Atlanta, GA (population: 571,861) has two cooking schools within its city limits. The Art Institute of Atlanta, the highest ranked school in the city with a cooking program, has a total student population of 3,871. It is the 3922nd highest ranked school in the USA and the 85th highest in the state of Georgia (#1 is Emory University).
Cooking students from Atlanta schools who go on to become chefs, cooks, sous chefs, line cooks, etc. have a good chance at finding employment. For example, there are 94,300 people working as chefs and head cooks alone in the US, and their average annual salary is $44,240. Also, Cooks, private household make on average $27,720 per year and there are about 770 of them employed in the US today.
Atlanta lies in Fulton county, which is one of the 106 counties in Georgia. Overall, the Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Marietta area has 2,290,890 total employed workers according to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, with a 0% unemployment rate, $22/hr average worker wage, and a $45,520 average annual salary.
Of the 2 cooking schools in Atlanta, none have a student population over 10k. After taking into account tuition, living expenses, and financial aid, The Art Institute of Atlanta comes out as the most expensive ($36,852/yr) for cooking students, with Atlanta Technical College as the lowest, reported at only $5,914/yr.
| Name | State | Population | # of Schools | Avg School Rank | Total Programs | Distance from Atlanta |
| East Point | GA | 43,748 | 1 | 19.2965 | 19 | 6.9 miles |
| North Atlanta | GA | 51,827 | 0 | - | 0 | 8.6 miles |
| Smyrna | GA | 51,091 | 1 | 28.0461 | 13 | 9.5 miles |
| Clarkston | GA | - | 1 | 14.4911 | 66 | 10.9 miles |
| Dunwoody | GA | - | 2 | 14.3983 | 27 | 13.8 miles |
| Marietta | GA | 68,931 | 9 | 28.245 | 294 | 14.8 miles |
| Norcross | GA | - | 2 | 30.2342 | 8 | 17.3 miles |
| Lilburn | GA | - | 1 | 22.8637 | 13 | 18.3 miles |
| Roswell | GA | 88,928 | 3 | 23.7384 | 79 | 19.7 miles |
| Kennesaw | GA | - | 4 | 32.3396 | 98 | 21.4 miles |
| Alpharetta | GA | 51,285 | 0 | - | 0 | 23.1 miles |
| Conyers | GA | - | 1 | 21.0336 | 7 | 24.0 miles |
| Lawrenceville | GA | - | 6 | 29.0817 | 196 | 28.3 miles |
| Oakwood | GA | - | 2 | 16.9986 | 102 | 44.6 miles |
| Rome | GA | - | 3 | 29.4765 | 155 | 54.8 miles |
| Mount Berry | GA | - | 1 | 63.3969 | 60 | 56.4 miles |
| Lagrange | GA | - | 2 | 12.8452 | 41 | 61.3 miles |
| Dalton | GA | - | 1 | 15.0432 | 33 | 76.6 miles |
| Macon | GA | 94,286 | 6 | 33.1618 | 295 | 77.3 miles |
| Toccoa Falls | GA | - | 1 | 28.3429 | 33 | 83.8 miles |
| Rock Spring | GA | - | 1 | 1.08982 | 0 | 87.3 miles |
| Fort Valley | GA | - | 1 | 21.9471 | 51 | 89.0 miles |
| Warner Robins | GA | 64,183 | 3 | 21.3509 | 61 | 91.8 miles |
| Phenix City | AL | - | 1 | 9.50663 | 23 | 95.3 miles |