of Achievement from short modules: six one-unit Bakeshop courses and two half-unit chocolate courses, for 10.5 to 14 units over a fall and spring. The 2026–27 catalog also lists a noncredit Certificate of Completion that mirrors it in 348.5 to 408 hours. California residents pay $46 per unit for the credit certificate.
See the Monterey Peninsula College baking profile for curriculum, costs, and admissions details.
Oxnard College
Oxnard College offers baking as a stand-alone major: a Baking and Pastry A.S. (70–72 units), a 46–48 unit Certificate of Achievement, and a 12.5-unit Baking and Patisserie Proficiency Award. The 2026–27 catalog publishes a plan that starts in summer and includes bread baking, bakery operations, and a bakery-cafe course with barista practice. Several labs require a TB test and ServSafe certification, and residents pay $46 per unit.
See the Oxnard College baking profile for curriculum, costs, and admissions details.
Santa Barbara City College
Santa Barbara City College offers an 8-unit Baking and Pastry Skills Competency Award through its School of Culinary Arts and Hotel Management on the main campus. The award is locally approved and is not recorded on the transcript, and its final course requires a 2-unit Pastry Practicum that is not on the award’s course list. The 2026–27 catalog states the culinary program is certified by the American Culinary Federation, and the same courses count toward the college’s Culinary Arts certificates.
See the Santa Barbara City College baking profile for curriculum, costs, and admissions details.
Baking Schools in Los Angeles County
Cerritos College
Cerritos College in Norwalk offers its Professional Baking and Pastry program in the evening, according to the culinary department. The 2026–27 catalog lists a 22-unit Certificate of Achievement built on three sequential baking labs and an A.S. that adds general education to reach 60 units. Students need TB clearance for the labs and buy a baking kit and two uniforms from the college’s approved vendor.
See the Cerritos College baking profile for curriculum, costs, and admissions details.
College of the Canyons
College of the Canyons teaches baking at its Institute for Culinary Education (iCuE) on the Valencia campus in Santa Clarita. The 2026–27 catalog lists a 16-unit Baking and Pastry Certificate of Achievement with full courses in cake decorating, pastry art, and chocolates plus work experience, and a tuition-free noncredit Baking Fundamentals Certificate of Completion. The department says most classes meet twice a week for eight weeks and that the credit certificate takes two semesters.
See the College of the Canyons baking profile for curriculum, costs, and admissions details.
Institute of Culinary Education
The Institute of Culinary Education is a private career school accredited by ACCSC, with a Los Angeles campus in Pasadena. It offers a 610-hour Career Pastry and Baking Arts diploma, a 60-credit hybrid associate degree offered only in Pasadena, and an artisan bread baking certificate. ICE also teaches in New York City and online, so its programs are covered on one national page.
See the Institute of Culinary Education national baking profile for curriculum, costs, and admissions details.
Long Beach City College
Long Beach City College teaches baking in Building V on its Liberal Arts Campus, where a two-course capstone has students produce and sell goods at the student-run Bakery. The 2026–27 catalog lists a 23-unit Certificate of Achievement, a 30.5-unit Advanced Certificate of Achievement with specialty cake, bread, and Viennese pastry courses, and an A.S. of at least 60 units. A noncredit 54-hour Basic Baking Skills Certificate of Completion is also offered.
See the Long Beach City College baking profile for curriculum, costs, and admissions details.
Los Angeles Harbor College
Los Angeles Harbor College in Wilmington offers two stackable Certificates of Achievement taught under its own Professional Baking course code: a 21-unit Professional Baking and Pastry Arts certificate laid out over two semesters and a 12-unit advanced certificate in chocolate, showpieces, and specialty cakes. California residents pay $46 per unit. The college has no baking degree; its A.S. is in Culinary Arts.
See the Los Angeles Harbor College baking profile for curriculum, costs, and admissions details.
Los Angeles Mission College
Los Angeles Mission College teaches baking at its Culinary Arts Institute in Sylmar, which has separate bake shop and pastry shop labs. Its awards stack: two 12-unit Baking Specialist Skills Certificates make up most of a 30-unit Professional Baking and Patisserie Certificate of Achievement, and an A.A. adds artisanal bread, Viennoiserie, specialty cake, and chocolate courses. The certificate includes an on-campus internship and an off-campus externship.
See the Los Angeles Mission College baking profile for curriculum, costs, and admissions details.
Los Angeles Trade-Technical College
Los Angeles Trade-Technical College states that its Professional Baking program is accredited by the American Culinary Federation Education Foundation, and students bake daily for a retail bakery on the downtown Los Angeles campus. The 2026–27 catalog lists a 48-unit Baking Professional Certificate of Achievement and an A.A. that adds 21 general education units, both on one four-semester plan of 12 units a term. California residents pay $46 per unit.
