Presentation

NEXT INTAKE: JANUARY 2027

Applications open until 18th december 2026 or Apply now to secure your place.

Cook with purpose. Create with identity. Evolve as a professional.

Contemporary Culinary Arts demands technical excellence, in-depth product knowledge and creative judgement to generate real value in professional gastronomic projects.

The Master’s Degree in Culinary Arts: Technique, Product and Creativity at Basque Culinary Center is designed for professional Chefs who want to take a decisive step forward in their careers. A programme that transforms experience into method, intuition into professional judgement, and creativity into a structured, applicable skill within today’s culinary industry.

Why this Master’s Degree will transform your career:

• Creativity grounded in knowledge

You will develop a structured approach to culinary creativity grounded in product knowledge, technical mastery and contextual understanding. Learn how to create dishes with meaning, coherence and a strong professional identity

• Advanced techniques and trends serving the concept

You will work with advanced culinary techniques, modern equipment and contemporary trends as tools to design and develop dishes with clear intent.

• 100% practical methodology · Learning by doing

The programme follows a hands-on, practice-based approach combining practical workshops, learning journeys, the development of a final master’s project, and a real dining experience for external guests., testing creativity and professional performance. The training is completed with professional placements in leading restaurants

• Immersion in the Basque Culinary Center ecosystem

Through masterclasses with renowned chefs and industry experts, and continuous interaction with an environment fully immersed in gastronomy, you will expand your professional vision and become part of an international culinary network.

• Real professional development

By the end of the Master’s, you will be a chef with stronger professional judgement, capable of understanding ingredients, applying technique with intention and adding creative value in diverse culinary contexts—both within established teams and in your own future projects.

PRACTICAL INFORMATION

• Start date: 18th january 2027
• Application deadline: 18th december 2026
• Language: english
• Duration: 60 ECTS
• Maximum number of places: 18
• On Campus modality 
• Location: Basque Culinary Center - GOe facilities in San Sebastián (Spain)
• Academic period:  junuary to june 2027
• Schedule: monday to friday, from 9:00 to 14:00 (CEST)
• Internship period: from july to octubre 2027
• A university degree is not required to enroll in the master’s program.
• Degree Type: University Own Degree awarded by Mondragon University and delivered by Basque Culinary Center
• Degree: Professional Master's in Culinary Arts: Product, Technique and Creativity
• For enquiries and further information click here and fill the form

TRAIN AT GOe: A pioneering gastronomic ecosystem

The Master's is delivered at GOe – Gastronomy Open Ecosystem, a pioneering space in Europe, driven by Basque Culinary Center in Donostia–San Sebastián, where innovation, creativity and excellence are ever-present. This environment has an ambitious purpose: to build a delicious, healthy and sustainable future through gastronomy, integrating talent, knowledge and technology with a single space.

OBJECTIVES OF THE MASTER:

• To acquire the skills and knowledge required to design well-executed recipes, from conceptualisation and technical execution to final presentation, ensuring coherence throughout the entire process.

• To develop advanced competencies in comprehensive ingredient knowledge and in both traditional and modern culinary techniques, understanding their application across different gastronomic contexts.

• To complete a professional internship in leading restaurants, applying the methodologies and skills acquired in a real, high-performance environment.

• To strength creative abilities to design dishes with a clear identity, mastering products, varieties and quality, placing technique at the service of the culinary concept.

• To integrate sustainability, traceability and resource efficiency into culinary decision-making, promoting a responsible and future-oriented approach to gastronomy.

• To elevate your professional profile beyond technical execution, developing a deeper level of culinary understanding and creative clarity. Throughout the program, you will refine your technique, deepen your understanding of products, and develop a more structured and intentional creative process.

CAREER OPPORTUNITIES

Upon completing the Master’s Degree, you will be prepared to grow within contemporary gastronomy, contributing greater professional judgement, creative capacity and value across different culinary settings. 

Career paths include:

• Fine dining restaurants and high-level culinary projects, as a specialised chef or chef de partie.

• Culinary creativity and innovation, contributing to the development of dishes, menus and gastronomic concepts.

• Gastronomic entrepreneurship, launching your own projects with a solid foundation in technique, product knowledge and creativity.

• Consultancy or culinary education, sharing technical and methodological expertise.

In addition, you will become part of the Basque Culinary Center ecosystem, an international professional network that fosters opportunities, collaboration and long-term career growth within thgastronomy sector.

Enhance your profile as a chef and achieve new professional opportunities to grow and contribute within high-end and fine dining kitchens, where creativity, rigor, and a distinctive culinary voice are increasingly valued.

