Swarthmore College is a highly selective liberal arts college located in the suburbs of Philadelphia, whose mission combines academic rigor with social responsibility. Swarthmore has a strong institutional commitment to inclusive excellence and nondiscrimination in its educational program and employment practices and encourages candidates who will further advance the goal of fostering a diverse and inclusive community. As one of the nation’s finest institutions of higher learning, Swarthmore College is global in outlook and draws students from around the nation and world. The 425‐acre campus is a designated arboretum, complete with gardens, rolling lawns, a creek, wooded hills, and hiking trails in the Crum Woods.

Who We Are:

Swarthmore Dining is dedicated to serving our community with nutritious and satisfying food in a welcoming environment every day. Our mission is to offer a diverse menu that features high-quality ingredients, emphasizing locally grown and sustainably produced products whenever possible. We are committed to inclusive dining by ensuring vegetarian, vegan, and accommodations for dietary restrictions are always available. As a self-operated dining program encompassing Residential Dining, we pride ourselves on providing a work-life balance that is often difficult to find in the restaurant industry. Join us at Swarthmore Dining to be a part of a vibrant community committed to quality, sustainability, and exceptional service in a state-of-the-art kitchen setting.

The opportunity:

As a member of the Dining Services department, the Culinary Associate will work in any of the following stations depending on the schedule or need of the department roles: Cook, Pizza Cook, Commissary or Baker. Working in a fast-paced and dynamic environment, having a passion for food, enjoying being part of an energetic team and the opportunity to make a difference in the student’s dining experience on Swarthmore’s campus.

Ensuring the timely meal production for a college dining program under the direction of the Executive Chef or Sous Chef. Preps ingredients and cooks or bakes menu items according to standard recipes. Ensures that food production meets the departmental standards of quality, taste, creativity, presentation, and variety. Responsibilities include assisting with execution of menu items, food safety and the proper sanitation of all kitchen equipment. This is a 9-month position, expected to work between the months of August and May.

Essential Responsibilities

• Consults daily menu and production sheets in order to be prepared for your shift
• Reads recipes and produces product consistent with recipes and production
• Maintains departmental standards for all menu items
• Place finished products on the line in a timely manner. 
• Ensures faculty, students and staff receive safe food products of the highest quality, freshness, and consistency, according to department standards
• Stores all food products properly. Wrap tightly, date and label all food items. Transport food to the appropriate walk-in refrigerator or freezer.
• Clean as you go and sanitize the cook line as well as equipment, walls, floors, hoods, walk-ins, and line coolers.
• Promotes teamwork by assisting in cleaning areas of the kitchen, sweeping and mopping, cleaning the coolers, organizing dry storage etc.
• Observes the basic rules of kitchen safety, sanitation and back door safety.
• Uses First in First Out (FIFO) rule to ensure proper rotation.
• Utilizes various cleaning chemicals in accordance with Material Safety Data Sheets (MSDS).
• Completes all running, opening and closing side work.
• Providing friendly and competent customer service.
• Record food temp logs of hot and cold food items.
• Follow all food safety HACCP requirements
• Store in proper refrigerator/freezer
• Knowledge of food product, identification, and acceptable level of food quality
• Ensures food is stored at the appropriate temperature for the appropriate length of time and follows all food safety standards
• Must know methods of food preparation, cooking times, and portion sizes to ensure food is prepared in prescribed manner
• Evaluates food quality and preparedness by tasting
• Cuts, trims, bones, and carves meats and poultry for cooking
• Responsible for using correct portions when cutting, preparing, and serving items
• Assists in other areas as needed
• Assist in kitchen organization and workflow
• Maintain a professional and clean appearance at all times
• Ensure proper cooling down of all hot food items before placing them in the refrigerator.
• Prepare all foods at the correct temperature according to the HACCP Guidelines.
• Make suggestions to sous chef for menu items and recipe adjustments
• Communicate clearly with front of house about menu items and portion sizes
• Record production clearly.
• Monitor and communicate with the line server/food runner about menu items and portion control.
• Maintain a visual contact with the front of the house and customers.
• Responsible for the prep of all components needed for production of salads,deli, catering platters, grab-n-go sandwiches, coffee bar sandwiches and retail locations as directed by production manager, retail operations and catering.
• Prepares baked goods such as breads, rolls, muffins, biscuits, and cakes according to recipes and under the direction of the Baker. Prepares and serves food items according to standards.  Uses and cleans commercial baking equipment.

What you bring:

Required Qualifications

• 2 years of cook experience in a high-volume food establishment or completion of a culinary vocational training program.
• Excellent culinary knife skills
• Recipe scaling for various batch sizes
• Good interpersonal skills and the ability to work in a team environment
• Excellent customer service
• Ability to read and follow recipes
• Ability to communicate clearly
• Ability to communicate with co-workers and management with professionalism and respect.
• Ability to read, write, comprehend, and follow verbal and written instructions to interact with students, faculty, and staff.

Preferred Qualifications

• Culinary program certificate
• 3-5 years of experience in high volume food establishment
• Serv-safe certification
• Food Allergen knowledge/certification
• Valid  PA driver's license

What You Will Get:

You’ll work at one of the world's most renowned liberal arts Colleges, with incredible benefits, a stunning 420-acre campus, and a collaborative work environment. Join a team of passionate, creative people who work hard and have fun supporting the College students, faculty, and staff.

We want to hear from you if you are excited about this role! For full consideration, submit applications with an uploaded resume.

The pay for this position is $22.12 per hour, which represents the College’s good faith and reasonable estimate of the range at the time of posting.

PA Criminal Clearance Required

Swarthmore College requires a PA Criminal background check for all staff positions prior to the start of employment.

Preview our Benefits Flyer. We offer benefit plans starting at zero cost! Upon benefit eligibility, the College contributes 10% of an employee’s salary to their retirement account. Employees are 100% vested in their accounts on the date participation begins.

2025 Swarthmore Benefits Guidebook

Retirement Plans

Tuition Grant Program

Tuition Reimbursement Program

Paid Time Off (Staff)

Holiday Schedule

Swarthmore College actively seeks and welcomes applications from candidates with exceptional qualifications, particularly those with demonstrable commitments to a more inclusive society and world. Swarthmore College is an Equal Opportunity Employer. Women and minorities are encouraged to apply.