Choosing education to learn a job skill is a very important decision. The reason you are considering Bartender School, or any other type of vocational education, is to get a job upon completion. Here are some important facts in helping you to be a wise and educated consumer in choosing the program that is right for you and to help you meet your goal of gainful employment upon graduation. Choosing a school is an important decision which affects your future success. Look around and visit the schools you are considering.
Licensed or Approved Schools by the State Education Department:
The State Department of Education requires that all schools that teach vocational education be licensed or approved. These schools must meet strict financial requirements; course curriculums, the school’s classroom & equipment, as well as the instructors that teach them must be approved. Prior to licensing or approval the school must submit fire inspections, health department inspections, and building safety inspections. Job placement programs must have a high success rate and documentation of this is reported to the state each year. A licensed or approved course or curriculum is only allowed to be taught at the school that is licensed.
Unlicensed or Unapproved Schools:
These schools operate in violation of the law. They have not met any of the strict requirements that licensed or approved schools has achieved. They are not regulated in what they teach, how they teach, and where they teach. Since they are neither licensed or approved any certification issued upon completion is invalid.
Bartender Seminars taking place at a Hotel:
Quick seminars that breeze in and out of town and meet once a week over 3 to 5 weeks, might lead you to believe that they are a school and will teach you an approved course, but it is not true. They might tell you that you will be certified, but if the course is not licensed or approved, their certification or diploma is invalid. Hotel rooms with make shift bars are not approved by the Education Department as a vocational training facility.
Bartending Classes offered by Colleges:
College type bartender courses are not really geared for actual vocational training. They are usually listed as a self improvement course. They usually range from 12 to 16 clock hours in length and meet for class once a week in a traditional classroom setting. Self improvement courses are not required to be approved by the State Education Department. Vocational training courses must be approved. Just because a course is offered by a college does not mean that it is actually vocational training. You will learn some drinks by attending the course offered by the college, but it will not make you a confident and functional professional bartender and ready to enter the job market.
Internet or Home Bartending Courses:
Bartending is not one of those courses where you can learn at home from an Internet Course or a Home Study Course. Bartending is a profession where you not only need to acquire knowledge, but you need to learn the motor skills that your body will be using while you are on duty. Could you imagine learning to drive an automobile by just reading a book or information contained on a disk, or by watching a video? No of course not. The people selling that course can make any type of statements they wish. There is no one to regulate what they say. Professional bartending is a vocational trade in which a School License must be achieved. That is the law. The Department of Education monitors the curriculum and advertising of all schools. Don't waste your money on an Internet or Home Study Course. You will not be able to function behind an actual bar. The people offering it should be ashamed of themselves for offering such a product.
Helpful Hints:
Attend only a school that is licensed or approved by your state’s Education Department.
Visit the schools in your area before making a decision. When looking at schools, make sure to compare the classroom, the job placement assistance programs, the textbooks and materials....make a decision based on that. Especially, do you think that you will get a job from that school?
Ask to see the school’s license or certificate to operate as a school issued by the Department of Education. Don't take the word of the person that you are speaking to. If they can't show you a current license, they don't have one. The law requires you to have one and show it upon request.
Ask about their current job placement rate and ask to see documentation.
If a school guarantees you a job, beware. It is against the law to guarantee a job to any student.
Remember, you always get what you pay for.
Contact the Department of Education in your state.