Dressing for interviews

[Born-to-pipette]

This topic has been addressed in bits and pieces throughout the forum -- I thought it might perhaps be helpful to consolidate further discussion in one thread.

Personally, one pressing concern has been dressing professionally in freezing temperatures. Based on previous feedback, I'll most likely go with a blouse/slacks/blazer combo under a heavy coat (which I still need to find... if anyone has an affordable suggestion, I'm all ears ), but I'm still not sure what to do about shoes. Heels would not be wise, and my little California boots would not withstand snow very well -- plus, I've been told that I shouldn't wear leather, as that will be easily ruined. I've looked up waterproof winter boots -- although sensible, they would not go very well with professional attire.

Any suggestions would be very much appreciated  

[kokobanana]

Definitely avoid heels, unless you are prepared to freeze the tops of your feet and bleed from walking on uneven streets in the northeast. I'd recommend black booties (short boots) that can work for casual and more business outfits. Wedges are good too, but your feet will still freeze. If you get leather or suede, you can spray them with a water repellent spray for about $10, it will help keep them clean but it won't make them waterproof.

Tights underneath dress pants works really wellc to help keep you warm.

I packed a collapsible umbrella for all my interviews, and kept it in my tote/ purse. If you do this, you can get way with a wool coat or something down-filled. 

Cardigans also work great if you want to layer and don't want to buy a blazer. 

A lot of clothes are on sale right now, so it's a great time to buy an outfit or two. Suggested locations (for women): Ann Taylor Loft, Ann Taylor, Banana Republic, Gap, uniqlo For men: Gap, uniqlo, banana republic

[aquamarine]

What is the best to wear when not in an interview setting?

[SysEvo]

I'm considering a sport brand jacket and a pair of dark colored jeans... Is this too casual?

[AspiringGC]

I found super cute winter coats at both Target and Kohl's that would work well over a business outfit! Think wool (or wool blend/multi-media blends for us poor-er folks) peacoats. Double breasted always looks a little classier.

Here's a couple examples: http://www.target.com/p/women-s-speckled-faux-wool-jacket-navy-collection-b/-/A-51359680 or http://www.kohls.com/product/prd-2668481/juniors-urban-republic-hooded-faux-fur-wool-jacket.jsp or http://www.kohls.com/product/prd-2353086/urban-republic-juniors-wool-peacoat.jsp?color=Navy or http://www.kohls.com/product/prd-2501470/womens-croft-barrow-double-breasted-wool-blend-peacoat.jsp?color=Black

(I was just looking for one myself so here's a couple that I was debating between) 

And definitely look into booties, they're also much more comfortable than regular heels!

[Neuro15]

2 hours ago, SysEvo said:

I'm considering a sport brand jacket and a pair of dark colored jeans... Is this too casual?

Not sure I'd ever wear jeans to an interview, regardless of the formality, to be honest. 

[RM17]

7 hours ago, britt2017 said:

What is the best to wear when not in an interview setting?

I think when you're at events during the interview that are supposed to be "casual" you can wear essentially whatever you'd like, though I definitely tried to be on the more professional side. I think i wore dark jeans, a nice-ish shirt and a cardigan, with weatherproof boots (for cold climates) and probably flats or something in warmer climates -- maybe non-athletic sneakers. Keep in mind that you won't always have a chance to change between events, so you might just be wearing whatever you wore that day.

I tried to err on the side of caution and it seemed to pay off (I did get in); this year, all of the emails from schools I've applied to keep reiterating that it's casual and that you should be comfortable. I have more schools in frigid climates this year than last year, but for all faculty meetings and events during the day, I still plan to wear either fleece-lined tights with a dress/skirt-blouse combo, or a slacks/blouse...even though I've lived in colder climes for almost a decade, the shoes might take some thinking, because I've got some schools in the upper midwest this year and that's a whole different ball game

[kokobanana]

16 hours ago, britt2017 said:

What is the best to wear when not in an interview setting?

Anything casual but still nice - non interview days are usually full of activities like hosting tours, museums, visiting the campus, etc. I wold avoid anything "distressed". A nice blouse / shirt and pants would be fine.

