Waiter/Waitress careers guide & job profile

Waiting on tables is work you can find almost anywhere, because people always need to eat. It can be done part-time or as a summer job in a way you can fit around studies.

It can help you to get valuable life and work skills that can be used in ALL KINDS of jobs, so it’s a real door-opener for opportunities. Oh, and you can cook up a sweet career in hospitality and catering too.

Useful skills to put in your CV for waiting staff jobs:

• Great communication skills – you’ll set customers at their ease, and anticipate their needs.
• Keeping calm under pressure – restaurants can get big busy periods where you’ll be flying around the restaurant like a rocket, but you’ll look cool, calm and collected. Customers are there to eat delicious food served on time in a great atmosphere, not to watch staff looking hot and bothered as they start to panic.
• Good self-management skills – you can be organised and look after customers without your manager always telling you what to do.
• Good presentation skills – ou are the ambassador for the restaurant, and also like an actor on a show. It’s your job to not only deliver the food but a great atmosphere. You’ve often heard it said that good customer service makes people remember your name, tip you well and come back time and time again. For you, presentation means how neat and tidy you look, and how carefully and smoothly you deliver and remove food. Try not to drop any glasses!

Skills-boosting tip

Work on your number, word and memory skills. You may need to add prices together, or help customers who want to chip in separately for one big bill. You definitely want to be sure you’ve got the orders right and don’t forget them!

How do you get these skills?

Vocational qualifications and work experience will help you build these skills over time.

Build Your Skills With the FREE Young Professional Programme

School, College And Training

You don’t need any set requirements for this job, so your study qualifications don’t matter if you want to get your foot in the door. Previous waiting experience does come in useful, but it’s often not essential. Everyone has to start somewhere – and even with no experience, you can treat this as a chance to shine as brightly as the glasses you’re laying out on the table!

Waiting is a fantastic job because you can add it to your CV as the first paid work you’ve ever done. That’s not to say it’s easy or low-level, though. Good waiting staff know it’s a learned skill, and there’s a huge difference between phoning it in and being passionate about what you do.

You’ll learn about customer service, meeting tight deadlines and managing your time. You’ll learn about human psychology and anticipating someone’s needs. You’ll develop skills in prioritising everything that needs doing, visual presentation and many other valuable elements that make up a true Young Professional.

Waiting on tables is what you make it. It could lead to networking opportunities, your dream career and more.

Apprenticeships

You can enter the hospitality and catering industry with an apprenticeship. This will give you structured training while you work and earn, and industry-recognised qualifications.

There are lots of catering apprenticeships available to meet your level of work experience and learning, from basic and intermediate apprenticeships to ones specialising in catering management.

Learning and earning as a catering trainee or catering apprentice will get you a good grounding in the industry, and you can build work experience and further education learning to work towards a management position.

Example catering apprenticeships include:

• Hospitality and Catering Apprenticeship
• Food and Beverage Catering Management Apprenticeship
• Hospitality Management Higher Apprenticeship

While at school or college, speak to your careers advisor about useful training and/or courses for you to take and find out more about the types of career routes available.

College, University and Degrees

Useful subjects to study at HNC/HND or degree level if you want a hospitality and catering career that’s a full feast, not just a starter:

• Hospitality management
• Hotel and catering management
• Hospitality, leisure and tourism

Hospitality Management Training

If you are currently working in a waiting staff role you could develop your future management skills by taking a relevant hospitality qualification such as:

• Level 3 Diploma in Hospitality Supervision and Leadership
• Level 4 Diploma in Hospitality Leadership

Hospitality Graduate Schemes

If you are interested in joining a graduate recruitment scheme you will need a degree. These schemes are usually available with large restaurants and fast-food chains. Having a degree in the following subjects could be beneficial when applying; business or management, hospitality management or hotel and catering.

Structured management training schemes for graduates generally last between 12 and 18 months. During this time, you could expect to gain practical experience within each function of the restaurant and be assigned a mentor to help you during your initial months.

Who Can Help?

Many professional bodies also offer a range of training opportunities, including activities that count towards continuing professional development (CPD). Find out more below:

• Hospitality Guild – lists training courses including college-based qualifications and apprenticeships, regulation and licensing courses, and CPD options.
• Institute of Hospitality – offers a range of hospitality-related qualifications, professional development workshops, webinars, online courses and networking events.
• UKHospitality – hosts various events across the year and provides publications and resources for members.
• Caterer.com – this hospitality jobs board offers lots of vacancies including early career roles to get you started.

Career Progression

With time and experience you could have the opportunity for promotion to team leader, supervisor or manager.

Work Experience Tips

• Some employers won’t require you to have any previous work experience at all. Previous customer service work will always help.
• Look for part-time or seasonal work (you could do shift work, a few days a week, or seek summer jobs when UK tourism is at its height)
• Seek work experience in a range of venues including restaurants, pubs, fast food outlets or hotels.

Volunteering Tips

You could build your skills in an unpaid capacity by volunteering with charities who cook and supply food (e.g. to homeless people, or otherwise vulnerable people like the elderly who might receive meals on wheels.)

Practice your skills by offering to arrange everything for a friend’s birthday party. Manage everything from what food should be served (are you restricted by budget or dietary requirements?) to how it should be presented (picnic with cold storage? Vintage chic with jam jar glasses?)

• Greeting customers and helping them find a table
• Handing out menus and taking orders
• Serving food and drinks – and clearing them away

• Dealing with payments
• Answering customer queries (e.g. about dietary requirements and bathroom locations)
• Making sure the tables and eating areas are clean and tidy.

What would you like to know about catering & hospitality careers? Maybe we can help!

• Front of House vs Back of House – what’s the difference?
• Interview tips for hospitality & catering jobs
• What hospitality & catering apprenticeshps and degrees are there?
• 5 hospitality & catering career myths busted
• What types of jobs are there in the hospitality & catering industry?

See all

• Hospitality/catering apprenticeship
• Waiter/waitress jobs

• Waiting staff jobs
• Hospitality host/hostess

These employers all carry our Youth Friendly Employer Mark. We work with them to make sure that they are providing great support and opportunities to young people.

Click on an employer to find out more about them and the youth-friendly opportunities they offer, from work experience and apprenticeships through to graduate schemes.

These employers all carry our Youth Friendly Employer Mark. We work with them to make sure that they are providing great support and opportunities to young people.

Click on an employer to find out more about them and the youth-friendly opportunities they offer, from work experience and apprenticeships through to graduate schemes.