Open House Attire

[Imogene]

All I know for sure is that wherever I go, I'll be the queer theorist of the cohort, so I'm probably not going to pull a cliche and wear my rainbow sweater. Or should I...?

 

YES.

 

Also, what do we think about visits we schedule on our own -- i.e. not part of a departmental "open house" or anything -- just an individual visit with some meetings scheduled with POIs, attending a class, etc.?

 

When I was in grad school previously, I was pretty casual on my "taking classes" days, and more like business-hipster-chic (hate biz caz) on my "teaching days" -- I'm guessing I'll lean more toward my concept of "teaching days" for these visits, but I kinda do want to wear nice jeans so that I blend in with the basic "taking classes" folks.

 

The *worst* outcome would be to wear something I feel foreign in to myself, of course.

 

Thoughts?

[m_pru]

At my visits to schools for interviews there was a mixture of styles. For example, at my most recent visit, some went went quirky formal (slacks, vest, bowtie, killer glasses, no jacket), others went hpipster, and others went more traditional. One guy and one girl each went traditional suiting (the girl was seriously wobbling in her heels by the end of the day), then there was the guy in full on tweed sportscoat, turtleneck, and slacks! I personally did business separates with a cushioned wedge loafer for all the hiking. For the dinner party that night, I just switched the loafers for a pair of heels. The day before, at more casual activities, I wore a pair of dark trouser jeans with heels and a sweater set.

At the visit to the school I'd already gotten in, people were much more casual. There were a lot of t-shirts with blazers and jeans. At that point, it's up to the school to sell you, so eh. I basically wore khakis and blouses with loafers...somewhere between business casual and pampered soccer mom.

Ultimately, you need to be you, and your feet need to be comfy. But you also need to be aware of the culture you are going to be visiting. I made sure only flashes of tattoos were showing, if any. I am not ashamed of them, and I love them, but I also wanted the committee completely focused on me and my personality. Final advice, dress to your personality! Good luck!

Edited March 11, 2013 by m_pru