Barista

Baristas make and serve coffee in cafes, coffee shops, restaurants and hotels.

• Starter salary£19,000 a year
• Experienced£24,000 a year
• Typical hours40 to 42 a week

What you'll do

As a barista, you would:

• prepare the premises or outlet ready for opening
• welcome customers, take orders and process payments
• prepare and serve coffees, hot snacks, sandwiches and cakes
• clean and tidy work areas, equipment and coffee machines
• check and order new stock

Working environment

You could work in a coffee shop.

Your working environment may be noisy.

You may need to wear a uniform.

Skills and knowledge you'll need

You'll need:

• customer service skills
• the ability to work well with others
• the ability to sell products and services
• the ability to work on your own
• excellent verbal communication skills
• a good memory
• the ability to work well with your hands
• the ability to accept criticism and work well under pressure
• to be able to carry out basic tasks on a computer or hand-held device

How to become a barista

You can get into this job through:

• a college course
• an apprenticeship
• applying directly
• training with a professional body

College

Although not essential, you could do a college course that would give you some of the skills needed for this role. Courses include:

• barista skills
• food and beverage service
• retail skills

Entry requirements

Entry requirements for these courses vary.

Apprenticeship

You can apply to do a Catering and Hospitality Level 2 Foundation Apprenticeship, or Food and Beverage Team Member Level 2 Intermediate Apprenticeship.

These combine on-the-job training and time spent with a college or training provider.

Direct application

You can apply directly for jobs. When you start, you're employer will put you through training in barista skills and product knowledge.

Some employers may prefer you to have experience in customer service, retail sales or catering.

Other routes

You could train in barista skills with a professional organisation, like the Specialty Coffee Association.

Foundation apprenticeship

You can apply for a foundation apprenticeship if you're aged 16 to 21.

If you're aged 22 to 24, you can apply if you:

• have an education, health and care (EHC) plan
• are in care or have been in care
• are in prison or have been in prison

Entry requirements

You'll usually need:

• no specific qualifications or experience to apply for a foundation apprenticeship
• some GCSEs, usually including English and maths, or equivalent, for an intermediate apprenticeship

Career path and progression

With experience, you could become a store manager, then regional manager, with a coffee retail chain or franchise.

There may also be opportunities to move into:

• barista staff training
• equipment maintenance
• coffee tasting and buying
• product development and marketing.

You could become self-employed and open your own coffee shop

Career tips

Skills such as teamwork, flexibility and good customer service are highly valued by employers, along with a positive outlook.

Guides for this industry

• Hospitality & Catering: pay, interviews and getting started →

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