Matt Cashore/
University of Notre Dame
In the case of the contract
management companies,
moving around isn’t limited
to one college campus. Chefs
can move to other campuses
in the region, the U.S. or the
world. Sodexo, for example,
operates in 80 countries, with
opportunities in any of them.
The real deal
A few challenges in the college
chef world come with the
territory. The biggest, Miller
says, is that you must be
well versed in many cooking
methods, because the menu
changes frequently. “Imagine
getting the same food every
day. You can’t do it. We have
Asian cuisine, a Mediterranean
concept, we have a Latin-
influenced concept and we just
put in a Vietnamese/Asia Minor
concept. In the fall, we are
putting in Indian cuisine and
rotating it, and it’s authentic
Wendy Benney, Sodexo
executive chef, prepares
lunch at Colby College,
Waterville, Maine.
At the University of Notre
Dame, students choose from
Asian cuisine, a Mediterranean
concept, Latin-influenced
food, Vietnamese/Asia Minor
concept, and beginning this
fall, Indian cuisine.
food with authentic ingredients.
You have to learn to cook with
all these. It’s not like a country
club, where they like steak and
pasta dishes.”
In addition, you won’t always
have a well-trained staff to
work with. You will find yourself
training them, says Cartwright
with the University of Missouri.
Coming from a smaller
operation (World Cafe Live in
Philadelphia), Babbage with
Aramark at New York University
says, “I’m a very small part of
a very large system. If my one
part can’t function, other parts
don’t happen. My job is to take
what they give me.” He follows
a four-week menu cycle that
changes every semester, though
he can make small changes. In
his restaurant life, he had 100
percent autonomy, whereas
now he is learning to work in a
corporate environment, though
it has its benefits as he observes
the thinking behind decisions
such as Aramark’s Cool Star
concept. It’s a trendy, highly
visible, lower-cost station in
front that students can’t miss
and will, hopefully, purchase
from. It may be a choice of
two pastas with three cheese
sauces, an omelet station or a
falafel station, for example.
When considering a job in
college dining, Notre Dame’s
Miller urges culinary students
to keep an open mind. “When
graduating, think about this
venue and compare [schools],”
he says. “That’s all you have
to do. If you value the ability
How do you know if you’re cut
out for a career in college dining?
Three industry experts share
their thoughts on the personal
characteristics necessary to be
successful and enjoy a culinary
career in this venue.
The Right Stuff
Given the diversity on college
campuses, you must be able
to work with individuals from
many cultures and treat each
with respect, says Donald Miller,
CEC, CCE, AAC, executive
chef at the University of Notre
Dame, Notre Dame, Ind. “Treat
people with dignity. You can’t
talk down to them. You have
to be a good leader and earn
their respect rather than think
you’ll get respect because you
have a title.”
With the many types of
cuisines prepared in college
dining, good training and
well-rounded experience in
classical preparations and
to cook creatively and across
all kinds of culinary cultures,
and if you value fringe
benefits, including educational
opportunities and a good
retirement package and good
money, in my experience with
43 years in this business, you
can’t beat the university setting.
You just can’t do it.”
Jody Shee, an Olathe, Kan.-based freelance writer and
editor, previously was editor
of a foodservice magazine.
She has 20 years of food-writing experience and writes
the blog www.sheefood.com.
foundations is essential, says
Matthew Babbage, CCC, an
executive chef with Aramark
at New York University in New
York. It’s especially important,
because those working under
you often don’t have a lot of
culinary knowledge and skill. “I
find I need to be an expert and
authority on everything.”
You need an even
temperament and a sense
of humor, says Kevin Blaney,
executive chef for the
Northeast for Chartwells with
headquarters in Charlotte, N.C.,
owned by Compass Group
North America. “Strange things
happen in this business. You
also need to like people and
be comfortable interacting
with them. Take pleasure from
serving people. Be outgoing,
engaging and inspired by good
food, and believe that hard
work pays off in the end.”
