Apprentice Chef Resumes & Guide

When looking for a new job in the Food & Beverage or Culinary field, the best place to start is by looking through many well-written resume examples.

Using our guide and reading through the examples, we will show you how to structure your resume so that it grabs any hiring manager's attention!

Apprentice Chef Resume Examples

(Free sample downloads are at the bottom of this page)

Apprentice Chef Resume Writing Guide

Resume Sections:

1. Contact information
2. Profile Summary
3. Work History 
4. Achievements
5. Education 
6. Skill Section
7. Certification & Licensing
8. Extras: Languages/Awards/Publications/Volunteering/hobbies

What to Highlight in a Apprentice Chef Resume

Apprentice Chefs can be seen as the Head Chefs' right-hand man and are responsible for ensuring the kitchen is running efficiently. Apprentice Chefs are also given leadership responsibilities and are required to have certain management qualities. Ensure that you highlight these in your resume as potential employers are looking for employees that they can trust and rely on to run the kitchen if the Head Chef cannot be there. This is a broad introduction. Below we have narrowed the information down and outlined the different skills and qualities you should include to give yourself the best chance to land an interview.

• Firstly, you need to state your level of competency in the kitchen clearly. As one of the core members of the leadership team, you need to highlight your effective delegation skills and your ability to manage multiple kitchen stations at one time. Each kitchen you work in may have different systems in place and require you to have had various responsibilities. Focus on the most impressive duties with a specific focus on the duties that highlight your leadership skills.

• Secondly, you need to elaborate on the environments in which you have worked. As an Apprentice Chef, you can be found in various kitchen environments in various industries. Examples include hotels, restaurants, schools, hospitals, prisons, cruise liners, casinos, and bars. Ensure that you highlight the environments you have worked in, and more importantly, highlight the environments that you wish to work in so that hiring managers and recruiters can place you correctly.

Tips and Tricks:

Your resume is all about creating the best first impression possible, and there are ways to really knock the reader's socks and grab their attention from the get-go. One of the best ways to do this is to identify the skills and qualities the job description is looking for and then highlight how you have developed and implemented these skills and qualities in your previous positions. See the examples below to guide you:

• Show an Appreciation of Different Cultures:
  • Throughout your career and upbringing, you would likely have been exposed to several different cultures. Show how you have embraced different cultures into your previous positions to show the reader you are a multicultural chef.

• Understanding of Nutritional Science:
  • When it comes to creating a new dish, many factors come into play. Having a deep understanding of Nutritional Science will make the process of dish creation a seamless process and will allow you to be a more creative chef. Ensure that you showcase your effective understanding of this important science. Furthermore, you may have to prepare meals for clients with specific needs and allergies. It is crucial that you understand how to meet the needs of every customer.

• Learning Math and Accounting Concepts:
  • You will likely be tasked with the management of kitchen resources. This includes ordering goods and services and ensuring that menu prices are lucrative. This knowledge will further ensure that you source high-quality produce at equitable prices.
  • Alternatively, having a good mathematics background is very beneficial in a kitchen environment. You often need to measure out ingredients and make important calculations in a limited time.

Career Summary & Objectives

Typically, most applicants’ resumes will be screened through F&B (Food and Beverage) for both direct and vocational roles. You, therefore, need to impress the recruiters from the very beginning. The best way to do this is by creating a captivating Career Summary or Objective statement and place it at the very top of your resume document.

There are three main aspects to any good Summary or Objective statement:

1. It must clearly highlight your title.
2. It must showcase any of your most exceptional skills that add value.
3. It must highlight your most impressive academic credentials.

The trick, however, is knowing which one to choose… Below we have provided a few guidelines to help you choose.

• Resume Summary:

If you have an impressive amount of work experience, a resume summary is a choice for you. A summary statement is a perfect way to humblebrag about your impressive experience and your best skills and qualities.

• Resume Objective

If you have not yet gained experience in a formal restaurant environment, we recommend choosing an Objective statement. Instead of highlighting your experience, a career objective highlights your culinary career goals while still highlighting your most impressive achievements and attributes.

Examples

Apprentice Chef Summary 1

"Experience Chef in the restaurant industry with nine years of working experience and an expert in using kitchen equipment to produce specialty and signature dishes. Certified Chef Assistant status with extensive experience in fine dining and banquet production in a hotel kitchen environment. In-depth culinary knowledge of multiple cuisines and the ability to work in any area of the kitchen."

