Catering refers to the sector of the hospitality industry that provides food and drink services for customers. Catering companies may be on-site (providing food linked to a specific venue) or off-site (providing a food service for various clients).
Caterers usually operate at events, functions or in a corporate setting, but services offered do vary, and as such, the environments in which you may find yourself working as a caterer are almost limitless.
Off-site catering businesses will typically offer a package to their client which may simply be the preparation and provision of food or may also include meal service and clean up. It is not uncommon for caterers to also become involved in event planning and management, depending on the setting.
Since caterers usually have to provide food and drink for large numbers of people at once, applicants for catering courses must have excellent organisational skills, and work well in a team and under pressure.
Degrees related to catering include hospitality management, events management, culinary arts, business and management, food science and technology.
Degrees related to catering can usually be studied at the foundation, undergraduate or postgraduate level. Depending on the type of course you wish to study, your study destination and mode of learning, a degree related to catering will usually take one to four years to complete.
Most commonly, students wishing to study catering will complete one of the following degrees:
1. Hospitality management
2. Events management
3. Culinary arts
These catering courses can be studied at the foundation level or as a postgraduate certificate, postgraduate diploma, associate degree, bachelor’s degree, master’s degree and even at the PhD level.
Part-time and online degrees related to catering are also available for professionals who wish to further their knowledge whilst working. Catering degrees are usually taught as a mixture of lectures, seminars and tutorials in addition to practical lessons and assessments.
Some areas you may cover in a hospitality management degree include food and drinks management, customer service, people management, hotel or restaurant operations, marketing, and global business.
You may choose to specialise in on-site catering (linked to a specific venue) or off-site catering (providing services to a variety of clients, often involving moving between venues), depending on the career path you have in mind.
To study catering abroad, you must meet basic entry requirements. These differ between institutions and courses, but to study for a bachelor’s degree in hospitality management, you will usually need:
1. Three A-Levels (or equivalent), though some courses may only require two.
2. Minimum grades of CCC (sometimes BBB) at A-Level/International Baccalaureate score of 24 to 32 points.
3. IELTS overall score of 6.0 (or equivalent) with no band score lower than 5.5. For postgraduate courses in catering, you will usually need to have achieved at least a 2:2 in your undergraduate degree.
Although prior work experience is not usually an entry requirement for catering degrees, professional experience in the hospitality industry may aid your application, particularly at the postgraduate level. Always check with your prospective university that your existing qualifications will be acceptable.
If you want to study catering overseas, why not explore some of the top-rated institutions for hospitality? The top three schools in the world for hospitality and leisure, according to the QS World University Rankings by subject, are:
1. EHL Hospitality Business School (Switzerland)
2. University of Nevada, Las Vegas (USA)
3. SHMS Swiss Hotel Management School (Switzerland)
If you’re considering studying catering at a school in the UK, the QS World University Rankings by subject lists the best universities for hospitality and leisure as:
1. University of Surrey
2. Bournemouth University
3. Oxford Brookes University
Interested in studying at a catering school in the USA? The top three US schools offering a hospitality management major, according to the US News and World Report, are:
1. Cornell University
2. New York University
3. University of Illinois, Urbana-Champagne
Whilst you do not usually need a degree to work in catering, many people find it a helpful way to increase their career prospects and salary in the catering and hospitality industry as a whole. For example, at entry level in the UK, a trainee or assistant catering manager can expect to earn GBP 16,500 to GBP 20,000.
However, with career progression through experience and/or a catering qualification, you can earn up to GBP 45,000 as a catering manager or even up to GBP 100,000 as an operations director. If you decide to commit to a career in catering, you will likely find yourself working long hours and shift work in a wide range of environments.
Many caterers find that any one day can look completely different to the next. Settings you may work in include:
1. Airports
2. Cruise ships
3. Hospitality venues (e.g. hotels, conference centres, wedding venues, pubs)
4. Festivals
5. Schools and educational settings
6. Remote locations
Other jobs or roles you may be interested in pursuing with a degree in hospitality management include:
1. Hotel management
2. Restaurant management
3. Event management
4. Chef
5. Sommelier
