Office of Graduate Students and Postdoctoral Scholars partners with Westwood’s Anthony Cawdron for self-guided etiquette course

Postdoctoral research associate Sunandita Ghosh felt much more at ease for the many festivities, gatherings and even the few formal job events this holiday season — all thanks to completing a self-guided course curated by Purdue’s own etiquette expert Anthony Cawdron. Ghosh is glad she decided to refresh and refine her knowledge of meal etiquette and other social topics to avoid those unintentional missteps.

“Dining at professional events, conferences or even interviews can be both enjoyable and an excellent way to connect with colleagues when we feel confident,” says Ghosh, a postdoc in Purdue’s Department of Food Science in the College of Agriculture. “This course was very helpful in gaining information to build that confidence and making such experiences more comfortable and rewarding.”

Cawdron designed the free, zero-credit etiquette course to help graduate and doctoral students and postdoctoral researchers feel more confident at the table — whether it’s a holiday dinner, business meal, networking event or perhaps a luncheon as part of a formal career opportunity. Cawdron serves as Westwood event coordinator and estate manager, and as an adjunct hospitality and tourism management faculty member.

“We realized that structuring the class for in-person only meant timetable snags, finding suitable room spaces and coordinating with my Westwood schedule,” Cawdron says. “So it seemed like a good idea for a self-guided study class that students anywhere on campus or off could take at their own pace and on their own timeframe.”

Launched through an expanded partnership between Purdue’s Office for Graduate Students and Postdoctoral Scholars (OGSPS), the course is based on Cawdron’s well-used and oft presented business dining etiquette seminar. Since 2018, Cawdron also has led the OGSPS’s Business Meal Etiquette workshops, which have attracted over 1,300 registrations.

In its first pass during the self-guided etiquette course debuted last month, it has already attracted more than 100 students. “I am happy we have the class finished and was very pleased to hear of the number of students who have already taken the class or plan to,” Cawdron says.

The one-hour course is broken down into three main segments:

• Preparation details prior to the event: handling invitations and understanding invitation language and what it requires of invitees. Subjects such as attire and letting hosts know of potential dietary issues also were covered.
• Arrival at the event: including timing, introductions and handshakes, and navigating receptions with food and drink. Dining situations are covered in detail, especially how to get through a multicourse meal with style and grace. Correct silverware usage is discussed as well as foods best not to order. How-to’s also focus on balancing conversation while eating, with a reminder to look out for other guests’ needs as well as your own. Accepting or declining wines and how to best make a toast are also covered. 
• And ending the meal, potentially exchanging business cards, payment contribution if required or graciously thanking a host when they’ve handled the tab. Finally, there’s the reminder for sending thank you notes and any other follow-ups “in making a stylish exit,” Cawdron says.

“Anything we can do to help our students add yet another facet to their already stellar Purdue education and give them an even better chance of impressing a future employer, further education establishment or startup funder is a worthwhile use of our time,” Cawdron says.

Doctoral candidate Melinda White was captivated by the recent “This Is Purdue” podcast featuring Cawdron. When she saw he was behind the specially tailored etiquette course, she was excited to check it out. A latecomer to academia, she earned bachelor’s and master’s degrees at Purdue as a mother of five children — and now 15 grandchildren. White is on track to complete her PhD this spring in literacy and language education with a focus on world language education.

“This course was quick and easy to complete but packed with a lot of information that would benefit both Purdue students and faculty alike as we are thrown into the world of business etiquette,” says White, also program coordinator of World Language Education in the College of Education. “Despite already being familiar with much of the content, I learned new information and thoroughly enjoyed doing it. Honestly, I would recommend it to everyone.”

Haley Oliver, senior vice provost for academic and student success, says the etiquette topic has always been in high demand for this community because networking and social engagements can be challenging. Time constraints, meanwhile, can prevent graduate students and postdocs from attending professional development workshops. That’s why her office developed the asynchronous online course, so graduate students can access these tools anytime, anywhere.

“The response to the self-guided course has been incredible — within one month, enrollment nearly matched an entire year of workshops,” Oliver says. “And this format allows Anthony’s insights to reach more students and postdocs, helping them feel confident at interviews and networking events — skills that can make a real difference in their careers.”

While the course was created and designed by the Office of the Provost for graduate students and postdoctoral scholars, anyone with a Purdue account now can enroll at no charge, Oliver says. For details and to register for the online course, visit the Training @ Purdue webpage.