As far as slowly working my way into the industry, I’m not 100% sure that’s something I’d be capable of doing. Say I followed your general guide and worked late nights while keeping my 40 hours with my current employer. The big day comes and my new boss says, “hey, blablabla called off, we need you to fill in for her tomorrow afternoon.”

Obviously the new boss would probably already know I work full time elsewhere and probably wouldn’t offer such a shift to me to begin with, but I guess my point is, even if it was offered, what could I do? Call off sick from my main job to get a random Tuesday lunch shift?

This is where I was looking to bartending school. What I want is a good contact list, a little training, and an ice breaker in an interview. I don’t wanna work Friday nights to start, but eventually, sure. Something like a rung in my ladder when I talk to a manager and see if they know of anyone who has an open night of the week I could start would be what I’m looking for.

I guess what my view of this “debate” is…Is that bartending school is not for everyone, but surely it’s for someone. Reading the posted opinions here, do you think it’s something that may be for me? If not…what’s a guy to do to supplement his life with a decent part time gig as a bartender? Or am I maybe barking up the wrong tree?

I keep a small library of books behind my bar at all times, and feel that any bar that doesn’t stock at least three books on the subject of bartending isn’t worth a damn.

I would much rather see a bartender consult an expert than try to wing it with my drink any day.

If your not sure if bartending school is for you, let me ask you a question: What goes in a Vodka and Cranberry? If you can’t figure that out you need the school. I went, only because I didn’t know the diferent types of beer (I don’t drink beer) and the new shots or drinks….one major rule in bartending is that you’ll findout that one drink will have 5 different names. Don’t worry if you never heard of it, this is what you do:

#1) Ask you partner behind the bar if they heard of it (if “no” go to #2)

#2) If you have a bar recipe book (which I hate seeing someone use) look inside for the recipe (if “no” go to #3)

#3) Ask the customer whats in it. If they don’t know, I tell them they shouldn’t be drinking it.

Hope I put a light on things..Good Luck!

Thanks for writing.

I think what I really wanted out of the school was the confidence in making the drinks correctly and fast enough for my comfort. I got that.

The school was quite comprehensive, too. My instructor went over everything he can squeeze into two weeks/4 hours per day. The school requires their teachers to have Bachelors or a Masters Degree.

What really closed the deal for me was when they emphasized that I can always “come back” to review(retake the class) or master and practice mixing drinks.

I have 2 years part-time/full-time as barback in an upscale restaurant. Hopefully that will help in getting a job.

But I must say, if I owned or managed a bar/restaurant, I would take a graduate of the school in to serious consideration for a bartending position over someone who only had 6 months of barbacking or serving experience(although that’s a really big PLUS).

Thanks for the insight! You’re right, blanket statement regarding bartending schools is, in retrospect after meeting people like yourself, completely wrong. However, the current state of affairs suggests that bartending schools in this country are more often bogus than not.

I don’t know if there’s a direct correlation between that and the fact that bartenders themselves in this country are more often bogus than not.

I suppose the same could be said about the average American drinker. Anyway.

To answer your question, I think that putting the bartending school on the resume is probably a good thing, and hopefully you’ve already got some good experience under your belt to back it up.

My whole point is this: a resume with nothing but bartending school on it will more than likely get you sent home. Experience is king here.

Thanks for reading, and good luck!

Jeffrey

First off, I love your website! The content of your site, more than anything else I’ve come across, has confirmed for me that mixology and bartending are a hell of a lot more than a job or a set of skills–that there’s an art and a science to it as well.

The bartending school issue seems to be a hotly contested one…having researched it a little now, I’ve seen everything from “bartending schools are just a bunch of bogus shysters trying to take your money” to “bartending school is crucial and necessary and anyone who knocks it is insecure or narrow-minded.” And all VEHEMENTLY argued, too.

I went to bartending school in Chicago. (Actually, the same one that Pam of comment #15 above went to, and I had that same fast-talking teacher, who I’m told has since left.) And I agree with what seems to be the general consensus: yes, you learn some things, but not everything, and regardless it is rarely enough by itself to get you a job.

In fact, the best response for the “how do you break in” question that I’ve come across is just that you have to be in the right place at the right time. After some time on that first break-in job, you’ve cleared the experience hurdle, so it only needs to happen once. And that can be anything from sheer luck, like walking into a place that desperately needs someone THAT NIGHT and will take the chance on you, to being hired despite not having much experience because you bring something else to the table.

