Most commonly reported Work Activities

• Monitor Processes, Materials, or Surroundings Monitoring and reviewing information from materials, events, or the environment, to detect or assess problems.
• Getting Information Observing, receiving, and otherwise obtaining information from all relevant sources.
• Inspecting Equipment, Structures, or Material Inspecting equipment, structures, or materials to identify the cause of errors or other problems or defects.
• Identifying Objects, Actions, and Events Identifying information by categorising, estimating, recognising differences or similarities, and detecting changes in circumstances or events.
• Organising, Planning, and Prioritising Work Developing specific goals and plans to prioritise, organise, and accomplish your work.
• Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates Providing information to supervisors, co-workers, and subordinates by telephone, in written form, e-mail, or in person.
• Training and Teaching Others Identifying the educational needs of others, developing formal educational or training programs or classes, and teaching or instructing others.
• Judging the Qualities of Things, Services, or People Assessing the value, importance, or quality of things or people.
• Making Decisions and Solving Problems Analysing information and evaluating results to choose the best solution and solve problems.
• Coaching and Developing Others Identifying the developmental needs of others and coaching, mentoring, or otherwise helping others to improve their knowledge or skills.

The Work

The expression ‘you eat with your eyes first’ is probably most true when it comes to desserts. We don’t eat desserts primarily to satiate our hunger, that’s what the starters and the main courses are for! So a dessert really has to look beautiful and appetising.

Making desserts often requires several components that must be assembled individually and then brought together to create the final product. Every ingredient has to be measured precisely and added in the correct way and in the correct order.

In addition to making and presenting beautiful desserts, you may be responsible for testing, tasting and developing new recipes, menu planning, food safety, budgeting, purchasing of fresh ingredients and supervising commis chefs in the kitchen.

A pastry chef is a baker, but a baker isn't necessarily a pastry chef. Confusing? Well the first difference is in the title, as "chef" literally means "boss". The second difference is that Pastry chefs are not limited to baking bread and making cakes, they also create a range of desserts to complement other courses on a menu.

In some restaurants, the Pastry chef is known as a ‘Pâtissier’. You may also see positions advertised as ‘commis pastry chef’, ‘pastry chef de partie’ or ‘head pastry chef’ and that would give you an indication of your ranking in that particular kitchen.

Most commonly reported Work Tasks

• Check products for quality, and identify damaged or expired goods.
• Set oven temperatures, and place items into hot ovens for baking.
• Combine measured ingredients in bowls of mixing, blending, or cooking machinery.
• Place dough in pans, molds, or on sheets, and bake in production ovens or on grills.
• Set time and speed controls for mixing machines, blending machines, or steam kettles so that ingredients will be mixed or cooked according to instructions.
• Measure or weigh flour or other ingredients to prepare batters, doughs, fillings, or icings, using scales or graduated containers.
• Observe color of products being baked, and adjust oven temperatures, humidity, or conveyor speeds accordingly.
• Check the quality of raw materials to ensure that standards and specifications are met.
• Check equipment to ensure that it meets health and safety regulations, and perform maintenance or cleaning, as necessary.
• Adapt the quantity of ingredients to match the amount of items to be baked.

Further Information

• Pastry Chef - from: Get a Life in Tourism

This occupation is typically suited for people with the following Career Interests:

Naturalist

Not surprisingly, some aspect of the natural sciences will run through the Naturalist's interests - from ecological awareness to nutrition and health. People with an interest in horticulture, land usage and farming (including fish) are Naturalists.

Some Naturalists focus on animals rather than plants, and may enjoy working with, training, caring for, or simply herding them. Other Naturalists will prefer working with the end result of nature's produce - the food produced from plants and animals. Naturalists like solving problems with solutions that show some sensitivity to the environmental impact of what they do. They like to see practical results and prefer action to talking and discussing.

Enterprising

Enterprising people like situations that involve using resources for personal or corporate economic gain. Such people may have an opportunistic frame of mind, and are drawn to commerce, trade and making deals. Some pursue sales and marketing occupations. Many will eventually end up owning their own business, or in management roles in larger organisations. They tend to be very goal-oriented and work best when focused on a target. Some have an entrepreneurial inclination.