Apprentice Chef Summary 2

"Experienced chef assistant with six years of work experience in a busy restaurant environment and a boutique executive chef with very specific dining assignments with affluent clients. Adept at prep work, cleanup work, and incorporating local and fresh ingredients at all times. Specializes in mobile culinary jobs as well as high-traffic restaurants."

Apprentice Chef Summary 3

"Experienced server with three years of the academic experience at a chef school. Superb theoretical knowledge of numerous culinary techniques, applications, food products, and kitchen equipment. Exceptionally skilled at managing all of the daily kitchen operations and ensuring that menu items are prepared promptly and meet a high standard. Currently in pursuit of the Sou Chef qualification.

Apprentice Chef Summary 4

"Diligent kitchen hand with 6+ years experience in a small Greek restaurant and Balkan cuisine. Obtained the highest grades in food safety (100%) and blind taste tests (98.5%). Seeking to further career by growing with the Eataly team as the new Executive Chef."

Employment History

It does not matter whether you are a sushi chef, a line chef, or a Michelin star chef. You need to ensure that you list your work experience in the best way possible so that the reader can easily see you are the perfect candidate worthy of an interview. We recommend that you use reverse chronological order to list your experience as this allows your most recent, and often most impressive experience to be read first.

Remember, you aim to capture the reader’s attention.

Alternatively, if you are just starting out and have not yet acquired any experience in a commercial kitchen, do not fear. You should still have valuable experience that you can list. Think back to previous positions you have worked in and whether they relate to this field of work. Try and structure your experience to reflect qualities that the job description is looking for, even if it was not in a kitchen or food environment.

Examples:

Apprentice Chef at St Tropez Seafood Restaurant

(Jan 2019 – Dec 2021)

Provided valuable assistance to the head chef during meal preparation and ensured that every piece of cooking equipment was well maintained and operational.

• Prepared seafood menu items timeously.
• Liaised with waitstaff and front-of-house employees to communicate menu changes and specials.
• Prepared all foods to customer satisfaction, including accounting for special dietary concerns.

Apprentice Chef at Gladstone Culinary Emporium

(Feb 2016 – Nov 2018)

Responsible for monitoring and promoting kitchen hygiene and safety practices and ensuring that the 300sqm kitchen area remains neat and clean.

• Ensured kitchen operations ran smoothly and incorporated meal preparation in accordance.
• Contributed to menu planning and determined related costs.
• Supervised food preparation activities and ensured food was stored appropriately.

Job Description Samples

Below we have listed several foundational duties and skillsets that every potential employer would hope to see in an applicant’s resume. Remember to familiarize yourself with the job description to identify specific keywords that the employer is specifically looking for. Only include these keywords if they pertain to you.

Samples:

• Assisted the Executive Chef in kitchen management, workflow, and restaurant activities.
• Responsible for all HR procedures, including recruiting, hiring, performance management, and grievance procedures.
• Monitored training and development of new kitchen staff.
• Developed new recipes for sauces, meat, and poultry dishes.
• Oversaw the execution of dishes and inspected all items before they were served.
• Responsible for clerical activities relating to kitchen operations and staff administration, such as shift scheduling, payroll, procurement, and accounting.

• Played a central role in the digitalization of restaurant operations.
• Responsible for monitoring the sanitation and disinfection of the kitchen and restaurant area.
• Negotiated with local suppliers to acquire deals on food items.
• Assisted the Executive Chef by monitoring food and labor costs, diminished wastage, and maintained sustainable restaurant operations.
• Assisted the kitchen staff incorrectly weigh and measure ingredients and execute the proper culinary techniques.
• Implemented a rotation system for new kitchen staff so that everyone can get exposure to the different stations in the kitchen.

• Implemented and maintained policies and procedures regarding health, sanitation, safety, and customer service protocols.
• Assisted with the front-of-house management to ensure that serving, workflow, and clearing and cleaning of tables are conducted most unobtrusively.
• Carried out daily reports of stock levels to the restaurant owner and inspected delivery schedules.
• Responsible for collaborating with Head Office to ensure menu items reflect the season and the various holidays or events happening in the region.
• Coordinated kitchen operations for large buffet events where multiple courses are served.
• Conducted a monthly pricing update to make sure that menu items remain profitable should supplier prices increase.

Accomplishments

Although it may be very tempting to simply copy and paste your list of accomplishments from one resume to the next, we strongly advise that you avoid doing this. This will only show the employer that you are unoriginal and likely result in your resume being tossed aside.

Rather, take the time to read through the job description and outline the specific skills and qualities the employer is looking for. By doing this, you can integrate these keywords into your accomplishment statements, making them look very appealing to the reader and significantly increasing your chances of landing an interview.

