Do Bartenders Need To Go To School? Here's The Deal

With important responsibilities like checking IDs and monitoring how intoxicated customers become, one might think that bartenders need formal training to work in the industry. The trade also requires various skills, like knowing how to fat-wash cocktails and understanding when a drink should be shaken instead of stirred. But the truth is, bartenders don't need to attend school to work the rail.

There are certainly establishments that require folks to be disciplined in mixology before they can start slinging drinks. But that's a voluntary decision. There is no federal law obligating people to go to school as a prerequisite to being a bartender. However, some states do compel individuals to complete specific training courses. Illinois, for example, requires bartenders to have BASSET certification (Beverage Alcohol Sellers and Servers Education and Training). The BASSET program teaches skills like how to ensure minors aren't accidentally served alcohol and how to identify when a customer has had one too many. It's a four-hour course that offers unlimited retakes if folks don't pass the test on their first attempt.

California mandates that bartenders complete RBS (Responsible Beverage Service) training before crafting cocktails, which is similar to BASSET. Other states, such as Vermont and Nevada, obligate bartenders to hold comparable certifications before working. Some states that don't have requirements related to alcohol sales, like Alabama and Idaho, allow cities to implement them as they see fit. State laws aren't always clear about who is responsible for covering the cost of these trainings. In California, the legalese is so murky that some recommend speaking with a labor attorney to determine who pays. Still, given that RBS training costs roughly $10 to $20, it won't exactly break the bank if an employer won't cover it.

If you want proof that bartending school isn't necessary to work behind a bar, look no further than yours truly. I have bartending experience, but no formal training in the field. All my knowledge about the industry comes from on-the-job training. But gaining the opportunity to learn while working was a gift from a boss who thought giving me a shot might pay off.

Restaurants and bars will often take a chance on training an inexperienced server, but that's not typically the case with bartenders. If you want to break into the industry, you're stuck in a sort of catch-22: Employers generally seek out someone with experience, but you can't get that experience unless you already have it. In that sense, going to bartending school can be beneficial (even if it's technically not mandatory).

But that's not the only advantage of attending bartending school. When I first started bartending, even simple two-ingredient cocktails like a French Connection threw me for a loop. Had I attended bartending school, mixing classic drinks would have already been second nature. Proficiency in blending certain alcohols, possessing basic wine knowledge, and being able to make drinks quickly would have been priceless. Even knowing how to set up a bar would have eased the initial learning curve, and bartending school typically teaches all of those skills.

Still, bartending school generally costs between $150 to $600. It can also take as long as two weeks to complete. But graduating from bartending school shows a potential employer that you have some experience and you're serious about working in the industry, which is sometimes all it takes to tip the scales in your favor.