Keep in mind that some places with nicer weather (california) do more outdoor activities, so you'll want to bring something that you can participate in the activities. For example, we went sea kayaking on one interview, and you really needed a swimsuit under your clothes because everyone was soaked. Sun screen is also a good idea to bring to california, even during February/March.

[rising_star]

For coats, I recommend outlet malls. Think North Face, Columbia, Mountain Hardwear, etc. It may not be the classic peacoat style but, if you're going somewhere where it will be truly cold (upper Midwest for example), hardly anyone will be wearing a peacoat in the winter because they just aren't warm enough. Also, you're going to want gloves (touchscreen-compatible gloves are typically not as warm), a scarf (think warmth over stylishness), and a hat. 

For shoes, if you want professional and waterproof, I'd recommend looking into shoes sold by outdoorsy companies like Teva, Keen, etc. or going with non-leather (100% synthetic) shoes and wearing SmartWool type socks (hint: Costco sells their brand of these for like $14 for a 4-pack and you don't have to be a member to buy them online at this price). 

I think jeans can be okay for the social/evening/happy hour parts of an interview. But I wouldn't count on having the time to change into them every day. They'd have to be nice jeans though, dark in color and maybe even trouser-style. 

[fuzzylogician]

19 hours ago, Born-to-pipette said:

but I'm still not sure what to do about shoes. Heels would not be wise, and my little California boots would not withstand snow very well -- plus, I've been told that I shouldn't wear leather, as that will be easily ruined. I've looked up waterproof winter boots -- although sensible, they would not go very well with professional attire.

For shoes, whenever I've done interviews in cold locations, it's been the case that walking outside was limited, and I had some place indoors (usually an unused office) where I could leave my winter gear and other stuff and relax (ha!) between meetings. I would wear my heavy duty winter boots while outside (along with my down coat that's maybe not as professional looking as a peacoat but is warm). I'd carry an extra pair of nicer shoes and I'd change indoors. It's a bit elaborate and cumbersome, but it allowed me to be warm outside and professional-looking inside, so for me it was worth the extra hassle. People have already covered the topic of coats, winter gear, and boots, so I won't repeat what's already been said on those topics except to second the suggestions above.

[Cervello]

Suggestions for guys? I know suits are a no, but what about ties? A sports jacket? Chinos ok?

[Oddich55]

1 hour ago, Cervello said:

Suggestions for guys? I know suits are a no, but what about ties? A sports jacket? Chinos ok?

I plan on decent pants, casual dress shoes, sport jacket and dress shirt. Switch jacket for a decent sweater now and then =)

[TakeruK]

1 hour ago, Cervello said:

Suggestions for guys? I know suits are a no, but what about ties? A sports jacket? Chinos ok?

In the last month, I visited a bunch of cold places to give talks (not grad school interviews, but places I'm applying to postdocs). I layered my clothes to keep warm. For my bottom half, I wore long underwear + something like chinos. That seemed to be warm enough for me. For my upper half, I wore a undershirt, a dress shirt (no tie) plus a sweater that I could take on/off as needed. When I was outside, I also had a dressy jacket that had the look of a suit jacket but is thicker/warmer/meant to be an actual jacket. It's similar to a peacoat but isn't that. I don't know the name of this clothing item (maybe it's a sports jacket? lol). I also had a black toque to keep my head warm. For some places, a scarf as well. 

I'm currently living in California, so I don't really have a lot of dressy warm clothes. What I wore would be good for something like 15-20 minutes outside in cold weather---any more than that and I started to get pretty uncomfortable (unless I was also walking fast to stay warm!). Fortunately, for these types of visits, you spend very little time outside! Usually, the only significant time outside is during travel, e.g. getting from airport to the school or hotel room, and for these cases, sometimes paying** for a taxi or Uber could be worth it (especially if you would have to buy a lot of extra clothes otherwise). [** in my case, the fare was covered either by the school I was visiting or my grant, and your interviewing school may be covering these expenses anyways; but if they don't, it might be worth it!]

[Cervello]

5 minutes ago, Oddich55 said:

I plan on decent pants, casual dress shoes, sport jacket and dress shirt. Switch jacket for a decent sweater now and then =)

Will you wear a tie?