Case in point: when I was looking for work I had the bartending school certificate, and about a month bartending at a seasonal beach restaurant which didn’t really have a full bar to begin with and closed for the winter soon after I started working there. In other words, almost no experience. But I got the next job because I had a background and some connections in theater and the management wanted to start a bunch of new promotions, including an improv/comedy night. They figured I could help with that, so I won out over other candidates who presumably had more experience.

So it seems to me like a job-seeker ought to use whatever they have at their disposal–time, talent, even just persistence–to land that first gig, because after that it’s much easier.

Anyway, I wanted to ask you a question as well: most people agree that bartending school isn’t always going to help get a job, but some even say that it’s detrimental to have it on the resume. I’m moving cities in a month or so, and as I’m applying for new jobs, do you think that even if I have some experience, listing bartending school might cast a bad light on my application?

It’s good to know that there are legitimate schools out there. I mean, I imagined as such, but finding a quality bartending school is about as touch as finding a quality bar. In this day and age, it’s still sketchy at best.

I disagree with this “bartender”. I am living proof that the RIGHT school, say one that has been in operation for 40 years,can get you a job.

I just finished barschool in New York City on 29th street. Four days after graduating, I was hired at Seven Bar and Lounge on 7th Avenue for a Thursday night shift, as well as the Hard Rock Cafe for lunch and happy hour Monday through Friday.

How’d I get that?

Answer: I worked as a server for 5 years and headwaiter for 2 at Cheeseburger in Paradise.

If you are in the food industry and know the ropes of CUSTOMER SERVICE, take the bar class. Most times restaurants or bars will appreciate the fact that you went the extra step to learn how to bartend on your own; restaurants and co-workers of such establishments do not have time to train barbacks, or even walk-in hires from 3 weeks of coming to the same bar. Also, I have never seen a barback even come close to being a bartender in the method shown above; you bareback for at least 2-3 years in a PROFESSIONAL ENVIRONMENT. No one wants to loose money or take the time to teach because then THEY loose money. THEY TEACH YOU THIS AT BAR SCHOOL.

If you are really serious about bartending, get involved with the indistry by serving first. Learn the drinks as you are serving them. Build your resume, becuase in the REAL world, you don’t slide in that easily by making “friends” with a bartender. If you do, you are working at a bar that doesn’t even come close to volumous bars and restaurants in the city that make you REAL money, like 1,000 to 2,200 dollars a week.

EXPERIENCE in the industry is KEY. Time spent learning about all aspects of the industry lands you a job as a bartender.

PS. It helps knowing how to SERVE and BARTEND because you can cover multiple shifts.

Hope this helps someone in Manhattan reading this.

Sincerely,

A Professional Bartender.

I am constantly confused by the fact that most bartenders seem to think that their profession is one of the few where formal schooling is a waste of time. I think that part of the problem may be some sort of underdog image that needs to be kept up. Maybe it is a deep-seated feeling of low collective self-esteem? After all, bartending is not much different than cooking and there are plenty of professional culinary schools. Why should the bartending field not have great schools? Perhaps the main problem is that bartending schools have not come into their own with regard to quality.

I went to a bartending school almost a year ago here in Tampa. I have to say that they were up front about most everything. They said that I could sit in on a class if I wanted, that they get job leads but in no way guarantee a job, that other students get the same leads and that ultimately landing a job is up to the student, etc., etc. Naturally, they did hype themselves a bit and lauded all the jobs that their students have filled but that is to be expected.

I tend bar at private parties secured for me by the school (although I finally got my first job based on business cards I had made up and now hand out). This works out for me as I have a regular 40 hr (more like 50) per week job as an urban planner and a wife and a year and half old son at home. The flexibility works for me and there are almost always a handful of guests at each party who appreciate the fact that I’ve brought my own simply syrup, hand juicer, a variety of bitters and even some herbs (such as mint) from my garden and get the chance to enjoy a well-crafted cocktail (rather than just a gin and tonic).

My advice for anyone thinking about attending bartending school is to do a little homework and get a reality check:
1. Make sure they have an occupational license (if the community in which the school is located requires them);
2. Check with the local Better Business Bureau for negative reports;
3. Sit in on a class;
4. Ask about the qualifications of the instructors;
5. Ask where other students have gotten jobs and check them out and see what those students have to say;
6. Realize that a 40 hour course in just about anything is not going to make you a profession “fill in the blank”. Period, end of story.

