How to Dress for a Job Interview
With each successive generation since the 1950's, Americans have become more
casual in the way they dress. It's now acceptable to wear blue jeans and sneakers
to nice restaurants, revealing outfits to nightclubs, and baggy cargo shorts
and flip-flops to school.
It's even acceptable these days to dress somewhat casually for work. But, that's
after you've landed the job. Unless you're interviewing as a roadie for a rock
'n roll band, how you should dress for a job interview hasn't changed much, especially
in the corporate environment.
About Job Interview Dress
Despite style changes, dressing appropriately to interview at most corporations
still means dressing up conservatively and the old adage "dress for success" still
applies.
Whether right or wrong, the fact of the matter is that you will be judged right
off the bat by how you dress for an interview. You might not even get the chance
to sell yourself if you're not properly dressed for an interview when you walk
though the door.
Even if you know that the company dress code is casual, dress up for an interview
anyway. It shows professionalism and respect, and more importantly, that you
know how to dress for a job interview.
The good news is that, these days, dressing "up" conservatively for
an interview doesn't necessarily mean wearing a business suit. That's thanks
to "dress-down Fridays" followed by full-time casual business dress,
both initiated by baby boomers.
Whether for a corporate job or another, a good rule to follow is to dress for
interviews a step or two above how employers ordinarily would expect you to dress
for your occupation, job title and the environment in which you work. Natch,
if employers would expect you to dress for work in business suits, that doesn't
mean you ought to wear a tux or formal gown to interviews; simply dress as professionally
as you would for work.
| If you're a young job applicant, you'd be wise to consider that one or
more of your interviewers are likely to be baby boomers (or close enough).
What looks cool to your generation as interview dress might not look nearly
as cool to interviewers of the boomer generation, even though boomers initiated
dress-down Fridays. In other words, consider that you might essentially interview
with your disapproving parents! |
On their Web sites, some companies indicate what's appropriate to wear to work,
while others even indicate how to dress for interviews. So, be sure to check
for office or interview dress codes at the Web sites of the companies with which
you've scheduled interviews. It's a good idea to research companies
anyway before interviews and their Web sites are typically good places to start.
If a company doesn't provide an office or interview dress code on its Web site,
it doesn't hurt to contact the HR department or the contact person in the job
ad, to ask how to dress appropriately for an interview. In fact, if the person
you contact turns out to be your interviewer, he or she might be impressed that
you took the time to find out.
Read on for more of how to dress for a job interview in the USA (it might differ
in other countries). First up are general job interview dress tips for both men
and women, followed by tips specifically for women and then men. Examples of
appropriate interview dress are displayed in photos.
Good luck with your interview!
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