[ny home cook]

Message:
I am currently enrolled in a culinary arts certificate program and in the middle of it I am required to do an internship. I was wondering if anyone out there knows if there are any restaurants on L.I. that will readily hire an intern for a couple of months. I have no real experience besides school. Should I just start making random calls to restuarants I might be interested in? What are some good questions I should ask, besides "Will I be paid?"
Sharing of past experiences would also be helpful.
Thanks in advance.

 

[suzanne]

I'd think that if they require an internship, they should at least tell you a little bit more than you seem to have been told already. Maybe they just haven't gotten to that point yet. Ask your instructor(s) first about the mechanics of it. Ask the placement office, if your instructor(s) can't tell you. They should be able to tell you if there are approved sites they might send you to or whether you have to find your own, whether or not you can expect to be paid, what the time requirements are, what the reporting requirements are (both by you on your experience there and by your supervisor on your performance and growth).

If you DO have to find your own, think of all the restaurants you really like in your area, and, yes, go bang on their doors. Just not during service, please. Ask to speak to the chef. Tell him/her that you're a student at (wherever it is), that you have to do an internship, that you admire the food there and would like to work there. Be prepared with all that information about responsibilities and requirements before you go.

I'm not sure what the regulations are now in NYS about whether or not you must be paid (6 years ago, when I did mine, I worked for free). But, again, someone at your school should be able to tell you. Just ask.

Oh, and by the way -- there are lots of other possible venues besides restaurants: hospitals, schools, agencies that are part of the Interfaith Nutrition Network, businesses that have their own cafeterias, retail stores (take-out), and so on. (Hotels might be iffy, since if they are union shops you probably can't work there -- but I could be wrong.) Keep an open mind, and look for a site where you'll learn the most -- even if right now you don't think you'll want to end up there forever.

Finally, look back through some of the earlier threads here. I seem to remember that others have asked similar questions before. But we're always willing to answer again! Good luck!

 

[chiffonade]

What school are you attending? Any school worth its salt should either place you directly in a restaurant or at least give you a sheet of references so you can call restaurants aware of your school's program.

It sounds like the school really isn't doing its part.