[Oddich55]

1 minute ago, Cervello said:

Will you wear a tie?

Haha. I think tie is overkill, so I won't =).

[TakeruK]

For what it's worth, I often have the internal struggle of tie vs. no tie and continually doubt myself. But I have an easy solution. Ties are small so I always pack matching ties for my shirts. That way, I can wait until the morning of the event to decide, based on other cues I might get. In my field, ties are usually overkill and most of the time, the tie doesn't ever leave my suitcase. Usually, I only wear the tie for the conference banquet dinner or some equivalent dressy event. I might wear one for my thesis presentation at my field's annual science meeting next week. So, it's usually "wasted" energy packing a tie, but I feel that just packing makes me feel a lot more prepared and less stressed during the travel and second-guessing my decision to leave it behind!

[PRR]

I'm still confused as to what shoes to wear as a girl in cold , snowy places if I don't want to change shoes...

Anyone have examples?

 

[RM17]

1 hour ago, PRR said:

I'm still confused as to what shoes to wear as a girl in cold , snowy places if I don't want to change shoes...

Anyone have examples?

 

I will probably be wearing my leather riding boots or ankle boots on which I've used this   waterproofing stuff. I still probably won't want to trudge throw a snowbank in them, but paths are usually pretty well plowed on campuses and public areas. I have pretty expensive riding boots (they're fryes) but my ankle boots are not too too expensive (and they're currently on sale). They are these in saddle & black leather.

You could also get waterproof ankle boots (like these) to skip the waterproofing yourself. Unfortunately, none of this stuff (except waterproofing spray/cream, if you have leather boots already) is too cost-effective, so it might depend on your budget. If it's somewhere REALLY cold/snowy, swapping shoes is probably still the best bet (I haven't decided but am strongly considering doing this when I go to Wisconsin, and I already live in a pretty cold place).

Edited December 28, 2016 by RM17
clarifying a few things!

[SysEvo]

Does a girl have to wear soft and light makeups just for interview?

[Bioenchilada]

6 hours ago, Cervello said:

Suggestions for guys? I know suits are a no, but what about ties? A sports jacket? Chinos ok?

Why are suits a no? I think most of the guys in my interviews actually wore them, and many of the program directors were wearing them too. I think it's always good to have a suit in your closet, and this is the best occassion to purchase and wear one

[fuzzylogician]

7 minutes ago, Bioenchilada said:

Why are suits a no? I think most of the guys in my interviews actually wore them, and many of the program directors were wearing them too. I think it's always good to have a suit in your closet, and this is the best occassion to purchase and wear one

It depends on the field and its norms. My field, for instance, is very informal, so wearing a suit would be serious overkill, even at a job interview. You have to know how to fit in. 

[Cervello]

5 minutes ago, fuzzylogician said:

It depends on the field and its norms. My field, for instance, is very informal, so wearing a suit would be serious overkill, even at a job interview. You have to know how to fit in. 

I'll be interviewing for neuroscience programs. Any idea of what's appropriate? 

[Cervello]

1 hour ago, Bioenchilada said:

Why are suits a no? I think most of the guys in my interviews actually wore them, and many of the program directors were wearing them too. I think it's always good to have a suit in your closet, and this is the best occassion to purchase and wear one

Were you, by chance, interviewing for neuro programs? I know that guys wear suits for med school interviews but I had the impression that for neuro phd programs, a dress shirt and chinos with a sport jacket would be appropriate. 

Edited December 28, 2016 by Cervello

[pupperoni]

17 minutes ago, Cervello said:

I'll be interviewing for neuroscience programs. Any idea of what's appropriate? 

Suit might be overkill. I'm at a ~top tier~ institution and every time we have recruitment weekends we judge the people who are in three-piece suits. I'd recommend slacks/khakis, shoes that aren't Jordans, and a nice button down or polo.

[Kaede]

2 hours ago, SysEvo said:

Does a girl have to wear soft and light makeups just for interview?

I'm not going to be wearing any. I think it should be fine to be yourself as long as it's not overdone.