Sip at your own risk, because bringing iced coffee to a job interview could cost you the job.
Gen Z has been accused of several workplace faux pas over the years, from lacking work ethic to being called “unemployable.” The latest blow came when a recruiter posted a video on TikTok calling out Gen Z candidates for bringing iced coffee to job interviews.
In a viral video, recruiter Caitlin Wehniainen claimed the act was too casual, as it gave the impression the interview was just another stop in a candidate’s day.
The Journal sought to figure out whether this was the truth or simply internet fluff.
“You can never talk yourself into a job, but you can easily talk yourself out of a job,” said Eddy Ng, a researcher studying the future of work at Queen’s Smith School of Business, told The Journal in an interview.
“Bringing coffee is a high-risk move […] the risk of perceiving it as negative is significantly higher than perceiving it in a positive way.”
At the same time though, Ng says the industry you are interviewing for matters.
“If you’re interviewing for a job in marketing or tech, people wouldn’t bat an eye in terms of you bringing in coffee,” he said.
Ng studies diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI), and says that despite training, recruiters are human and have biases just like anyone else.
“If a middle-aged white man comes into a job interview with a coffee in hand […] you go, that is confidence, that is poise. If somebody who’s younger walked in, that is careless,” he explained.
Ng insisted Gen Z was not uniquely worse than any other.
“Every generation has a negative sort of reputation with a generation before them,” he said, calling the debate another act of “generational friction.”
Still, when it comes down to it, he always encourages his students to err on the side of caution.
“Just for half an hour, leave your coffee outside, have your interview, and come back to your coffee. That’s a small price to pay because then you got the job.”
Bernardo Garcia, Sci ’29, said he is “very much on team no iced coffee,” in an interview with The Journal.
“I feel like if you are that dependent on iced coffee, that’s another problem. It would be so much simpler to either have your coffee beforehand or treat yourself after the interview and go get coffee afterwards,” he said.
In his opinion, the only beverage that should be brought to a job interview is a bottle of water.
However, that’s not to say he agrees with all the criticism Gen Z gets.
“I feel like some other aspects of the Gen Z in the workforce discussion can be exaggerated,” he said, adding that Gen Z has helped improve parts of the workforce inherited from previous generations that were not ideal.
“I find that some of the complaints are from people that aren’t going to be in the workforce much longer, so maybe they can retire their opinion and call it a day,” he said.
In every audition Marie Raftery, ArtSci ’27, has been to, “everyone has some sort of caffeinated drink and water bottle the size of their torso.”
Raftery, a music theatre major and voiceover actress, said whether to bring an iced coffee to an interview depends on the industry and “vibe” of the interviewers, but creative industries aren’t immune to bias.
Raftery studied at a conservatory before coming to Queen’s and said the first thing actors learn is the right “formula” for an audition.
This includes how to enter and exit a room, when to smile, where to stand, how to greet the panel and set the tempo with the pianist, and how to cut songs down to the most impressive length to showcase their range depending on what the panel asks for.
“First impressions are quite literally everything,” she said. “You are expected to be able to walk into a room and match the vibe straight away.”
In terms of Gen Z’s criticism, “older generations throw around the accusations without realizing how different it truly is,” she said, citing what she described as a job market with lower pay, higher responsibilities, lack of benefits or hours, and understaffing for entry level jobs.
Ultimately, she doesn’t see the issue with bringing an iced coffee to an interview since “you’re more than likely going to be bringing an iced coffee to work.”
Ava Patton, ArtSci ’28, said that while “it’s not that deep,” she wouldn’t take any chances.
At the same time though, she said “if an office makes a judgment about me based off of the kind of drink I bring into work, I don’t know if that’s an office environment I want to work in.”
Tags
gen z, iced coffee, job interview, professionalism
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