Data & Research
 
* ELMI Occupation Profile - Cooks, Institution and Cafeteria *
 
Cooks, Institution and Cafeteria
(O*NET 35-2012.00, SOC 35-2012)
What they do
Prepare and cook large quantities of food for institutions, such as schools, hospitals, or cafeterias.
 
Also called:
Cafeteria Cook, Chef, Cook, Dietary Cook, Dinner Cook, Food Service Specialist, Food Service Worker, Prep Cook (Preparatory Cook), School Cook, Sous Chef
 
 
Wages
Vermont - 2023
Percentile1HourlyYearly
10% $ 15.40   $32,040  
25% $ 16.90   $35,150  
Median $ 17.86   $37,140  
75% $ 20.97   $43,630  
90% $ 22.49   $46,780  
 
Average $ 18.72   $38,940  
1 What are Percentile Wages?
More at CareerOneStop
 
Industries of Employment
United States - 2020
IndustryPercent of total
  • Educational services; state, local, and private
33%
  • Nursing and residential care facilities
24%
  • Food services and drinking places
12%
  • Hospitals; state, local, and private
9%
  • Social assistance
8%
More at BLS
 
Knowledge
People in this career often know a lot about:
  • English Language
    Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.
  • Food Production
    Knowledge of techniques and equipment for planting, growing, and harvesting food products (both plant and animal) for consumption, including storage/handling techniques.
  • Customer and Personal Service
    Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.
  • Mathematics
    Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.
  • Administration and Management
    Knowledge of business and management principles involved in strategic planning, resource allocation, human resources modeling, leadership technique, production methods, and coordination of people and resources.
More at O*NET
 
Skills
People in this career often have these skills:
  • Judgment and Decision Making
    Considering the relative costs and benefits of potential actions to choose the most appropriate one.
  • Monitoring
    Monitoring/Assessing performance of yourself, other individuals, or organizations to make improvements or take corrective action.
  • Operations Monitoring
    Watching gauges, dials, or other indicators to make sure a machine is working properly.
  • Quality Control Analysis
    Conducting tests and inspections of products, services, or processes to evaluate quality or performance.
  • Service Orientation
    Actively looking for ways to help people.
More at O*NET
 
Interests
People in this career often prefer these work environments:
  • Realistic
    Work involves designing, building, or repairing of equipment, materials, or structures, engaging in physical activity, or working outdoors. Realistic occupations are often associated with engineering, mechanics and electronics, construction, woodworking, transportation, machine operation, agriculture, animal services, physical or manual labor, athletics, or protective services.
  • Conventional
    Work involves following procedures and regulations to organize information or data, typically in a business setting. Conventional occupations are often associated with office work, accounting, mathematics/statistics, information technology, finance, or human resources.
What are your interests? Take the O*NET Interest Profiler
 
Work Styles
People in this career will do well at jobs that need:
  • Dependability
    Job requires being reliable, responsible, and dependable, and fulfilling obligations.
  • Attention to Detail
    Job requires being careful about detail and thorough in completing work tasks.
  • Self-Control
    Job requires maintaining composure, keeping emotions in check, controlling anger, and avoiding aggressive behavior, even in very difficult situations.
  • Integrity
    Job requires being honest and ethical.
  • Stress Tolerance
    Job requires accepting criticism and dealing calmly and effectively with high-stress situations.
More at O*NET
 
Tasks
On the job, you would:
  • Monitor and record food temperatures to ensure food safety.
  • Cook foodstuffs according to menus, special dietary or nutritional restrictions, or numbers of portions to be served.
  • Rotate and store food supplies.
  • Wash pots, pans, dishes, utensils, or other cooking equipment.
  • Apportion and serve food to facility residents, employees, or patrons.
More at O*NET
 
Related Occupations
More at O*NET
 
 
Career Video
Watch at CareerOneStop with transcript or at YouTube.
 
Projected Employment
 Vermont
2020 employment 1,143
2030 employment 1,303
Annual percent change
(compounded)
1.3%
Annual projected job openings
(due to change and separations)
193
More at Occupational Projections
 
Education and Experience:
  • Typical education needed for entry
    No formal educational credential
  • Work experience in a related occupation
    None
  • Typical on-the-job training needed to attain competency
    Short-term on-the-job training
Based on BLS Education and Training Classifications
 
Physical Work Activity
Performing physical activities that require considerable use of your arms and legs and moving your whole body, such as climbing, lifting, balancing, walking, stooping, and handling materials.
 
  • Physical activity is Very Important
  • Level of activity is Moderate
Importance
Low   High
Level
Compare Occupations at O*NET
 
Job Zone
Some Preparation Needed
  • Specific Vocational Preparation Range
    (4.0 to < 6.0) - A typical worker will require over 3 months up to and including 1 year of training to achieve average performance in this occupation.
Based on O*Net Job Zones and SVP
 
Education Level
How much education do most people in this career have?
Education level Percent of
U.S. Workers
Doctoral or professional degree
or post-MA certificate
  0%
Master's degree or
post-BA certificate
  0%
Bachelor's degree   7%
Associate's degree   0%
Certificate or some college,
no degree
  20%
High school diploma
or equivalent
  71%
Less than high school diploma   2%
More at O*NET
 
Abilities
People in this career often have talent in:
  • Near Vision
    The ability to see details at close range (within a few feet of the observer).
  • Oral Expression
    The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand.
  • Category Flexibility
    The ability to generate or use different sets of rules for combining or grouping things in different ways.
  • Deductive Reasoning
    The ability to apply general rules to specific problems to produce answers that make sense.
  • Information Ordering
    The ability to arrange things or actions in a certain order or pattern according to a specific rule or set of rules (e.g., patterns of numbers, letters, words, pictures, mathematical operations).
More at O*NET
 
Work Activities
In general, what you might do:
  • Getting Information
    Observing, receiving, and otherwise obtaining information from all relevant sources.
  • Inspecting Equipment, Structures, or Materials
    Inspecting equipment, structures, or materials to identify the cause of errors or other problems or defects.
  • Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates
    Providing information to supervisors, co-workers, and subordinates by telephone, in written form, e-mail, or in person.
  • Monitoring Processes, Materials, or Surroundings
    Monitoring and reviewing information from materials, events, or the environment, to detect or assess problems.
  • Identifying Objects, Actions, and Events
    Identifying information by categorizing, estimating, recognizing differences or similarities, and detecting changes in circumstances or events.
More at O*NET
 
Detailed Work Activities
What you might do in a day:
  • Monitor food services operations to ensure procedures are followed.
  • Inspect facilities, equipment or supplies to ensure conformance to standards.
  • Record operational or production data.
  • Cook foods.
  • Maintain food, beverage, or equipment inventories.
More at O*NET
 
Other Resources
  • CareerOneStop
    resource for job seekers, students, businessess and career professionals
  • O*NET Online
    nation's primary source of occupational information
 
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This page includes information from the O*NET 28.0 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA). Used under the CC BY 4.0 license. O*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA.

BLS

This page includes information produced in cooperation with the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics and State Occupational Projections programs.

 
 
 
 
Vermont.gov State of Vermont Department of Labor