The cafeteria is considered one of the most interesting or boring places in the school. It mainly depends on the types of food that are served to students. Cafeteria workers in school unlike normal cafeteria workers have to follow strict regimes imposed by the school committee. Hence, they have to undergo an interview process to evaluate their skills. Let us know the ‘School Cafeteria Worker Interview Questions’.
The normal cafeteria workers would mostly be appointed without interview processes. They also can start up a café. But in the case of school cafeteria workers, they have to work under the school premises. In this article, we will have a detailed discussion on what types of questions are asked to a cafeteria worker by the school committee.
At first, we will move on to the general questions as these questions are asked at first. General questions require general answers hence you don’t have the stress a lot about it. Answering in a focalized manner will always make you deviate from the question. Hence, To answer efficiently to general questions, provide a systemic answer briefly. Most of the general questions will be comforting.
Why do you intend to work in a cafeteria?
This question is asked at the first or in the initial stages of an interview. Since it is asked at first, make sure your answers are logical and impressive. The first impression is always the best. You should tell about your past work experiences and how they have led you here. Express more of your skills and describe your past work experience related to the work that you applied for.
What strikes you to push forward working as a school cafeteria worker?
Here, convey your true feelings about working as a cafeteria person. Mention what motivates you to provide a good service to students as a cafeteria worker. It can be anything based on your past personal experience, witnessing children eating habits in the present day, and so on. For example, if your motivation to work is developing a nation where children get proper meals, your answer should be this way,
in today’s world where there is a lack of proper eating among the young generation, I want to uplift a generation with standard eating habits and eradicate the concept of malnutrition from them.
Mention the things in this job that are considered your favorite
Now, you should list out your favorite part of the job for this question. This question is asked to check what kind of a person you are. Hence, be truer to yourself while answering. An honest answer is always appreciated since it becomes easier for the recruiter for which position to put you in. it is beneficial to you as a worker since you get to work in a place you feel comfortable.
How good are you at adapting rapidly changing workplace?
As a cafeteria worker, you have to migrate your cafeteria from a lot of places each year. It is imbecile to put up a cafeteria in one location for a long period. Hence, you should have the ability to always adapt to changes in location and other factors. This question is better when responded to with a positive answer as negative answers will be less impressive to the recruiters.
These are some of the first sets of questions asked. In the second set, the recruiter asks about the candidate’s background and experience. Having a CV, Resume, or Cover Letter always helps. The candidate should mention any experience related to the job when asked. Replying with “I have no experience” should not be done during this process. Even if you have zero experience related to the job you applied for, talk about things that made you apply for this job. Talking about your interest in a particular job also means a lot at this stage.
What are your strengths and weaknesses?
Now, this requires practice to answer. Talk about an experience where you had to face these strengths and weaknesses. This cannot be mentioned in the documents you submit, it should come from you. The quality of the answer depends on how you frame them. Your weakness should be always mentioned with a solution on how you overcome that weakness. The sample answer:
I consider making good quality food as my greatest strength. I have received much appreciation for this quality in the previous sectors I worked. However, not having the ability to accept my mistakes in the food I prepared is one of my weaknesses. I overcome this by seeking help from my co-workers and mentally preparing myself.
What is your approach to handling food waste?
As a person who works in a food-based sector, wasting food should be considered a big no. Put up an answer where you mention how important food is to humanity and mere wasting can lead to facing many challenges in the future. Talk about the importance of educating about the disadvantages of wasting food and also mention the creative ideas you have to decrease food wastage.
Describe a situation where a difficult decision was taken by you as a cafeteria worker
This question should also be answered based on your experience as a cafeteria worker. Frame a good answer displaying the situation you face and what impact of your decision. You should be confident enough to answer this question as any inability to answer the question will be considered a lie to the recruiter. Your decision should be such that it leads to a good cause.
Now that the second set of questions comes to an end, the third and the final section consist of in-depth questions. Here, the recruiter will get to know more about how educated you are in the field. They judge you based on your presentation of answers and hence any answer that is not logical enough will simply state your status as a cafeteria worker. Always think twice before you answer the question and it is best to prepare yourselves to respond to these questions. The in-depth questions asked are as follows;
How come you measure the cooking and storing temperature for the food items?
Answer the question with the knowledge you gained from your prior cooking experiences. Make sure the temperature is almost near the accurate value. Any value which is extremely far from the actual value will make your answer seem illogical. If you don’t have any prior experience in cooking and storing food, research it before the interview process. Remember that most of your answers need prior researching. Hence, look for the most asked interview questions and find the answers thereby preparing you.
What is the usual method of sterilizing the equipment and food ingredients?
If you are a cafeteria worker, the hygiene of the food you serve should be of top priority. Food hygiene and quality is important than delicious food. Moreover, if you work in a school cafeteria, there will be lots of children consuming the food you prepare. Children are more prone to infections and diseases when contaminated food is consumed. Hence, more care should be taken while preparing the food. During the interview process, mention the different stages of cleaning the food ingredients and large types of machinery.
Where do you see your career in 10 years?
Now, this is a less factual and more personal question. You can answer this question based on the career path you choose. Telling about your career path which is related to the work you are doing currently is better as the recruiter only cares to know whether you can be a permanent worker or not. Put a proper framework to your answer and make a connection between your career desires and current work.
What are your salary expectations?
It can also be considered a question with a freestyle answer. The expectations might be different for each. You can feel free to say your salary expectations but they should be of a valid range. That is, expecting too much or expecting very less might lead to a loss. Hence, always do a prior study on the salary range for what you work. Many platforms provide information about the salary range for each position in most companies. Your salary expectations should be based on how much the company can provide. But remember to never ask less than what a company can give you.
What is your experience in handling certain kinds of food items?
This can be based on the experience you have before. As a cafeteria worker, to excel at your work, you should have experience in handling most kinds of foods. It can be salad bars, buffets, fish, poultry, shellfish, meats, etc. you might have to prepare a variety of food items since providing the same menu every day will be boring. Hence, practice cooking with every kind of food item and convey your experience based on it. The chances of accepting you as a worker will be more if you provide a positive response in handling various food items.
Conclusion
In today’s generation where everything has advanced, there are interviews conducted even for hiring a school cafeteria worker. The questions asked can be interesting, easy, and at times a bit more tactful. An interview process is one of the crucial stages in a job appointment but for jobs like cafeteria work, it can be of no stress as long as enthusiasm is shown by the worker.
keeping a record of various past experiences is also an important factor. In addition to all these, when you get an opportunity to ask questions to interviewers, never fail to grab that. It will always make you seem more interested to work.
