Baker / Patissier Apprentice Program Program (H600)

Program Description

Program Overview

Located in the heart of downtown Toronto, George Brown College puts you at the centre of the culinary industry in Canada. Toronto is blessed with hundreds of great bakeries, patisseries, chocolate shops, hotels and catering companies, and they will be your classroom as you study to be a Baker/Patissier Apprentice.

Full Description

Apprenticeship training is an agreement between a person wishing to learn a skill and an employer who can provide the environment for skills training. Administered by the Apprenticeship Client Services Branch of the Ontario Ministry of Labour, Immigration, Training and Skills Development (MLITSD), an apprenticeship is the best way to continue your journey on a promising career path. Upon completion, apprentices return to the industry more confident and with an updated skill set that prepares them for greater job opportunities.

If you already have practical experience as a baker or patissier, you can:

  • Build upon your work experience.
  • Experience hands-on training.
  • Learn the related theory in an innovative program that fits your work schedule.
  • Get the qualifications you need without taking a long-term absence from your job.

Baker/patissier apprentices learn a skilled occupation by combining in-school courses with paid on-the-job training.

There are three levels of in-school training (H600, H606 and H604) in our Baker/Patissier Apprenticeship program:

  • Level I: Learn fundamental baking theories and techniques, and essential industry employability skills such as communications and mathematics. The hands-on courses include Fermentation, Cookies, Pastry and Ingredients.
  • Level II: Build your advanced baking skills, as well as develop bakery management practices. The hands-on courses include Decoration, Cakes and Desserts.
  • Level III: Complete your in-school studies with hands-on practical courses to hone your skills as you work toward your goal of becoming a patissier. Reinforcing the skills learned in levels I and II, you will also experience Specialty Cakes, Petits Fours, Almond Paste, Gum Paste, Sugar Work and Chocolate.

You can earn your official Red Seal certification as a baker/patissier from the Ministry of Labour, Immigration, Training and Skills Development (MLITSD), by completing on-the-job and classroom training under the sponsorship of a registered employer.

George Brown College Chef School Student Standards and Expectations

Note: George Brown College has adopted a Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) initiative. As a result, we no longer have computer lab classrooms. For classes that require computers, students will need to bring their own laptops. Our Library Learning Commons offers open access computers as well as equipment that can be borrowed on a short-term basis. For more information, please contact The Centre for Hospitality and Culinary Arts at chcastudentsupport@georgebrown.ca

Your Field Education Options

Apprenticeship training is an agreement between a person wishing to learn a skill and an employer who can provide the environment for skills training. Administered by the Apprenticeship Client Services Branch of the Ontario Ministry of Labour, Immigration, Training and Skills Development (MLITSD).

Career & Postgraduate Study Opportunities

Career Options

George Brown College has an international reputation for producing talented and creative baking and pastry graduates who are working all around the world on the cutting edge of the industry. This program gives you all the preparation you need to write the exam for the official Red Seal certification as a baker/patissier from the Ontario Ministry of Labour, Immigration, Training and Skills Development (MLITSD).

Once you pass the certification exam, you can pursue a rewarding career in a commercial bakery, hotel, catering company or one of a countless number of specialty bakeries, pastry stores and specialty shops. You can even combine the skills you've learned with your entrepreneurial spirit and start your own business.

D’Oyen Christie is a graduate of the Baker/Patissier apprenticeship program. As an Executive Pastry Chef with Fairmont for almost 20 years, D'Oyen Christie has made dessert for the Queen; baked a cake for British Columbia's 150th birthday and served it to the Prime Minister; and helped open a hotel in China with a staff who didn't speak English. Currently, at Fairmont Vancouver, Christie spent 11 years at the Empress in Victoria, where he was in charge of the team making pastries and sweets for the hotel's famous afternoon tea, served to 115,000 annually. Committed to giving back, Christie now trains and mentors apprentices and teaches pastry classes to hotel guests.

D’Oyen Christie
George Brown College Certificate

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