Name: ______________________ Date: __________ Partner: ______________________
The ten cards (cut apart, one set per pair)
Pay ranges are yearly, for the New York area, and every one is marked. Your teacher will check them against the Bureau of Labor Statistics and the NYS Department of Labor before you use them for real decisions.
| Career | Education needed | A day in the life | Pay range | Cluster |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dishwasher | None past high school. Trained on the job in a day. Some start at 14 with working papers. | Runs the dish machine, scrubs pots, keeps the line stocked with clean pans, mops at close. On your feet, wet, fast. The kitchen stops if you stop. | $28,000 to $34,000 | Hospitality and Tourism |
| Prep cook | None past high school. Trained on the job. | Arrives before the cooks. Washes, peels, chops, portions, and labels everything the line will need. Reads the prep list, checks dates, rotates the walk-in (FIFO). | $30,000 to $38,000 | Hospitality and Tourism |
| Line cook | High school. A culinary certificate helps but many learn on the line. | Works one station (grill, saute, fry, salad) during service. Reads tickets, times every plate, keeps the station clean and stocked. Hot, loud, fast for four hours straight. | $33,000 to $42,000 | Hospitality and Tourism |
| Baker | High school plus a certificate or an apprenticeship. | Starts at 3 or 4 in the morning. Measures by weight, mixes, proofs, bakes, and decorates. Same recipes every day, done exactly. Quiet kitchen, early finish. | $32,000 to $45,000 | Hospitality and Tourism |
| Restaurant manager | High school plus years of experience, or a two-year degree in hospitality. | Schedules the staff, orders the food, checks the books, handles the customer who is unhappy, covers a station when someone calls out. Nights and weekends. | $50,000 to $75,000 | Hospitality and Tourism |
| Caterer or personal chef (owns the business) | A certificate or a culinary degree plus business skills. A food handler's permit and a business license. | Plans menus with clients, shops, cooks in other people's kitchens or a rented one, prices every job to make a profit, does the books at night. No two days the same. | $40,000 to $80,000, varies with the business | Hospitality and Tourism |
| School food service director | A four-year degree, often in nutrition or food service management. | Plans menus for hundreds of students that meet federal rules, manages the cafeteria staff and the budget, orders from vendors, handles allergies and special diets, reports to the district. | $60,000 to $90,000 | Hospitality and Tourism; Education and Training |
| Registered dietitian | A graduate degree in nutrition, a supervised practice program, a national exam, and New York State certification. | Meets with patients or clients in a hospital, a clinic, a school, or a sports team. Reads lab results, plans diets for medical conditions, teaches. More talking and reading than cooking. | $65,000 to $85,000 | Health Science |
| Food scientist | A four-year degree in food science or chemistry; many have a master's. | Works in a lab or a factory. Tests why a product spoils, how to make it safer or last longer, what happens to a nutrient when it is cooked. Runs experiments, writes reports. | $70,000 to $100,000 | Agriculture, Food, and Natural Resources; Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics |
| Health inspector (food safety) | A four-year degree in a science plus a state exam. | Visits restaurants, school cafeterias, and stores without warning. Checks refrigerator temperatures, hand sinks, dates, and cross contamination. Writes the report that can close a kitchen. | $55,000 to $75,000 | Health Science; Government and Public Administration |
Sorting mat
Sort 1: By education needed. Write each career under the group it fits. Then name one job in each group that you did a piece of in this unit.
| A: None past high school | B: A certificate, an apprenticeship, or a two-year degree | C: A four-year degree or more |
|---|---|---|
| A piece I did in this unit: | A piece I did in this unit: | A piece I did in this unit: |
Sort 2: What do they mostly work with? Write each career in one column. Write one reason on the line for the hardest one to place.
| Mostly food and equipment | Mostly people | Mostly data and reports |
|---|---|---|
Hardest to place: ____________ because ________________________________
Sort 3: By pay. Put the ten careers in order from lowest to highest starting pay. Then circle the one that surprised you.
- ____________ 2. ____________ 3. ____________ 4. ____________ 5. ____________
- ____________ 7. ____________ 8. ____________ 9. ____________ 10. ____________
"Would I like this?" self-check (individual)
Pick two careers from the cards.
| Career 1: ____________ | Career 2: ____________ | |
|---|---|---|
| The day in the life I would rather have | ☐ | ☐ |
| The education I am willing to do | ☐ yes ☐ no ☐ maybe | ☐ yes ☐ no ☐ maybe |
| The pay would be enough for the life I want | ☐ yes ☐ no ☐ not sure | ☐ yes ☐ no ☐ not sure |
| Something from this unit I would use on day one |
I would / would not (circle one) like to be a ____________ because ________________________________________________.
Sentence starter: "I would like ____________ because I like to ____________. I would not like ____________ because ____________."
Keep this sheet in your FACS folder. It comes back in Unit 2 (who I am) and Unit 7 (careers).