10+1 Reasons

REASONS TO TAKE THIS MASTER’S:

1. Advanced culinary techniques mastery

​Develop in-depth expertise in advanced culinary techniques, mastering their most relevant applications in contemporary gastronomy.

2. Up-to-date training in modern Culinary Arts

Gain structured, professional training in the latest techniques and trends in modern Culinary Arts.

3. Global culinary perspective

Build an international outlook as a chef, becoming familiar with culinary techniques and gastronomic cultures from around the world.

4. Comprehensive ingredient knowledge

Understand the gastronomic properties of ingredients and improve their application through informed, professional decision-making.

5. Adaptability across culinary business models

Apply your technical expertise to adapt confidently to different culinary contexts and business models.

6. Learning from leading culinary professionals

Learn directly from top-level chefs and industry experts whose knowledge is usually shared at major international gastronomy congresses.

7. Hands-on training in cutting-edge facilities

Access state-of-the-art facilities and tools within a hands-on, practice-based learning environment.

8. Strong professional profile in gastronomy

Strengthen your value as a culinary professional with skills that are highly regarded across the international gastronomy sector.

9. Refined sensory skills and professional judgement

Develop sensory skills and professional criteria grounded in product knowledge and technical precision.

10. Structured culinary creativity and innovation

Unlock your culinary creativity to design coherent, distinctive recipes—integrating product quality, customer experience and technical accuracy into balanced culinary proposals.

11. Broaden Your Culinary Vision Through Local Immersion and Global Perspectives

You will connect culinary technique, local territory, and gastronomic innovation through immersive experiences that include visits to regional producers—gaining a deep understanding of ingredients from origin to plate. By learning alongside an international cohort and guest experts from diverse culinary cultures, you’ll discover new ways of working and enrich your worldview, strengthening your holistic identity as a chef.

Program

WHO IS IT FOR?

The Master’s in Culinary Arts: Technique, Product and Creativity is designed for professional chefs seeking to specialise in advanced culinary practice, strengthen their expertise in culinary techniques, develop a deep understanding of ingredients and products, and build a structured, applied creativity grounded in the real-world demands of contemporary gastronomy.

A university degree is not required to enroll in the master’s program.

This Master’s is for:

• Professional Chefs with experience in the restaurant industry, working in fine dining, contemporary restaurants or other culinary projects, who wish to refine their technique, broaden their product knowledge and develop their own creative judgement. 
• Graduates and degree holders in Culinary Arts and Gastronomy, with vocational training, university studies or non-formal programmes completed at leading gastronomic institutions, who seek to consolidate their professional profile and evolve towards greater technical and creative mastery. 
• Kitchen professionals with experience across different sections, interested in gaining a global view of the culinary process, understanding the relationship between technique, product and gastronomic concept. 
• Chefs aspiring to take on greater responsibilities, lead creative processes or join high-performing teams, bringing method, coherence and analytical capacity to culinary decision-making. 
• Professionals considering launching their own projects or growing within established organisations, who need to strengthen their technical foundation, creative judgement and ability to deliver gastronomic proposals with identity. 

It will be positively valued to have between 3 and 5 years of professional experience, preferably in positions of responsibility or with experience across different kitchen sections, although this is not an excluding requirement.

Don’t see yourself reflected in the points above but still interested in the Master’s?

If your qualification or experience is not included in the lists and you are interested in this Master’s, contact us so we can assess your case and provide personalised information.

Calendar

CALENDAR

Academic period: from 18th of January 2027 to 30th June 2027

• In-person classes: Monday to Friday, from 9:00 to 14:00 (CEST)

Internship period: from July to October 2027

*In case of academic or organisational needs, some sessions may be scheduled in the morning.

Methodology

The Master’s Degree in Culinary Arts: Technique, Product and Creativity is delivered through a learning by doing methodology, based on practice, experimentation and collaborative learning. This approach allows you to acquire core competencies and progress towards specialised applications. The curriculum is structured in progressive phases, integrating theoretical sessions with practical activities and real projects.

KEY ELEMENTS

• Lectures and presentations on culinary techniques, product, creativity or food physical chemistry, among others. Sessions delivered by experts in the gastronomic field that enable students to develop a critical and strategic perspective.

• Practical workshops. Hands-on kitchen hours to put into practice product work and the techniques covered in the programme. Rice dishes, offal, fish, fermentations, new equipment and much more.

• Masterclasses with leading industry figures, addressing emerging trends, creative processes, authorial vision and differentiation strategies in contemporary cuisine. These sessions provide a direct connection to the industry’s reality and its leaders.

