How To Become A Food Preparation Worker: What It Is and Career Path

What is a food preparation worker and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

2 min read

There is more than meets the eye when it comes to being a food preparation worker. For example, did you know that they make an average of $12.02 an hour? That's $25,004 a year! Between 2018 and 2028, the career is expected to grow 2% and produce 17,700 job opportunities across the U.S.

ScoreFood Preparation WorkerUS Average

Salary

2.0

Avg. Salary $25,004

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level

4.8

Growth rate 2%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity

7.1

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 1.01%

Asian 7.28%

Black or African American 12.89%

Hispanic or Latino 17.19%

Unknown 5.05%

White 56.58%

Gender

female 53.42%

male 46.58%

Age - 34

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 34

Stress level

4.8

Stress level is manageable

7.1 - high

Complexity level

6.2

Complexity level is intermediate

7 - challenging

Work life balance

6.6

Work life balance is good

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become a food preparation worker

Explore food preparation worker education requirements

Most common food preparation worker degrees

High School Diploma

46.0 %

Associate

17.9 %

Bachelor's

17.0 %

Start to develop specific food preparation worker skills

Skills	Percentages
Customer Service	19.84%
Food Handling	15.51%
Clean Rooms	9.61%
Food Preparation Equipment	8.85%
Basic Math	8.29%

Complete relevant food preparation worker training and internships

Accountants spend an average of Less than 1 month on post-employment, on-the-job training. New food preparation workers learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as a food preparation worker based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real food preparation worker resumes.

Research food preparation worker duties and responsibilities

Maintain cleaned and sanitize cafeterias.
Assist with planning and directing food preparation and culinary activities along with safely handling and storing all products appropriately.
Wash dishes, pots, pans and trays by hand and automatic dishwasher.
Prepare and cook large quantities of food for institutions, such as schools, hospitals, or cafeterias.

Prepare your food preparation worker resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your food preparation worker resume.

You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on a food preparation worker resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

Choose from 10+ customizable food preparation worker resume templates

Build a professional food preparation worker resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 10+ resume templates to create your food preparation worker resume.