Learnership Program For Tourism Professional Cookery 2025 – Apply Now

The Tourism Department has a new cooking program for young people who need jobs in South Africa. The program starts in 2025 and runs for one year. Students will learn how to cook like professionals and get real kitchen experience. The program teaches both cooking skills and theory to help students work in hotels & restaurants. Each student gets R4600 every month during training. Expert chefs will guide & teach the students throughout the program. This is a good chance for young South Africans who want to start a career in cooking. The program helps students learn everything they need to work as professional cooks. Students who finish the program can find jobs in tourism and hospitality businesses.

This training program helps young people find jobs and builds talent for hotels and restaurants. It gives people who love cooking a clear path to start their career in food service. Students get hands-on training and support to turn their interest in cooking into real job skills. The program fights youth unemployment while creating new chefs and food service workers for the industry.

Overview Of The Program

Who All Can Apply ? – Eligibility

There are few qualifications that you need to meet to apply for any program or vacancy so given below are few requirements that you need to meet to qualify :

• Age: Must be an unemployed South African youth between 18 and 35 years old.
• Citizenship: Must be a South African citizen with a valid ID document.
• Education: Must have a valid Matric (Grade 12) certificate.
• Language: Must be fluent in English.
• Experience: Previous participation in a Department of Tourism learnership or skills program is a disqualifier.
• Flexibility: Must be willing to work flexible hours, including weekends and public holidays, as is common in the hospitality industry.
• Desire: Must have a genuine passion for the tourism and hospitality sector.
• Advantage: A qualification in Tourism or Hospitality will be an added advantage.
• Disabilities: Persons with disabilities are encouraged to apply.

Advantages of the Program

Give below are the benefits that you will get if you get selected for the program these benefits would help you through out your life in some or the other ways :

• You’ll receive $250 per month to help with your living expenses while you’re in the program.
• Students learn real job skills through direct practice and training. They work on actual tasks that match what employers need today. This helps them develop useful abilities they can apply right away at work.
• After finishing the program students get a certificate that employers value. This helps them find better jobs and advance their careers. The qualification proves they have the right skills and makes them stand out when looking for work.
• The training program pairs students with skilled chefs who teach them important kitchen skills. These expert mentors share their knowledge and help students understand how restaurants work. Students learn from real professionals who have years of experience in cooking and running food businesses. This hands-on guidance helps new chefs start their careers with solid advice from people who know the industry well.
• The training program helps you get a job. It creates chances to work in hotels & restaurants which are growing fast. You can also build a strong future as a chef with this education.

Procedure for Application

The procedure for applying for the program is not very difficult you need to follow few basic and mandatory steps to apply. Given below below are the steps that you need to follow.

• Collet all the documents that you need to apply for the program that includes you ids photo etc.
• Go to a trusted student website run by the government and make your account. You will need to fill out some basic info to get started.
• Go to the section about learnerships and find the cooking program for 2025/2026. It’s called the Professional Cookery Learnership.
• Submit your details in our online form. Add your name address and phone number. Include your school history and make sure everything is correct. Double-check all information before sending it. Wrong details could stop your application from going through.
• Upload your documents with your online form. Make sure they are certified & easy to read in the scan.
• Write a strong letter that shows why you love cooking and working in tourism. Tell us what makes you excited about being a chef and working with travelers. Explain why you think you would do well in our program. Share your experience & goals to help us understand why you’re the right person to join.
• Send us your finished form before time runs out.

Selection Procedure

Getting picked for a learnership takes several steps. The process helps find the best people for the program. Most programs follow these basic steps to choose their candidates. The selection team looks at different things during each part. They want to make sure they pick people who will do well in the program. Each step helps them learn more about who might be a good fit. The whole process can take some time but it helps them make good choices. They look at many people before they decide who gets in. This way works better than just picking names from a list.

• We will check all applications to make sure they follow our basic rules.
• We will select the best applicants by looking at their grades personal statements and interest in the field.
• We might ask you to come in for an interview and show us your cooking skills. This helps us see if you’re a good fit for the program.
• We will notify the selected students and ask them to sign a contract that covers the full training period.

                     Important Dates To Be noted

You can apply for the learnership program starting in September 2025. Make sure to submit your application by September 30 2025. Don’t wait until the last day to apply because spots fill up quickly.