Thoughts on Finding the Perfect Externship

February 26, 2005

Although 15 months at the CCA seems like a vast expanse of time on our first day of orientation, as each class slips by and as we settle into the rhythms of the school, we all too soon find our thoughts darting to our last three months of education -- the all-important externship, where we put everything we’ve learned to the test in a live restaurant setting.

For many of us, the externship will be our first time in a professional kitchen, and although the CCA strives to prepare us for any situation, no one really knows what they’re going to experience until they show up on the first day. Some of us might be fortunate enough to be thrown directly onto the line, while others might spend all three months peeling vegetables and never get a chance to learn a station first-hand. With so much uncertainty, how can a student ensure that he or she has a valuable experience?

“The most important thing to remember about your externship is that this is your one opportunity to get in the door at a place that ordinarily wouldn’t give you a second glance,” says Chef Tony Marano, a chef at the CCA for more than ten years. “You have opportunities now that you won’t have even 6 months out of school, so you should try to get into the best place you can, even if it seems unattainable.”

Indeed, students with no previous experience in a professional kitchen before the CCA have found themselves in externships at places such as the Fifth Floor, Domaine Chandon, and Boulevard. In many cases, securing an externship at a great restaurant is just as much about having the right attitude and a little gumption as it is about having an impeccable resume.
“If I’m a chef hiring an extern, the thing that’s going to be most important to me is not that the candidate is a hot-shot, but that they’ll be willing to do anything, with no complaints,” says Marano. “I need to know that they’d take out the garbage if asked. A few CCA students enter their externship feeling a sense of superiority since they’ve gone to this school – that’s just the wrong attitude. If you’re not willing to do what you’re told, or if you feel that you deserve more responsibility simply based on your background, you’re not going to get anywhere in a kitchen.”

One of the ways that chefs can tell whether you’ve got the right attitude is by looking at who you’ve worked with in the past. Even if you’ve never worked in a restaurant and don’t have time to take on a part-time job during the week, there are still opportunities to get some kitchen-credibility. Offer to do a stage at a high-end restaurant – nothing gets you in the door of a kitchen faster than offering to work for free, and by volunteering your time you will have more control over the hours you work and the names your can put on your resume. Have a favorite chef at school who does weekend catering gigs? Ask if you can work with them on one or two events. Not only will you get paid, but if the chef likes you enough to work with you more than once, it’s one of the best references you can get.

Although it’s important to get into the best kitchen you can, Marano also notes that smaller restaurants offer more opportunities for learning and give you more contact with the executive chef - generally the reason you’ve chosen an externship site in the first place. “By joining a larger restaurant or hotel with an ostensibly better reputation, you may just peel shallots all day. It's always better to work in a smaller place with a chef willing to teach.”

How do you know if a chef is willing to teach? Do your homework. Talk to as many other chefs as possible to learn about their favorite places to work, and their favorite people to work for. When you go in to interview, prepare a few questions to ask ahead of time, like what you’ll most likely be doing, and who you’ll be working with every day. Remember, you’re interviewing them just as much as they’re interviewing you. If you feel dissatisfied or unsure about anything you see or hear, keep looking.

In the end there’s no telling what kind of experience you’re going to have as an extern. Even the most careful student can end up in an ugly situation due to employee turnover and other factors outside of your control. However, chances are if you do your homework and have the right attitude, even you can work at Chez Panisse.

Eggs have absolutely nothing to do with the CCA externship...but aren't they nice?