As such, I do not call myself a bartender – I tend bar. I think there’s a difference. Umm, with one exception; I have a home bar and I am the house bartender there

Well, something possessed me to immediately enroll in a bar tending school in Chicago. I’ve never worked at a restaurant!! (yes, call me crazy) but I am sort of a “closet mixologist” and pride myself on some outstanding drink recipes I’ve created (always using my own fresh squeezed citris - never the nasty mixes). I also know about wines…blah blah blah. So I thought I might be a talented bar tender, right? Wrong. I started class the other day - I absolutely and completely HATE this style of learning. (and I’m an actress who can learn lines quickly…but this is bullcrap). I just do not see how people learn all these drinks in this short amount of time. The lessons are awful and fast and sloppy - the teacher slurs his words because he’s speaking too fast so I cannot hear him! - then we’re quizzed on the f—ing drinks without enough time to even learn them! Insane!

I’m going to cancel today and hopefully get some money back. I’m so disappointed. Maybe I’m just a bad bar tender! I thought I’d love it - I really have a passion for creating drinks and I’m very knowledgable on wines. But I suppose there is far more to it, yes?

I seriously give an outstanding applause to those of you already working in the industry. It really seems very very tough and you all are obviously very talented.

Best!

Many clubs in the region refer people to us. We actually invest in advertising to several thousand local employers and are able to generate constant new leads.

By the way, we never copy leads off of craigslist. So many of them require experience. What an act of bs.

Your suggestions are worthwhile also. There are a variety of ways to get bartending jobs.

People visit our school and we can show them actual new hard leads and where people got work.

Can’t speak for all bartending schools around the country but that is how we operate.

I found this page while jumping blogs, and this entry interested me in particular because all the people I know who bartend have told me that going to school will get you NOTHING at all… so I wanted to read what you had to say about it.

I also wanted to share with you that personally, this resonated because EVERYTHING YOU SAID WAS TRUE.

I’m a huge Golden State Warriors fan– that’s all fine. Except when they play away games. I don’t have television or fancy ESPN streaming broadcast subscriptions, so I bit the bullet a few months ago and went out looking for a bar, because the most common place to watch a sports game, supposedly, was a bar.

As I drove around, I spotted a television with Redwood-tall men in uniforms, and pulled into the lot. I parked, and made my way on inside, thrilled to have found a way to watch my boys play. The bartender sidled over and asked me what I wanted. I wasn’t there to drink, so I just ordered a beer and sat and watched my game. I wasn’t aware of the $3 tip rule– I only left $2.

The bartender sized me up a bit while I sipped my beer and watched the game. I was a youngish girl, alone, at a bar. He decided fairly quickly that I was not there to cruise for wang (like you said, the bar myth about girls alone in bars!!), and instead of one television playing football and one basketball, he had both of them on the basketball game because he said I was polite. He slid me a drink token and told me that next time I came in on his shift that I’d have to use it. I was thrilled. He introduced himself, then introduced me to a few of his regulars, and we got to talking a bit. He asked me what I was doing there, when there were so many “young bars” in town I could be going to. He named a few in the area and told me which people inside said bars I could talk to in order to make sure I was not harrassed. He then waved his arm about the place and said, “It’s not much, but it’s family.”

“I LIKE it!” I told him. It was sincere. Everyone was nice and seemed to know each other, the bartender was very personable AND I got to watch my game! After that, I thanked him and left.

The next away game, I went back. He remembered my name, remembered what sort of beer I liked, and turned the game on for me, as I was wearing my Warriors sweater. Another game was already in progress when I arrived, but he changed it anyway.

“You don’t have to do that, if they’re watching!” I told him, not wanting to upset the regular patrons.

“My bar, my rules,” he told me.

“Well, thank you very much.” I told him. He introduced me to another regular who I’d not met previously, on my right. The other patron, also very personable, paid for my beer. I still left a $2 tip (which was under what you said, sorry).

After the game was over, I still had half a beer left, so we got to a lot of talking. He told me about his life adventures and some of his aspirations and I shared mine as well. He taught me some self-defense moves on the patio just in case anyone ever “got fresh”. Then, he asked me how I would like to learn working bar. He told me it would be hard work, and that LISTENING was key, but that he was willing to teach. I told him I would be thrilled. He introduced me to the bartenderess that worked day shift, and she was just as nice as he was.

As midnight drew near, I told him I thought it was time to call the cab. Instead, he told me to grab my stuff and gave me a ride home, and had the bartenderess cover for him while he did so.

I am set to start working under him this month!

Everything you said was so true, and it just resonated so much. I know that was long-winded and probably unnecessary, but WOW. I get more excited every day!