+ We’re giving away five prizes of $250.00 worth of McDonald’s gift cards.

A few weeks ago, we gave a shout out to McDonald’s National Hiring Day; a one-day hiring blitz across the country that set out to employ 9,000 people.

But we didn’t want to talk about something, or offer the idea to SLNers, without knowing if there was any actual value in working at McDonald’s.

Now, McDonald’s has been publishing some interviews of their own on YouTube, but when we saw the videos, we said what you most likely said;

“Oh, they’re probably just actors.”

So we set out to interview the young people in those videos to find out if they were actual people or not. Turns out you were wrong. And we were wrong. They’re real Canadian students and grads. So we asked them what their experience was actually like.

Karlyna and Kayla Langford, High School Graduates

Have you learned anything working at McDonald’s?

Multi-tasking is probably the biggest skill we’ve learned. When you work the cash, you have to take the orders, get the drinks, take care of customer service, and communicate to other customers all at once.

But we’ve also learned the best ways of communicating. Sometimes, our day won’t necessarily go the way we want it to. We might have a bad experience in the morning, but you learn that it’s important to go into the afternoon with a positive attitude.

Any bonuses to the job?

We love the flexibility. When we were still in high school, McDonald’s worked around our schedules, and that made it even easier to make some extra money while still getting all of our homework done.

Daniel Kellyman, Side-Hustle Boss

What made you want to work at McDonald’s?

Originally, I didn’t know I wanted to work at McDonald’s. All of my friends were working in clothing stores and I knew I needed a job but wasn’t interested in the retail experience. One day I passed by a restaurant that was looking for help and I took the chance.

As a young student, I was able to continue to go to school with a job that worked around my schedule, and that was part of what drew me in.

Has the job helped you with your career at all?

Definitely. I credit the job with helping me come out of my shell and be more confident. At the time I applied for the job, I was very shy and quiet—in fact, I think I may have been almost scared of people. I soon realized that I needed to open up in order to be successful here. With that confidence came better communication skills, and now I have no problem with talking to anyone about anything.

David Sawiak, Ryerson University

Have you learned anything working at McDonald’s?

Yeah, good communication and conflict resolution. I’ve learned that I can’t make everyone happy all of the time, but I can certainly try. Language, I’ve discovered, is everything, and every word is important.

But overall, I’ve learned to always be willing to try something new. If I didn’t have that mindset, I’d never have interviewed, and through my time at the company I’ve come to embrace that side of myself.

What would you say if someone was thinking of applying?

Don’t underestimate what’s possible. When I applied, I thought it was just going to be a summer job to pick up some extra cash. But when it was time to go back to school, I discovered how much they were willing to accommodate my schedule.
Don’t have preconceived notions about the job. A job at McDonald’s isn’t what you might think—it’s universally recognized on a resume, and it’s valued by universities and hiring managers.

Allison Hegedus, Sheridan College

Have you learned anything working at McDonald’s?

Patience is one of the key skills that I’ve developed in my time with McDonald’s. Though in the restaurant it could mean dealing with customers who don’t necessarily know what they want or who may not speak the same language as me, it has extended to my career as an Early Childhood Educator—you can never have enough patience when you’re working with young kids.

I’ve also learned the value of punctuality. Just like it’s important to be patient with other people, it’s also important not to test the patience of others. My experience has given me the time management skills to get to shifts on time and ready to work.

But McDonald’s has also taught me the value of being a team player. This has come not only through the ways in which I’ve learned to backup my coworkers, but also through the ways in which they always back me up as well.