How not to get a job in my shop

[rat]

I am always continually amazed at applications I get. Currently I am looking to hire a bakers apprentice/helper for our artisan bread program.

Today I got one from a recent culinary school graduate. The FIRST sentence of the cover letter read " Being a recent culinary school of &^%$##%% graduate I am probably waaay too overqualified for this job but...". That is as far as I got before I trashed it. Yes there were 3 a's in waaay. Do people actually want jobs? Just a rant.

 

[gunnar]

wow. you make me feel better. Thank You.

 

[kuan]

I always like the ones looking for a sous position. 

 

[leeniek]

Unfortunately I think culinary schools (some not all) put it into their students' heads that once they drop the $6K or whatever the course fee is they will graduate and become executive chefs right away.  Uhm yeah right ok on that one...NOT!  Sure they're going to have book knowledge but they're going to have to work their way to the top. 

 

[kyheirloomer]

6K? 6K?

I recently heard that with it's new tuition rates it costs $40,000 to graduate CIA.

 

[leeniek]

KYH  6K was what I was told the fee was from a private culinary college and their course is less than one year in length.  

 

[leeniek]

Oh and KYH.. I love your signature!!  I've read most of the Nero Wolfe books, got my husband into them and we loved the TV show!

 

[cycle1667]

Sometimes you have to take the kids aside and show them where they went wrong.  It helps if they spend time in a kitchen before spending time and money on school. 

________________________________________

Cincinnati Dining

 

[foodpump]

Actually, Rat, if you want to be a Harda** and make the world a better place, keep the resume on file. 

Wait 6 mths and mail the thing back to the orginal sender, no comments or additons needed.  Odds are a 100 to 1 that the dude might just actually realize what a jerk he was.  Lousy odds I know, but a good thing to do.

Me?   I've been know to mail invoices for time wasted to noobie no-shows, and have mailed conflicting resumes of the same applicant (two resumes from different times, with conflicting lengths of employment or qualifications) back.  I've never heard back from any of those people, but then again, I've never had my letters sent back to me either....

 

[skatz85]

thats messed up, cant believe someone would send that in to a job.no respect at all. people like are the ones that ruin the reputation of my school.i can relate to this since i just graduated myself and some just dont understand it. most think they will be foodnetwork stars or something big as soon as you get out, and im sure u could if u had the right networking, but not really. alot of time when i had talked to chefs of other restuarants on several occasions, they stated how some of the students acted like they knew things and this and that. louisville is small so if a few students act ingnorant or think they are the chef, mostof us who take it seriously suffer. i wish i could workk closely with a chef and learn his ways but havent had the opportunity, kind of blows

 

[rat]

Don't get me wrong here, I am not down on culinary students, just the fact that the girl applying would actually write that in her cover letter.

Thats what got my ire up. Without even coming in and seeing what we were about. Maybe she was overqualified for a apprentice position but then why apply? I still can't figure that out. This week we had our new hire walk out after screwing up a batch of scones 2 times. He couldn't get the scaling right and the boss let him know how he "felt" about it after the second screw up. He went to take a break and never came back LOL!.

 

[leeniek]

It was pretty nervy to write that in her cover letter.  Maybe she was applying for the position because she has been unable to find employment in the area where she feels she is qualified? 

Sorry to hear about your hire, rat.. some people are just not cut out for this business. 

 

[chefboyarg]

I know that when I graduated from school our chef-instructors told us exactly what was waiting for us: low pay, long hours, crazy chefs and fantastic opportunity.  We even had a few classes in our communications class on resume writing. I don't recall there being a lecture on stressing over qualifications though.

 

[foodpump]

Well  Rat, you don't need to apologize or explain yourself, everybody's had those kind of cover letters.  I had one resume with "  As my cooking skills are in great demand, I have no time available for cleaning equipment...".  As Bugs would say, "what  a maroon"..

  An insult is an insult, and a kick in the crotch is a kick in the crotch.  It's just that the applicant doesn't realize what a jerk she's been.  Most employers will do the same thing you did and toss the whole application out, and our little student friend won't know what she' s done or why nobody responds to her.

 

[gunnar]

 "  As my cooking skills are in great demand, I have no time available for cleaning equipment...".  As Bugs would say, "what  a maroon"..

 Are you kidding me?, my resume says that I am "Familiar with the proper use and cleaning of most restaurant equipment."  and I always try to get it into the interview that I have no issues jumping in the dish pit to help out. But then I never did go to culinary school and have people blow smoke up my derriere to inflate my ego. Also, I know there is someone waiting for my job.

 

[foodpump]

Nope, no B.S.  but then, if you read between the lines or "guessed" when reading the resume, the dude was a shop steward in a Union run central kitchen. 12 years in the same position, terminating when the Hotel got sold.

One of the funniest things I ever read on a resume was the job title "drop Chef" from this one guy who was applying for a prep cook position.  Needless to say, I was intrigued, 25 years in the biz and I had never heard of the term "drop Chef".  Had  to call the guy up just to find out what "drop Chef" meant.

It's the guy who drops stuff in the fryer basket, and then drops the bsket into the fryer.......

Don't spill coffee on your keyboard now............ 

 

[gunnar]

lol, I thought he was the guy that made the drop biscuits....live and learn.

 

[rat]

Is a drop chef like a hydro-ceramic engineer AKA dishwasher??

 

[gypsy2727]

I have one for you

"Not available on weekends"

WTF

 

[leeniek]

I have one for you

"Not available on weekends"

WTF

I've had that told to me to my face in an interview before.  Needless to say that person was not hired.