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During a slideshow presentation to this reporter, senior Daniel Maldonado Cruz shared his journey from flipping burgers at Jack in the Box to mastering Chicken Tikka Masala and blueberry lemon scones through Hollister High School’s Culinary Arts program.
It was all part of the school’s annual Rock the Mock event on April 28-29 in Mattson Gym, when representatives from over 40 local organizations and businesses participated in mock job interviews with over 600 students from the Career Technical Education and Workability/Transition Partnership Programs.
Established in 2020, Rock the Mock’s purpose, according to the school’s Workability Job Developer Khrista Wilkinson, is to allow students to practice conducting themselves professionally in an interview with a potential employer without an actual job on the line.
“Interviews are always rough,” Wilkinson said, “because you’re not sure what to expect. We’re hoping they will rise to the occasion and do well, but also learn what they can improve when they go to their first real interview down the road.”
Each industry partner was seated at their own table with a computer to register their responses to a pre-set rubric used to grade students in various categories as “Exemplary, Experienced, Developing or Emerging.”
The interviews were guided by a rough but set schedule: one minute for the introductions, five minutes for the project presentation and one minute to discuss the student’s future plans.
This was to be followed by three minutes of open discussion, which might include the student’s experience with the school’s job programs, their thoughts about Rock the Mock or any other subject that arose from the interview.
In Cruz’s case, it was a chance to showcase his culinary successes, express his passion for incorporating ingredients that usually don’t go together, and share his hopes for what he might learn in a professional kitchen.
“I think this event prepares you for real-life situations,” he said. “It helps you get ready to apply for job positions and lets you know what you can expect.”
The timing of each segment of the encounter was more of a guideline than a strict requirement. When the interview comes to a natural end, the industry partner fills out a questionnaire on a laptop or a printed scoresheet and adds supportive comments.
The scoring guidelines, circulated in advance, emphasize that the most important aspect of the interview is that every student has a positive, valuable experience.
“For the majority of our students,” the guidelines state, “this will be their first interview, and we want them to understand that it isn’t as big or scary as they might think.”
Besides Cruz, this reporter interviewed a student who hopes to market a novelty item made with blue jeans; two other culinary students; a student who has been certified in auto mechanics and welding; a student who was not able to give her presentation because of a dead computer; and a student who offered an apology because a recent change in his career direction rendered his presentation moot, among others.
Industry partner Josh Kampa, community manager for Chase Bank in the Monterey Bay area, said Rock the Mock was a valuable opportunity to meet the young people who will be joining the workforce. Just as important, he said, it allows interviewers to work on their own approaches to conducting job interviews.
“As a business leader,” he said, “if you want to have the truly best candidates, you have to be able to develop that skill set and be able to ask the right questions to find out what you really want to know. If you don’t have that developed, you may not get the right people.”
Wilkinson said the school has found that mock interviews have proven very helpful for students by providing on-the-spot feedback from professionals. And, she said, an occasional success story grows out of the experience.
“We actually have interviewers who really liked one of our students,” she said. “They have reached back to us and asked, ‘’I had a great interview with this individual. Are they looking for a real job?’ So, we’ve had some of our students get hired just by participating in this event.”
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