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Are you unemployed restaurant worker, or currently employed and looking for a change? One of the first things you’ll have to do is prepare or upgrade your resume. If you’re new to the job market and aren’t used to constructing a resume, or if you’re hunting for a new job and haven’t updated your resume for a long time, the process might seem intimidating.

Perhaps the most difficult part of preparing a resume is dealing with references. While some jobs you apply for may not ask for references, almost all do, and almost all will check them. You should always assume that references will be asked for and will be checked. So make sure your references are properly prepared and that they are authentic.

There are two basic types of references: personal and professional. Generally you should have a combination of both types. As a rule, try for at least references in support of your resume.

When submitting your restaurant resume(s) it is common and perfectly acceptable to state, at the bottom, “References Available upon Request.” If you apply for a job you may not be called in for an interview, and references are a form of information that does not need to be provided until the prospective employer has demonstrated the commitment to asking you for an interview.

However, if you do get a job interview, make sure you set up your references ahead of time and have them ready with you when you arrive. Sometimes, because potential references need to be contacted by the job seeker for their approval, you might not have all of them ready when the interview day comes. It is acceptable to assure the employer that your references are forthcoming, but don’t make them wait for more than a day or two at most. If you do, it will show that you don’t take the job prospect seriously, or that you are irresponsible and disorganized.

How do you approach acquiring first-rate references? As mentioned above, you try to have both professional and personal references to go with your resume. Professional references are people who can attest to your employment in the jobs you list on your resume: former superiors, bosses, co-workers or people from human resources divisions of larger companies. Professional references are meant to give proof of employment, not attest to your skills, personality or job performance. They should be able to provide specific or general dates you began and left the former job, as well as the titles you held and the duties you performed.

Personal references are people who will attest to your abilities, your work ethic, and other details about you relevant to your value as a worker. These references could also be former co-workers, or can be people you’ve worked with in other areas (such as volunteering, community organizations such as arts or sports groups, etc.), or even friends who have meaningful information that can shed light on your professional abilities.

When choosing personal references, try and ask people who you know are trustworthy, articulate, and have some kind of professional status that will make them seem credible. Your skateboarding buddy from high school may know you better than anyone else, but is he or she really the person you want vouching for you if he or she has no sense of your restaurant work abilities? Don’t use family members as references either; they will be viewed as biased. If you haven’t had a job before, you obviously will not have any employment references, and can rely solely on personal ones.

Before you pass contact information of potential references on to an interviewer, make sure you contact the references themselves and ask for their permission. It is not appropriate to use someone’s name as a reference if they don’t know ahead of time that they might be called upon. Also, if they know ahead of time, they can be prepared with the necessary information when the call comes.

References are a major component of the restaurant job application process. Make sure you take the preparation of your references seriously and have them with you for your interview. Great references may make the difference between you or your competition getting that job!