Quantification

If you are struggling to think of what to include, think about any time you have made kitchen and restaurant operations run more smoothly, or include customer reviews that highlight your expert abilities. When you list your accomplishments, remember that it is very important to quantify your statements showing exactly how you made a difference. You aim to prove to the reader that you are a perfect choice.

Examples of statements without quantification:

• Provided kitchen hand service events simultaneously.
• Researched alternatives for manual dishwashing equipment, which led to the purchase of a fully automated commercial dishwasher.
• Streamlined kitchen workflow procedures.
• Increased sales by cross-marketing lunch items and drinks.

The same examples, but with quantification:

• Provided kitchen hand services to three service events simultaneously. This was done daily, and there were zero errors.
• Researched alternatives for manual dishwashing equipment, which led to the purchase of a fully automated commercial dishwashing machine, resulting in a 56% reduction of dishwashing time and saved water by 14%.
• Streamlined kitchen workflow procedures by changing the order of food preparation which saved time by 28%.
• Increased sales by 12% due to strategic cross-marketing of lunch items and drinks.

Education Section

An integral part of every resume you write is your education section and an area that employers pay special attention to. You need to outline your academic history and certifications, accreditations, licenses, or academic achievements you have obtained. When listing your tertiary education, simply list your graduation date, the name of the degree, the institution's name, and the city and abbreviated state name where the institution is located. If you have recently graduated from high school, list this information, but be sure to include your GPA score.

Here are some examples of an Apprentice Chef’s Resume in terms of education:

2020 – SERV Safe Certified, American Food and Beverage Association, Online

2018 – First Aid/CPR Diploma, Red Cross Academy, Online

2015 – 2017 – Bachelor’s Degree in Culinary Arts, Wilson School for Culinary Arts, New Parkland, CA.

2014 – 2015 – Associate’s Degree in Culinary Arts, Ohio University, Athens, OH.

2013 – Certificate Course in Adventure Cooking, American Culinary Federation (ACF), Online

2012 – Course in Pastry Arts, American Culinary Federation (ACF), Online

2011 – Certified Sous, NCCA, Online

2011 – Personal Chef Accreditation, United States Personal Chef Association, Online

Skills

An Apprentice Chef is an important asset to any kitchen and is effectively the Head Chefs' right-hand man. An Apprentice Chef’s job duties include managing inventory, ensuring health and safety protocols are followed and helping with food preparation.

It should be no surprise that this industry requires specific technical skills; however, potential employers view soft skills as equally important skills. These two sets of skills allow employers to gauge what type of employer you will be and allow them to ascertain whether you will fit into their business. When listing your skills and qualities, we recommend using a Skills Matrix table instead of bullet points as it saves space and is more visually pleasing. See the examples below:

Technical Skills Examples

Soft Skill Examples

Qualifications & Certifications associated with Apprentice Chefs

Optional Extras Apprentice Chefs

Although your resume is completed, there are still a few ingredients missing that will really show the reader that you are the obvious choice. The best place to list this extra information is in the optional extras section of your resume, where you can include information that you might not have been able to include in previous sections. Below we have listed a few ideas to help you decide:

• Volunteer Experience – Volunteer work on a resume is always impressive. Remember to keep the experience relevant to the field.
• Hobbies & Interests – Like the right wine, there are interests and hobbies which pair perfectly with an Apprentice Chef’s resume.
• Sports – such as basketball show the employer that you are a team player.
• Certifications & Awards that highlight your expert abilities.
• Languages – Being able to speak a second language is a very valuable asset.

If your resume is still on the thinner side, we have highlighted some information you can include:

• The area you can work in and whether you are happy to travel.
• Your impressive culinary training results.
• Any special skills such as inventory management, recipe creation, and commercial safety practices.
• The safety certification you have obtained.

Download Apprentice Chef Templates in PDF

Professional information on Apprentice Chefs

Sectors: Events, Hospitality, Entertainment, Food & Beverage, Tourism, Government, Education
Career Type: Functional, Technical, Professional, Preparation,
Person type:  Prepper, Assistant, Server, Junior, Worker
Education levels: From Post School Diploma to Degree
Salary indication: $ 36 902 per annum (Ziprecruiter.com)
Labor market: Average of 11% between 2018 and 2028 (Zippia)
Organizations: Restaurants, Hotels, Food & Beverage Venues, Schools, Military Establishments, Hospitals, Fast Food Establishments, Pubs, Holiday Resorts