• Gastronomic activities: tastings, samplings, workshops and sensory experiences focused on the technical-nutritional understanding of ingredients, their physicochemical properties and behaviour across different culinary techniques.

• Challenges and problem-solving dynamics, designed to enhance skills such as applied creativity, time management and adaptability in the kitchen. Each challenge invites you to solve real situations from a professional environment.

• Simulations and practice in real environments, such as the Faculty’s restaurant, where participants take on active roles in the kitchen and service. This operational space makes it possible to experience real conditions, delivering proposals to real clients.

LEARNING JOURNEYS

To enhance the learning experience, the Master’s includes meals at reference restaurants, and the intensive on-site period will conclude with a Learning Journey of two or three days to visit producers and gastronomic projects that foster a direct relationship with product and the dining experience. 

In previous editions, students have visited Bodega El Capricho—an exclusive experience focused on ox meat—and enjoyed dining experiences at Michelin-starred venues such as Ikaro and Barro.

FINAL MASTER’S PROJECT

During the Master’s, you will develop an experimental tasting menu (15–18 courses) as a team, working on a project that recreates a real professional environment.

You will go through all phases of the process (conceptualisation, development and execution) with the support of the teaching team.

The project culminates in a dinner service in front of a jury of industry professionals and Basque Culinary Center faculty, who will assess the technical and creative proposal as well as the overall gastronomic experience

PROFESSIONAL INTERNSHIP

You will be able to put your knowledge into practice and gain relevant experience for your professional career. Throughout the process, we manage your internship placement, taking into account your profile and the available opportunities.

You will have an information session and personalised guidance with the programme coordinator to review options and align expectations. It is important to consider your current situation and professional goals, as the internship requires three months of full-time dedication, with the possibility of extension. If you have a senior profile, you may be able to validate prior experience.

Get inspired by the students’ Final Master’s dinner:

Teachers and guests

FACULTY

The Master’s Degree in Culinary Arts: Technique, Product and Creativity has a faculty team made up of Basque Culinary Center chef-instructors with recognised academic and professional experience, together with experts in product, nutrition and food science, essential to understanding cuisine from a comprehensive perspective.

The programme is further enriched by masterclasses and seminars led by relevant restaurants, bringing a current perspective on innovation and culinary creativity into the classroom.

MASTER’S COORDINATION

Alberto Rodriguez

I am a culinary professional with an international career spanning Michelin-starred restaurants, luxury hotels, and large-scale gastronomic operations. I began my professional journey in Spain, developing a solid technical foundation in both pastry and contemporary cuisine while training in renowned kitchens such as Echaurren, Tickets and 41º by Albert Adrià.

I later expanded my career across Europe, Asia and the Middle East, taking on leadership roles in prestigious establishments including The Peninsula Beijing, Aqua Group Hong Kong and La Serre Dubai, where I refined a product-driven, technique-focused and innovation-oriented culinary approach.

In recent years, I have combined kitchen leadership with educational and strategic responsibilities, serving as Senior Expert in Culinary Innovation and Global Professional Trainer at Basque Culinary Center, designing advanced training programs and leading professional development initiatives worldwide.

CHRISTIAN MARQUINA

I am a chef specialized in Technique, Product and Creativity. My career has developed across high cuisine, team management and the strategic support of gastronomic projects.

Holding a degree in Food and Beverage Technology and a Master’s in Technical Cuisine and Product from Basque Culinary Center, I have worked for more than 15 years in high-demand international environments. I began my professional career in Ecuador and continued my development in several kitchens in New York, before consolidating my trajectory in Spain as part of restaurants such as Mugaritz, Miramar and Cal Enric, all linked to Michelin and Repsol-recognized projects.

I am currently a lecturer at Basque Culinary Center, where I coordinate the Culinary Arts area within Continuing Education.

Fees / Grants

Total Master’s Fee: € 17,740

Payment Options:

• € 150 upon application (fully refundable in case of non-admission).
• Upon admission confirmation, 25% of the total amount, which is € 4.397,5 as a reservation fee.
• The remaining amount will be paid in three installments of  € 4.397,5 in january, march and may.

The tuition fee includes:

• Academic materials
• Basque Culinary Center uniform
• Access to the learning platform
• Seminars and masterclasses included in the Master's program
• Educational visits (transport to the destination, visit management, and full board accommodation)
• Coordination of curricular internships
• Access to the Faculty's library with 6,000 references
• Issuance and delivery of the degree/diploma
• Enrollment in the Bculinary Alumni service
• Graduation event
• Personalized access card