Students are encouraged whenever possible to take their externship in France. Selected students are allowed to take the one-year grand diploma course which includes the full culinary and pastry courses, two externships and an additional seven weeks of instruction. PICA accommodates 700 to 800 students at a time in sessions that begin every three months. As part of their training, students staff a school-owned restaurant. Beneath the grandeur of Mt. Hood lies the Western Culinary Institute.
Classes begin eight times a year.
Ninety-seven percent of WCI students find jobs within 90 days of graduation. The complex interrelationships between the various campuses of this highly regarded culinary school are enough to send anyone's head spinning. A two-year food and beverage management degree is available at Providence and Charleston and with a first year at Norfolk and a second year at Charleston. The Vail campus offers a one-year accelerated AAS degree to college graduates. Four-year bachelor of science degrees in culinary arts, food marketing and food entrepreneurship are available at Providence and in food service management at Providence and Charleston.