Spencer Short – Staff Writer

On February 26, Dordt students enjoyed a little slice of the high-life, albeit in the back of the Commons. The Etiquette Dinner, hosted yearly by the Career Development Office, gives students a little insight into what a dinner on the fancier end of things may look like for them if they attend one in the future.

Boasting a 50-dollar meal, Dordt dining cooked up everything from beef tenderloins to hors d’oeuvres and sorbet. The cost of all this? Only 12 dollars. The relatively small price is what brings many students to the dinner. However, Missy Mulder, Dordt’s Career Development Coordinator, says the benefits for students is more than just amazing food.

“Learning how to eat correctly releases you from thinking hard about what you’re doing and lets you speak more,” Mulder said. “Lots of job interviews include some form of meal at some point, so it offers some important skills to learn. It shows your employer that you know what to do with your napkin.”

Mulder inherited the Etiquette Dinner in 2014 from the former Career Development Coordinator and has kept it going since. The dinner has been stated as good opportunity to network within the community and at the college. Groups of students are placed at a table with a professional, one who either works at Dordt or in the community, who asks them questions. This makes it seem like the students are truly in a job interview setting.

The training involved at the dinner covers how to balance and hold your plate, napkin and drink all in one hand. You need the other for shaking and eating, according to a campus-wide email about the event. Students also learn which piece of silverware to use and how to eat properly.

“Soup is actually meant to be scooped away from you, not towards you,” Mulder said as an example.

Although the Etiquette Dinner has already passed, Missy’s love of the event shows it will not be going anywhere any time soon. The event allows Dordt students to learn how to, according to the campus-wide email, “not be the awkward one at dinner with your significant other’s parents or your date at that expensive restaurant.” You may have missed it this year, but if you’re interested, there’s always next time.