The Culinary Institute of America is a training institute for culinary arts in the United States.

Founded in 1946 and located in Hyde Park in Dutchess County, New York, USA, a few miles north of Poughkeepsie, the school uses the initials CIA for itself.

The school offers two Bachelor of Professional Studies (B.P.S) degrees—one in Culinary Arts Management, the other in Baking and Pastry Arts Management—or an Associate of Occupational Studies (A.O.S) in Culinary Arts or Baking and Pastry Arts.

The CIA also maintains a branch campus, the Culinary Institute of America at Greystone, in the Napa Valley in California.

Two books have been written about the CIA The Making of a Chef by Michael Ruhlman documents his experiences as an "undercover student" as he passes through the classes at an accelerated rate, and The Soul of a Chef also by Ruhlman, documents seven chefs taking the grueling ten day Master Chef test held annually at the CIA, a bistro owner rising to stardom, and Thomas Keller's French Laundry. Kitchen Confidential by Anthony Bourdain features an in-depth discussion of the author's tutelage at the CIA.

The 1995 movie Heavy starring Pruitt Taylor Vince, Shelley Winters, and Liv Tyler features several scenes shot on location at the CIA.


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