See the Los Angeles Trade-Technical College baking profile for curriculum, costs, and admissions details.
Mt. San Antonio College
Mt. San Antonio College in Walnut sets its baking credentials inside a full culinary program tied to Cafe 91, its student-run restaurant. The 2026–27 catalog lists a 21-unit Baking and Pastry Level I certificate, a 40 to 42 unit Advanced certificate that adds cooking and hospitality management courses, and an A.S. whose suggested sequence totals 72.5 units. Kitchen labs require a Food Safety Manager Certification, and several baking labs are scheduled in winter or summer sessions.
See the Mt. San Antonio College baking profile for curriculum, costs, and admissions details.
Pasadena City College
Pasadena City College offers a Certified Baker Certificate of Achievement (19 units) and a Certified Baker A.S. (at least 60 units) through its Culinary Arts and Hospitality Management department. Two of the certificate’s six courses are baking labs, and the rest cover sanitation, culinary principles, cooking foundations, and kitchen production management. There is no separate program application, and the catalog notes required lab fees, a uniform, and a tool kit.
See the Pasadena City College baking profile for curriculum, costs, and admissions details.
Baking Schools in Orange County, the Inland Empire and Desert
Chaffey College
Chaffey College offers a 34-unit Professional Baking and Patisserie Certificate of Achievement and an A.S. built on the same ten courses, listed in the 2026–27 catalog. The core includes Artisan Breads, Cake Decorating and Pastry Art, a World Baking course, and garde manger, and students bake for the Chaffey College Bistro. The college lists Culinary Arts and Baking at its Chino Campus, and residents pay $46 per unit.
See the Chaffey College baking profile for curriculum, costs, and admissions details.
College of the Desert
College of the Desert’s only baking-titled awards are two noncredit Certificates of Completion in the 2026–27 catalog: Baker (four 16-hour classes in quick breads, breakfast breads, pastry dough, and cakes) and Bread Baker (three 16-hour classes in bakery sanitation and yeast doughs). The courses carry 0 units, so no per-unit enrollment fee applies. Credit students take Baking and Pastries I and II within the Culinary Arts certificates and degree.
See the College of the Desert baking profile for curriculum, costs, and admissions details.
Cypress College
Cypress College teaches baking in a hybrid format at its Anaheim Campus on W. Romneya Drive, not on the main campus in Cypress: each kitchen course meets one day a week for a lecture and lab, with the rest of the lecture online. The 2026–27 catalog lists a 17-unit Baking Fundamentals Certificate, a 39.5-unit Baking and Pastry Arts Certificate, and an A.S. of at least 60 units, all built on three sequential baking courses. California residents pay $46 per unit, and the Fall 2026 and Winter/Spring 2027 schedules show material fees waived for the kitchen courses.
See the Cypress College baking profile for curriculum, costs, and admissions details.
Orange Coast College
Orange Coast College’s 2026–27 catalog states that its Advanced Baking and Pastry certificate and A.S. are accredited by the American Culinary Federation Education Foundation Accrediting Commission. The college also offers a 12–13 unit Baking and Pastry-Basic Certificate of Achievement, and the advanced awards include two 108-hour directed-practice courses, one in the OCC bakery. Residents pay $46 per unit, and the catalog publishes a semester sequence for each award.
See the Orange Coast College baking profile for curriculum, costs, and admissions details.
Riverside City College
Riverside City College offers a 25-unit Baking and Pastry Arts certificate and A.S. built on two 8.5-unit courses, which the college says takes 12 months full-time and uses a separate program application. A part-time track splits similar content into sixteen short courses that lead to three 10-unit certificates and a 28-unit Professional Skills certificate. RCC Extended Learning mirrors that track with tuition-free noncredit Certificates of Completion.
See the Riverside City College baking profile for curriculum, costs, and admissions details.
Saddleback College
Saddleback College runs its culinary and baking courses at the Saddleback@ATEP campus in Tustin, not the main campus in Mission Viejo, in a facility with four kitchen labs, a student-run restaurant, and a coffee bar supplied by baking students. The 2026–27 catalog lists stackable Introduction (18–20 units) and Advanced (38–40 units) Baking and Pastry Certificates of Achievement and an Advanced Baking and Pastry A.S. Residents pay $46 per unit, and the college describes its culinary programs as zero textbook cost.
See the Saddleback College baking profile for curriculum, costs, and admissions details.
San Bernardino Valley College
San Bernardino Valley College builds its baking awards on four 6-unit lab courses of 324 contact hours each, covering baking, desserts and pastries, cake decorating, and chocolate and sugar work. The 2026–27 catalog lists a 45-unit Baking Certificate of Achievement, a 36-unit Baking Business Certificate of Achievement, and a Professional Baking and Management A.A. with a 51-unit major. Residents pay $46 per unit, and the Culinary Arts program runs a campus coffee shop that sells pastries.
