Degrees of Suitable Attire

Prep School Admissions
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<p>My husband and I, along with our boarding school prospect, will be attending some more or less "informal" open houses in the weeks ahead. then there will be official tours and interviews. What would you suggest that we parents wear to the open houses? What should our daughter wear? How about the interviews, the same level of informality/formality or...?</p>

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<p>Hi Rubricon! Last year, we went to a number of the informal get togethers at houses of local parents or alums, and yes, boys wear jackets and ties, and girls wear skirts and modest tops with jackets or sweaters. You as a parent will likely feel most comfortable in business attire – not cocktail dressy, but dads in jacket and tie and moms in slacks or skirts and jackets or sweaters.
On a thread like this, some folks always weigh in and say, oh, be yourself, don’t worry about being casual. I KNOW we all would have felt uncomfortable if any one of us was in jeans. Every time we got dressed for an “event,” DD would balk at being formal, and every time, it was the way nearly every other family was dressed.
Being appropriately dressed is an easy way to make yourself feel comfortable.</p>

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<p>I think at this stage of the process, jeans are never acceptable. On parents or children. That said, at the Miss Porter’s event for 7th graders last Spring, one of the featured activities was a scavenger hunt, so I queried if jeans would be better than something nicer and they said it was fine.</p>

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<p>If you go to an Open House at a school with a casual dress code, then I think it is fine for your child to dress nicely, but no need for a coat and tie. Here are some photos from a Blair Open House [Blair</a> Academy - News & Events](<a href=“http://www.blair.edu/News_Events/2006_2007/news_ev_openhouse.shtm]Blair”>http://www.blair.edu/News_Events/2006_2007/news_ev_openhouse.shtm)
If you are still wondering what to wear, see if you can find photos in the archives of the schools that interest you. </p>

<p>The private receptions tend to be a little dressier, but can still vary. If it is a formal dress code school, it would be best for your child to be dressed in a formal manner. </p>

<p>Coat & tie at an interview, even at a casual school, is a good choice. </p>

<p>Enjoy your Open Houses and receptions! I think it’s a good way to understand the different personalities schools have.</p>

<p>I re-read your question, and I see you are asking about your daughter. She should wear the coat & tie equivalent. Some coat & tie schools require the girls to wear blazers. Otherwise, something like a nice sweater set and skirt would work.</p>

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<p>@Burb Parent: Actually, I think an 8th grade girl rocking a blazer and tie would be pretty cool…</p>

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<p>Well, if she looked like Alexis Biedel from Gilmore Girls [Google</a> Image Result for <a href=“http://journals.concrete.org.au/hollyhobbie/gilmore-girls.jpg[/url]”>http://journals.concrete.org.au/hollyhobbie/gilmore-girls.jpg](<a href=“http://■■■■■■■/obqf5]Google”>http://■■■■■■■/obqf5)</a>, I could see it! Actually I used to cringe when I saw this Hollywood version of an independent school uniform.</p>

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<p>Please forgive me if this is super random, but I was wondering if schools have numerous open houses or just one…</p>

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<p>@polodolly: I think it depends on the school…for example, Westtown (mid-Atlantic) has a few listed on their site.</p>

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<p>Rubicon-</p>

<p>I went to a school open house today. </p>

<p>My general rule of thumb in these situations is “one level up”. Think about how a typical student at the school would dress, then go one level more formal. For an informal weekend event this might mean khakis and polo shirts for boys, nice but informal pants (not jeans) and a nice sweater for girls. This was how the kids today dressed.</p>

<p>For interviews at a jeans and t-shirts school I’d do the above. At a school with a “collared shirt” kind of dress code a jacket for boys and skirt or dress for girls would be appropriate.</p>

<p>I followed the same guidelines myself and was quite comfortable.</p>