Creative

Creative people are drawn to careers and activities that enable them to take responsibility for the design, layout or sensory impact of something (visual, auditory etc). They may be atrracted to the traditional artistic pursuits such as painting, sculpture, singing, or music. Or they may show more interest in design activities, such as architecture, animation, or craft areas, such as pottery and ceramics.

Creative people use their personal understanding of people and the world they live in to guide their work. Creative people like to work in unstructured workplaces, enjoy taking risks and prefer a minimum of routine.

Some of the training for a career as a pastry chef comes through experience. Getting a culinary education will help to give you the confidence and the skills to advance more quickly than you would otherwise in this field.

Although some current chefs work their way up the ranks in a Kitchen, formal training is typically required to progress to Executive Chef pathway. You can build you initial skills and experience via:

FET Centre Traineeship programmes Food and Beverage Service, Hospitality, and Patisserie and Confectionery Traineeships Search for Traineeships.

FET Centre PLC Courses: Culinary Arts, Pre-Apprenticeship Professional Cookery & Baking Search FET PLC Courses

Apprenticeship programmes Culinary skill Appenticeships NFQ level 6 - 9

Apprenticeship programmes have the benefits of allowing you to earn a wage while you learn. To find information chef apprenticeship programmes:

Commis Chef Apprenticeship NFQ level 6

Chef de Partie Apprenticeship NFQ level 7

Sous Chef Apprenticeship NFQ level 8

Executive Chef NFQ level 9 [in development launching soon] 

Higher Education CAO Entry: Culinary Arts Degrees NFQ levels 6-8 CAO course finder to search for courses in Culinary Arts (offered in Technology Universities around the country) where you combine practical Cookery tuition with academic subjects such as Food Science, Product Development, and Entrepreneurial Studies.

Professional Development  

To develop your career as a Pastry Chef, you often need to build a professional reputation over time by working hard and using your creativity to challenge yourself and develop your skills. 

Post graduate culinary arts Full & part time NFQ level 9

Private cookery schools may also offer courses in this field, in line with Industry Lead Skillnets, Enterprise, and continuous professional development Search RAI 

Last Updated: October, 2023

Salary Range (thousands per year)* €35k - €55k

Salaries vary by employer, location, duties, role, experience, and sessional shift pattern & conditions. 

Data Source(s):
Excel Recruitment/ Indeed

Last Updated: July, 2024

* The lower figures typically reflect starting salaries. Higher salaries are awarded to those with greater experience and responsibility. Positions in Dublin sometimes command higher salaries.

View Salary information from Indeed.ie
Note: data not aways available

This information has been derived from the Solas National Skills Bulletin (2025).

Although the employment growth was below average over the five-year period for chefs, there has been annual growth since 2022. However, the number of recent job hires in 2024 far exceeded employment growth indicating that job churn is occurring. Almost half (45%) of those employed were non-Irish citizens, the second highest share after food operatives.

Over 2,200 new employment permits were issued and 750 renewals (both were primarily for chef de partie roles). There was a high volume of posts notified on DSP Jobs Ireland for chefs (again, primarily chef de partie) and most online job adverts for this group related to chefs.

Skills for Growth data indicates difficulties in attracting learners to relevant courses, which in turn affects the supply from the education/training system, which saw a decline in the number of FET and 3rd level awards made in 2023 (to 665 awards), down from 777 awards in 2019. In addition, a relatively high volume of persons in the DSP Jobseeker data in December 2024 were previously employed in jobs in food preparation trades.

Failte Ireland tourism careers labour market research (November 2024) shows that recruitment and retention challenges amongst employers have eased for the third year in a row although chefs remain the most difficult position to fill. Although retention remains a challenge, the supply of chefs from the education and training system does not appear to be sufficient to meet demand and shortages are likely to persist. 

Skills shortage:

Chefs

• Bord Bia

  • Clanwilliam Court Lower Mount Street. Dublin 2
  • (01) 668 5155
  • [email protected]
  • Click Here

• Fáilte Ireland

  • Amiens Street, Dublin 1
  • (01) 884 7700
  • [email protected]
  • Click Here

• Restaurant's Association of Ireland

  • 11 Bridge Court, Citygate, St Augustine Street, Dublin 8
  • 01 6779901
  • [email protected]
  • Click Here