See the San Bernardino Valley College baking profile for curriculum, costs, and admissions details.
Santa Ana College
Santa Ana College offers baking only as noncredit training through its School of Continuing Education. The 2026–27 catalog lists Introduction to Baking and Pastry Tier 1 and Tier 2 Certificates of Completion, built from short classes in pastry basics, bread making, and cakes plus ServSafe Food Handler, with Tier 2 adding a 90-hour baking fundamentals course meant to lead into the credit Culinary Arts program. The college says continuing education classes are tuition-free for California adults.
See the Santa Ana College baking profile for curriculum, costs, and admissions details.
Baking Schools in San Diego County
California Culinary Arts Institute
California Culinary Arts Institute is a small private school near downtown San Diego, open since 2021, with classes capped at 10 students. Its Baking and Pastry Arts certificate is six four-week classes plus an externship, listed at 1,000 clock hours, for a flat $14,000. The school is BPPE approved but unaccredited and does not participate in federal student aid; WIOA funding is possible for eligible students.
See the California Culinary Arts Institute baking profile for curriculum, costs, and admissions details.
Grossmont College
Grossmont College in El Cajon ties its pastry courses to service: students produce dessert menus for the weekly campus restaurant and breads, petit fours, and plated desserts for a weekly banquet. The 2026–27 catalog lists a 13-unit Pastry Cook Certificate of Achievement, a 42-unit Pastry Arts Certificate of Achievement with separate bread, chocolate, sugar, and cake decorating courses and two 108-hour externships, and a Pastry Arts A.S. of at least 60 units. California residents pay $46 per unit plus a $28 health fee each semester.
See the Grossmont College baking profile for curriculum, costs, and admissions details.
San Diego College of Continuing Education
San Diego College of Continuing Education is the noncredit college of the San Diego Community College District, and its two baking certificates are tuition-free noncredit Certificates of Completion taught at the Educational Cultural Complex. Baking and Pastry Arts I and II each run 225 hours over 18 weeks, with a $75 materials fee per program plus a uniform and textbook. They earn no college units, but district credit-by-exam agreements match the courses to two baking courses at San Diego Mesa College.
See the San Diego College of Continuing Education baking profile for curriculum, costs, and admissions details.
San Diego Mesa College
San Diego Mesa College offers a 14-unit Baking and Pastry Certificate of Achievement in which three of the five courses are full lab courses of 144 to 162 hours each, alongside sanitation and a baking theory lecture. The 2026–27 catalog states the certificate is not eligible for federal financial aid, though California residents pay $46 per unit and may qualify for state fee waivers. District credit-by-exam agreements let students from San Diego College of Continuing Education’s free noncredit food courses test for credit in three of its courses.
See the San Diego Mesa College baking profile for curriculum, costs, and admissions details.
Southwestern College
Southwestern College in Chula Vista offers a 16-unit Professional Baking and Pastry Certificate of Achievement with four bakeshop courses, including separate classes in breads and in chocolate and confectionery, plus sanitation and a cost control course. The courses run in a fixed prerequisite order, and the college’s sample map spreads them over three light semesters. Every certificate course also counts toward the Culinary Arts A.S. major; California residents pay $46 per unit.
See the Southwestern College baking profile for curriculum, costs, and admissions details.
Frequently Asked Questions
How many California schools offer baking or pastry programs?
This directory lists 42 schools: 37 community colleges and five private schools. Twenty of the community colleges award a baking or pastry associate degree, and the rest offer certificates only.
How much does a baking program cost in California?
Residents pay $46 per unit at every community college. With campus fees, estimates on this page run from about $330 for a 6.5-unit certificate to about $3,500 for the longest associate degree plans, before aid. Several noncredit certificates are tuition-free. Private programs range from about $9,950 to more than $90,000.
Are there free baking classes at California community colleges?
Yes. Noncredit certificate programs carry no enrollment fee. City College of San Francisco, Riverside City College, San Diego College of Continuing Education, Santa Ana College, College of the Canyons, and College of the Desert all list noncredit baking certificates, though material fees and supplies may apply.
Which California baking programs are accredited by the American Culinary Federation?
The catalogs for Los Angeles Trade-Technical College and Orange Coast College state that their baking programs are accredited by the American Culinary Federation Education Foundation, and Columbia College makes the same statement on its program pages. Confirm current status with the college or the ACF before enrolling.
Can I study baking online in California?
Not fully at a community college, because baking labs meet in person. Cypress College offers lecture online with labs on campus, and the Institute of Culinary Education runs online diploma programs through its Pasadena campus. See the online baking schools page for more options.
Program requirements and costs can change. Confirm all details with the school before applying.