<p>My DD and I will be traveling this weekend to visit a college (one of her two top choices) that has invited her to participate in a program where she will spend the night in the dorm, attend a class and tour the campus among many other scheduled events. We have also scheduled one-on-one meetings with an associate dean in the school of her intended major and with a woman "mentor" from the faculty. Instructions are for us both to dress comfortably and prepare for lots of walking. My question is, what is the appropriate attire, especially taking into account the meetings that we have scheduled on our own in addition to the "scheduled programming"?</p>
<p>Nice casual, with the most comfortable shoes you own, even if they are sneakers.</p>
<p>If you are going anywhere in the Northeast, you may want to pack two outfits. Given the time of year, it will probably be either considerably warmer or considerably colder than you expect. So if you bring only one outfit, you may find yourself dressed for the wrong weather.</p>
<p>It is indian summer in many places, so hot outsied, cool inside, to do the layer thing, bring a light sweater for indoors, so you aren't shivering int he air conditioning,</p>
<p>flats are fine</p>
<p>modest but not prudish</p>
<p>you want to be remembered for who you are, not what you wore</p>
<p>my Ds always have a sweater and sscarf (we live in SF and the climate is odd to say the least, neighborhood to neighborhood can shift 20 degrees)</p>
<p>If she is bringing a resume, which she should, so she can offer it if asked, get a portfolio, gotten cheap enough, to put papers in, cards, resume, etc</p>
<p>It just is better than cramming it in a purse or a beat up folder</p>
<p>simple jewlery, a watch, be sure and turn cell phones to vibrate or off</p>
<p>i would say no jeans, a looking like you put some effort in and rspect the time the people are taknig can go a long way</p>
<p>I would also suggest a tote size umbrella. Used ours frequently during tours and am glad I had one. Some schools let you borrow an umbrella ( you often have to leave a driver's license or some form of collateral), but if it is a large group thing, they often don't have enough. Enjoy your visit.</p>
<p>I wanted son to wear nice pants and a nicer shirt. His quote "that's not who I am." He went casual and comfortable- with the nice clothes in his bag, just in case.</p>
<p>I had more heated conversations with my son about this than we'd had since he was 3 years old. Even though he only applied to casual, quirky places, I always though he should avoid wearing rags. As cgm says, make an impact by your words, ideas, personality, etc. People can react oddly to clothes. So I'd agree casual, but respectable--leave the rags at home. Casual for a boy meaning nice Khakis and a collared short sleeved shirt or a plain t-shirt. For a girl, the equivalent. A suit would have looked silly at the schools we visited.</p>
<p>This will depend somewhat on the location of the school and the common practices of the region. Your DD will want to feel comfortable and blend in while on campus, attending a class and experiencing the dorm. But mixed in there will be meetings when a little bit of polish might be nice. A lot will also depend on who your DD is. Mine went with her best jeans, nice flats and a good sweater. She was totally comfortable and genuinely herself, especially for the meeting with the dean of admissions in the middle of the day. I was a little more conservative, but still comfortable. This was in the northeast at this time of year, so we did go prepared with a few layers just in case, and needed them.</p>
<p>We did have one nicer dinner out and D was not really properly prepared clothing wise. Yes, it was an "I told you so" moment, but nothing to be done about it. Try to pursuade her to take one "nicer" set of clothes if she happens to be the kind who normally doesn't!</p>
<p>I just love when kids say "its just not me" when it is suggested they dress a bit better for an occassion</p>
<p>would they wear raggy jeans and a tie dye shirt to grandma's funeral because that is who they are?</p>
<p>You can be yourself while still putting in a bit of effort</p>
<p>I just don't think jeans are ever appropriate for that kind of interview, you may get lucky and have someone who doesn't care, but then you may get someone who does, why take the chance?</p>
<p>You can be genuine while dressing nicer, they are not mutally exclusive and young adults need to learn that</p>
<p>I'm not disagreeing with the advice to dress just a little nicer, but I think that almost anyone at college (from the President to the Dean to the Admissions Director) is more than used to talking to students in grubby jeans and sweatshirts!</p>
<p>I really don't think this would be make or break, either way.</p>
<p>Please, do not wear jeans or t-shirts with holes! And throw away that gum before you shake hands with your interviewer. Think of this as a practice interview for your future job. Can you see yourself interviewing for that dream corporate job in "grubby jeans and a sweatshirt"? My coworkers dress so terribly (we work in a lab) that they all can easily get spots on that "What not to wear" show, but I will never forget the spiffy suites they wore during their interviews.</p>
<p>Save your gubby attire for wearing on campus AFTER your admission.
BB.</p>
<p>My S lives in shorts and sandals, but did wear cacki pants to interviews. He wore T-shirts he won at contests or polo shirts. Not 'til a junior in college did he cut his long hair.</p>
<p>When applying for internships, he had to learn for himself when he should dress up and when it was ok to be casual.</p>
<p>Thank you, everyone, for your input. My biggest worry was the "jeans or not" dilemma. I think I will encourage her to take khaki's or other pants instead. I do agree that with classes mixed in with interviews, it is important to strike a good balance where she fits in in a classroom situation and still is able to make a neat impression with her interviewers.</p>
<p>We'll be visiting a school in the deep south, so I don't think layers will be necessary, except maybe something to throw on in case the air conditioning is too cool.</p>
<p>Any more advice anyone may have is welcome. We leave for the airport in about 5 hours!</p>
<p>Why is there a problem if she sits in a class dressed a little nicer than she would if she was a student at that school? No one in the class is judging her. I don't understand what difference it makes if she is the only one not wearing jeans because she has an appointment after the class where nicer dress is appropriate. It seems like a petty think to be concerned about.</p>
<p>Many students don't wear jeans, they may have jobs, or internships, or something after class</p>
<p>Dressing for the occasion is something people need to learn and if you make the excuse that it isn't "you" to dress appropritely, that is pretty self absorbed</p>
<p>Grubby jeans just shows you don't care that much from the outset, and so what if they are "used to it" , doesn't make it a smart move</p>
<p>My daughter didn't have any pants besides jeans- but they weren't grubby- we wash our clothes occasionally ;)
They did all have holes though from her job at the zoo- ponies love to bite!</p>
<p>I think you can give a good impression even if wearing casual clothes.
Casual is not the same as sloppy.
If someone is not comfortable in what they are wearing, that is going to be more noticable than if they wore less formal clothing</p>
<p>I would recommend a blazer, conservative blouse, skirt, stockings, and low heels since she is meeting with a dean and a potential mentor. As BB wrote, think of how one would dress for a job interview.</p>
<p>Grubby jeans?!! No No. My D had on her best, and trust me, she's got 'em 'cause she's a jeans snob.</p>
<p>Deep south? Does your DD wear skirts or dresses? That would be a good fit, and she would find some girls wearing skirts and such on campus there anyway. (Son and niece are in schools down that way.) Be prepared for air conditioning, though, a sweater is still a good idea if you chill easily.</p>
<p>Thanks, again, to everyone. It seems that there are many different opinions as to what would be appropriate dress for the weekend, but I think we've finally settled on a couple of outfits. I'm sorry if some took my concern as "petty" but she is our oldest and the first in our family to go through the college interview process since it became so darned competitive. I didn't really think that trying to cover all possible bases in our preparation for our trip was that far out there. I enjoy this forum greatly and will continue to read regularly in order to receive excellent tips and insights into this very stressful process.</p>
<p>I suggest that if your youngun isn't comfortable out of her/his jeans, that they find some pants that look and fit like jeans but are made out of something else...there are plenty of jean-styled pants that are made of gabardine or twill that are not blue.</p>