Poster presentations at a conference

[anthropologygeek]

To me jeans are unacceptable. I know so many professors make fun of the people in jeans. All my advisor's would punish someone if they were jean. It's unprofessional and you are there right now to make a good impression not a bad one

[strudelle]

Thanks guys!  Glad I asked

[PowderRiver]

Just echoing what everyone else said: it's always better to overdress rather than underdress. There will be jeans at the AAPA's, but there will also be a lot of business attire.

 

I'd suggest you go to any workshops you can fit into your schedule, where you'll have a chance to meet professionals and talk with them about everything from post docs to getting jobs to interview skills to any other topic they decide to add. I went to one last year about interviews in academia and was happy that I was wearing nice attire: the entire panel showed up in suits. There is usually a lot of socializing after hours, where I don't think casual attire is entirely out of place, but business casual still works.

 

One final comment: don't be afraid to approach people and introduce yourself (which is especially easy during poster sessions). A quick, professional introduction goes a long way in making and maintaining contacts. The nice thing about big conferences is that most people care about undergrad/graduate status, and most are just interested in your research.