Deadlines approaching for culinary scholarships

If you are interested in a career in the kitchen of a four-star restaurant, then it's off to culinary school. But in order to pay for an education in all things cooking, students should start looking into culinary scholarships.

Money College wrote about culinary scholarships last month, but here are a few with deadlines fast approaching.

Want to head to school in New York City? The French Culinary Institute and the International Culinary Academy, located at the International Culinary Center in New York, offer a variety of culinary scholarships. But hurry up, a few of the application deadlines are soon.

• The FCI lists the Lily A. Barberio Culinary Arts Scholarship, which offers students a minimum of $21,000, has a deadline of Sept. 10.
• The Friends of the FCI Fall Award, which gives students $20,000, has a Sept. 24 deadline. For more information, check the FCI's scholarship page.

Meanwhile, the Italian Culinary Academy is offering two culinary scholarships. T

• "illy Scholarship," which gives students $10,000 -- but the deadline is Sept. 7, so there's no time to waste on this one.
• The Italian Culinary Experience scholarship, with a "varying" deadline, and a prize of $5,000. For more information, check the ICA's scholarship page.

Tuition at French Culinary Institute runs between $32,500 and $33,500, while the cost at the Italian Culinary Academy is $41,000. And that doesn't cover housing or living expenses.

But of course, not every culinary student wants to move to the big city. Chef2Chef, self-dubbed "a chef's guide to practically anything," has an extensive list of resources, many of which are specific to states, that help students find culinary scholarships. However, students will have to dig in order to find which organizations are offering opportunities. Here are a few that have scholarships available:

• Chefs4Students (formerly the Chef2Chef Culinary Scholarship Fund) offers grants for prospective culinary students.
• The National Restaurant Association Educational Foundation has scholarships for first-time freshmen and current undergraduate students alike.
• The International Food Service Executives Association lists a few scholarships opportunities (and astutely recommends searching on Fastweb, as well).
• Les Dames d'Escoffier International offers a scholarship specifically for female culinary students.
• The Arkansas Hospitality Association has a series of culinary scholarships available.
• The California Restaurant Association offers a culinary scholarship.
• Next spring, keep an eye out for the James Beard Foundation Scholarship Program.

If you're a culinary student interested in finding a scholarship for your specific state, check your local restaurant or hospitality association's website to see if they're offering any opportunities.