You’ve obviously been giving a lot of thought into your future, and have decided on a career in bartending. Bartending is one of the best jobs that you can get, offering flexible scheduling, great working hours, and excellent pay! You’ve investigated, and there are a few things you want to know. Your main question is, do you need a bartending license to work as a bartender in California?
The short answer is, no, you technically do not need a bartending license in order to be employed as a bartender in the state of California. If you have experience behind a bar, you can get hired as a bartender without a license. Many people start working towards this goal as soon as they turn 21. They gain employment first as a bar back or as a server, and eventually work their way up to the coveted position of bartender. This can take a long time, sometimes years.9/p>
But what about those of us without practical bartending experience? Many of us want to start this career later in life. What about those of us who can’t afford to live on host, or bar back wages? Or those of us who simply strive to get into a bartending position as quickly as possible? For us, the best option is to go to school and get a bartending license.
The Perks of a Bartending License
Going to school and getting your bartending license provides you with experience behind the bar. You must go to a physical school for this, not an online school, as an online school will not adequately prepare you to work behind a bar. Experience is the key to getting a good job in the bartending profession. Bar owners and managers are extremely hesitant to hire bartenders with no experience- it basically doesn’t happen. Nobody wants to hire someone to staff their bar who has no idea what they’re doing.
It doesn’t matter if you’re great at other jobs that you’ve had- bartending is an entirely different beast. Bartending involves many skills, including drink knowledge, multitasking, customer service, and time management. Bar owners want to know that you are able to do the job and do it well. A bartending license ensures that you already have the basic skill set that they are looking for, and that you possessed the integrity to go to school and get your license.
When a manager or bar owner sees that a prospective employee already possesses a bartending license, they automatically know two things. They know that the applicant is well versed in how to make all of the popular drinks that their customers will want to order. They also know that the applicant has the hands on experience required to pass the state exam, hence they know how to handle themselves around a bar. The applicant has clearly spent at least 40 hours behind a bar, learning and practicing all aspects of bartending, and the hiring manager knows this.
We Do More For You!
In addition to the obvious perks of having a license, National Bartending School prepares you in other ways for a career in bartending. In addition to all of our classrooms being designed to emulate real working bars, we offer the best work placement in Southern California, courtesy of our event staffing service. While you are a student, you are eligible for employment as an event server, cocktail server, or bar back.
Once you have graduated, you can be staffed as an event bartender. The staffing service is also often used by bars to find permanent employees. We only offer this exclusive service to students of the school. All of this work experience looks great to prospective employers, who will want their applicants to have as much experience in serving and bartending as possible. Once you have graduated, we work our hardest to get you into a bar or tavern where you will thrive!
Take the Next Step
It’s extremely beneficial to have a bartending license in California. National Bartending School encourages you to locate your closest school and give us a call! Come tour the school, sit in on a class, and find out why National Bartending School can and will get you the job of your dreams! We are happy to answer your questions, and hope to see you in class soon!
