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Lately, more and more people are being inspired by reality TV. No, they don't aspire to be on-screen drama queens with emotional issues. These individuals want to be pros. Do you have the reality career bug, too? Whether you want to be the next real estate mogul, high-fashion designer, or star chef, career-focused colleges can provide you with the proper training to cultivate the skills necessary to succeed.

Tycoon Dreams at Career Focused Colleges
During the third season of "The Apprentice" on NBC, Donald Trump challenged two groups -- book worms with impressive college degrees and entrepreneurs with only high school diplomas. When it came to book smarts versus street smarts, who won? Kendra Todd, a highly successful real estate agent who earned an undergraduate degree in linguistics from the University of Florida (Gainesville, FL).

If you think you've got what it takes to be Donald's right-hand man or woman, career-focused universities geared towards business and finance may be your first step. You may have the street smarts down, but the book smarts can inevitably take you to the end and help you land that job.

Cooking School Showdown
Had Ashley Parker Angel and Tom Arnold gone to career-focused colleges that specialize in the culinary arts, they may have actually had a chance at winning the short-lived "Celebrity Cooking Showdown" on NBC. Instead, they lost to Cindy Margolis under the direction of world-renowned chef Wolfgang Puck.

To enhance your kitchen prowess and fare better than "Celebrity Cooking Showdown" losers Ashley Parker Angel and Tom Arnold, consider career-focused colleges like the Kitchen Academy (Hollywood, CA), the Center for Culinary Arts - New England Technical Institute (Cromwell, CT), and the California Culinary Academy (San Francisco, CA). After completing your culinary degree at a career-focused university, you could be the next Wolfgang Puck!

School Fashion Project
If you caught any episodes of Bravo's "Project Runway," you're well-aware what role education plays in the fashion industry. Your creativity can only take you so far. An education, like one that you'd receive from career-focused colleges, can be the thing that sets you apart from your competition.

Chloe Dao, who took the cake and won the competition, attended the Fashion Institute of Technology (New York, NY) where she focused on pattern making. During her undergraduate studies, she was able to learn the necessary skills to design clothing and create a portfolio that helped her land a spot on the hit reality TV show.

By now, you should have gotten the professional career bug from these on-screen competitors. If you're interested in taking up a career in business, culinary arts, and fashion design, attending one of the many career-focused universities out there can be your meal ticket. Although you may not be vying for a spot on a reality TV show, you'll need an education to back you up wherever you go in the real world.

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