After Graduation

Bright Futures Gold Seal and Gold Seal Cape Scholarships

Students who earn the three certifications Wekiva Culinary offers, earn their 400 hours of internship by participating in most catering events, earn their 60 hours of community service by participating in all outreach events, and complete all four courses in the Program are automatically eligible for the new Bright Futures Gold Seal & Gold Seal Cape Scholarship, an amazing opportunity for students who may not be academically minded but who are dedicated and hard-working. There are additional GPA standards, course standards, and testing requirements… but most of these are automatically earned by serious Culinary Arts students and should not pose a challenge to anyone.

  • For information on the Bright Futures Gold Seal Scholarship, click here.
  • For information on the Bright Futures Gold Seal CAPE Scholarship, click here.
  • For Information on the three necessary certifications, click here.

Internships

Outside internships

Working Internships are the backbone of our program and our student’s success. A few of our students find after school work in local hotels and restaurants and earn their internship hours there. If a student wishes to gain internship hours outside of the program, they must make arrangements with Chef Bates and Guidance immediately – not all work places will qualify and not all work experience will be counted towards the required 400 hours.

internal internships

Most students collect all the necessary hours they need within Wekiva Culinary’s Program itself. For these students, being actively involved in program events, signing in and out of those events accurately, and keeping records of their participation is vital. When it comes time to graduate, it is up to students to provide the documentation that requirements have been met.

Paid and unPaid INternships

Every effort is being made to find a Corporate Sponsor(s) for a fully-paid internship program for the entire class of Advanced Culinary students. As of right now, however, we have only established funding for a few. All other students can earn the necessary 400 hours of work hours within the program as unpaid interns.

All work hours must be earned outside of class in order to count towards the ProStart Certificate of Achievement and the Bright Futures Gold Seal Scholarships. For this reason, students will frequently be invited to help with out-of-class and after school activities such as facility cleanup days, 4.0 Breakfasts, Bistros, and Catered Events. All activities that benefit the Culinary Arts program completed out of class or after school count towards the internship requirement.

NOTE: After school activities done to make up for a class or lab do NOT count towards internship hours.

College Credit

Students who complete the necessary requirements for the ProStart Certificate of Achievement and the Bright Futures Gold Seal CAPE Scholarship automatically have the right to attend one of our partner schools with 12 earned credit hours. These schools include Valencia College, Seminole College, UCF’s Rosen School of Hospitality, Johnson and Wales University, and more.

Awards and Scholarships

Scholarship and Grant Opportunities

There are numerous opportunities to earn money for both colleges and esteemed Culinary Arts Schools through local, state, and national competition. The National Restaurant Association, the CFHLA, and the FRLA each offer multiple scholarships connected with these events. Every year, top winners earn up to 15,000 per year of college tuition. While becoming a part of our state and national competition team is fierce, all students are encouraged to attend our Competition Bootcamp so they can learn how competition works, train with potential teammates, and try out for a spot on our team.