Cooks, Private Household

Overview

Cooks, Private Household has a national median salary of $47,940 per year, with +5.1% projected job growth from 2025–2035. The Bureau of Labor Statistics lists a postsecondary certificate as the typical education needed to enter this occupation.

Description

Prepare meals in private homes. Includes personal chefs.

Work Values

• Independence
• Achievement
• Relationships

Work Styles

Responsibilities

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.

Work Activities

• Organizing, Planning, and Prioritizing Work
• Establishing and Maintaining Interpersonal Relationships
• Getting Information
• Thinking Creatively
• Making Decisions and Solving Problems
• Performing General Physical Activities
• Monitoring and Controlling Resources
• Monitoring Processes, Materials, or Surroundings
• Identifying Objects, Actions, and Events
• Updating and Using Relevant Knowledge

Detailed Work Activities

• Developing specific goals and plans to prioritize, organize, and accomplish your work.
• Developing constructive and cooperative working relationships with others, and maintaining them over time.
• Observing, receiving, and otherwise obtaining information from all relevant sources.
• Developing, designing, or creating new applications, ideas, relationships, systems, or products, including artistic contributions.
• Analyzing information and evaluating results to choose the best solution and solve problems.
• Performing general physical activities includes doing activities that require considerable use of your arms and legs and moving your whole body, such as climbing, lifting, balancing, walking, stooping, and handling materials.
• Monitoring and controlling resources and overseeing the spending of money.
• Monitoring and reviewing information from materials, events, or the environment, to detect or assess problems.
• Identifying information by categorizing, estimating, recognizing differences or similarities, and detecting changes in circumstances or events.
• Keeping up-to-date technically and applying new knowledge to your job.

T-A-S-K

Technology, Abilities, Skills & Knowledge

Education

Education Levels of Current Workers

The Bureau of Labor Statistics lists a postsecondary certificate as the typical education needed to enter this occupation. The chart below shows the highest level of education held by people already working in this field, ages 25 and older. It includes workers who earned more education than the job requires and workers who entered the field under earlier requirements, so the largest bar is not the entry requirement. For example, if someone finished an associate's degree and then started working in this field, they are counted under “Associate's degree” here, but the job itself typically asks for a postsecondary certificate.

Certificates

Certifications applicable to Cooks, Private Household:

Video Resources