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Skilled Trades

Cooks, Fast Food

Prepare and cook food in a fast food restaurant with a limited menu. Duties of these cooks are limited to preparation of a few basic items and normally involve operating large-volume single-purpose cooking equipment.

Median salary (BLS)

$30,890

10th–90th percentile (BLS)

$23k – $43k

Job outlook

No separate BLS projection for this specific role

AI exposure

Plan a path to Cooks, Fast Food

Qualification costsStack incomeBest cities/statesSchool ROIJob-posting fitTailored resume

Education

Typical entry: No degree required

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How to qualify

EstimateLicense required

Cost to qualify

$100–$2,600

Time to qualify

3.1 yr

Renewal

$50/yr

  1. 1

    Registered apprenticeship (paid)

    Experience

    Earn-while-you-learn training — apprentices are paid during the program; fees are tools/books, not tuition.

    $0–$2,000 · 36 months · varies by state source

  2. 2

    Journeyman exam & state/local license

    License

    Most states and municipalities test and license journeyman-level trades workers.

    $100–$600 · 1 months · varies by state · renews every 2 yr source

Estimated typical U.S. route for "Cooks, Fast Food" — built from BLS education requirements and College Board 2024–25 average published prices (public, in-state tuition + fees + books). Not yet verified against a specific state's licensing rules — confirm with your state licensing board or program.

Typical progression

  1. Junior Cooks, Fast Food

    Entry / Junior

    $22,580

    ~2 yrs to advance

  2. Cooks, Fast Food

    Established

    $30,890

    ~3 yrs to advance

  3. Senior Cooks, Fast Food

    Senior

    $36,900

Key skills

A typical day

  • •Order and take delivery of supplies.
  • •Cook the exact number of items ordered by each customer, working on several different orders simultaneously.
  • •Prepare specialty foods, such as pizzas, fish and chips, sandwiches, or tacos, following specific methods that usually require short preparation time.
  • •Operate large-volume cooking equipment, such as grills, deep-fat fryers, or griddles.
  • •Wash, cut, and prepare foods designated for cooking.

Fields of study

Any field

Top colleges for Skilled Trades

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Reputation-based selection; stats shown are outcome data per school.