I was wondering if anyone knew anything about this school. www.ciachef.edu It's located in Hyde Park, NY, a few hours north of NYC. I'm looking into going to school for pastry and baking, and this school looks amazing!
If anyone has any tips or opinions on schools, i'm all ears! I'm going to be staying in the northeast, preferably in NY or maybe PA.
Thanks!!! 
I think this is considered the Gold Standard in the US. (Not to take anything away from Johnson and Wales, which is also amazing, but not as well-known 
) One of my friend's sons is going to the CIA in Napa, California. It is the graduate version of the CIA since he already has a degree in hotel management and has worked in restaurants. The stuff he is learning is pretty intense! He is working hard, but enjoying it a lot. I hear it is extraordinarily expensive, but then culinary school just is.....
I looked into a week's wedding cake program at the CIA and it was $805.00 for four half days and I don't think room and board were included. OUCH!
If you can make it work, I'd go for it! You can probably work anywhere when you are done!
JWU and the CIA are like Harvard and Yale of Culinary schools..lol
So whatever classes you can get...get them!
Good luck!
In high school when I was considering going to school for Pastry Arts, the CIA was my top choice. It has wonderful programs, it is expensive but it is the top of the line school for Culinary arts in the US-and at the time they also had "sister-schools" that I could attend overseas for a semester or two. They also had internships (which some of the places I looked at didn't offer)
The other perk to me was that they had a program specifically for Pastry arts. Where a lot of other schools have Pastry with their other culinary programs. I am one who if I am paying a lot for my schooling then I want to learn what I want to learn or what is specific to my field.
However I never attended as my life took me in a different direction and I am not in the culinary field full time anymore. But I would still love to take classes there someday.
If you can go and can afford it I would say go for it!
Good luck.
Kristy: yes, It is about 90 miles north of NYC. I use to live 5 minutes from the CIA. My husband and I (before we were transferred to NC) have gone and had dinner there, it is the BEST! I would recommend going if you can swing it! It is a A++ school. 
Thanks everyone for the feedback. Right now I have it narrowed down to CIA or NECI. Both are quite a chunk of change (about $25,000 per year), but I feel that it's worth it to follow my passion and do what I love as a career, and if I don't do it now, then I'm afraid that it will never happen. I'm planning on applying for every financial aid thing I can, every little bit will help!! 
Kristy, see if they have "achievement loans" these loans are very reasonable and the repayment is scheduled based on your grades.
Right now if I keep my 3.5 I only have to repay 50% of the loans back. The unfortunate thing is they don't pay 100% of your education but every little bit helps!
If I go for a BA and keep a 3.5 I don't pay any of it back.
Check with the school that your interested in attending...they have f inancial planners!
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