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Cooks, Private Household

Cooks, Private Household is the O*NET name for people who prepare meals in private homes. The skills rated most useful are critical thinking, service orientation, and time management. Expect to peel, wash, trim, and cook vegetables and meats, and bake breads and pastries. Interest ratings put Realistic on top at 5.0 out of 7 and Social second, so the code is RSA and the day leans toward hands-on work with tools, machines or the physical world. Getting in usually takes one or two years of vocational training, an apprenticeship or an associate’s degree, a level O*NET calls medium preparation. It tends to suit people who want hands-on work with tools, machines or the physical world, and it offers little for anyone seeking research, analysis and working through hard problems.

What they do

Prepare meals in private homes. Includes personal chefs.

Main tasks

  • Peel, wash, trim, and cook vegetables and meats, and bake breads and pastries.
  • Cool, package, label, and freeze foods for later consumption and provide instructions for reheating.
  • Plan menus according to employers' needs and diet restrictions.
  • Shop for or order food and kitchen supplies and equipment.
  • Prepare meals in private homes according to employers' recipes or tastes, handling all meals for the family and possibly for other household staff.
  • Keep records pertaining to menus, finances, and other business-related issues.

Skills

  • Critical Thinking
  • Service Orientation
  • Time Management
  • Speaking
  • Social Perceptiveness
  • Reading Comprehension

Who this career fits

May suit you if

  • You like ending the day with a physical result you can point to.
  • You get energy from helping other people move forward.
  • You are willing to put in a year or two of focused training.
  • You are comfortable relying on critical thinking and service orientation.

May not suit you if

  • You would rather stay away from physical, hands-on tasks.
  • You want to spend most of your time analyzing and researching. Investigative rates 1.4 out of 7 here.
  • You need to start within a few months, with no training period.

Interest profile

O*NET rates each occupation from 1 to 7 on six interest types. The code RSA takes the three highest, and Realistic comes first here.

Preparation

Medium preparation. Expect vocational school, an apprenticeship, related experience or an associate’s degree, usually one or two years in total.

Most-reported requirement in the O*NET survey: Post-Secondary Certificate. This reflects what workers reported most often and is not a legal minimum. Licensing rules can differ by state or industry, so confirm what applies where you plan to work.

Also called

  • Certified Personal Chef (CPC)
  • Personal Chef
  • Personal Private Chef
  • Private Chef

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This page includes information from the O*NET 31.0 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA). Used under the CC BY 4.0 license. O*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA.