Interview Dress Code

<p>Would a suit be most appropriate? Maybe clothes that reflect your own sense of style? Any inputs?</p>

<p>not nessecarily a suit, (although it can't hurt!), but at least something nice.
I wouldn't recommend trying to show your "own sense of style"... just try to look semi-professional.</p>

<p>I think that you're a guy, but here's what I wore to the two interviews I've done...</p>

<ul>
<li>A nice, short sleeved shirt and a pair of black pants</li>
<li>Green long sleeved blouse (buttoned up all the way) and a pair of tan pants</li>
</ul>

<p>Basically, just look nice... I almost wore a really dressy buisness outfit, but then I figured that it wasn't worth it because I almost never dress up that much. XD</p>

<p>semi-formal works</p>

<p>When i went down for an interview, i wore a tan pant and a nice sweater.</p>

<p>As a college alumni interviewer, I would say a suit and tie is definitely over the top. Some slacks (no blue jeans) and a shirt / blouse with a collar and/or a sweater is what I would expect to see.</p>

<p>One of my son's interviews was at a law firm and he wore a suit - I did not think it was "over the top." However he wore khaki pants, a dress shirt, and no tie in less formal settings.</p>

<p>from what my cc told me, who used to be an admissions person told me, all you gotta wear is tan pants (not khakis) and a polo that says your schools name and black dress shoes, so you can look presentable, not over the top, and acceptable, whatever you do don't wear jeans and a t-shirt, this only applies to guys</p>

<p>I dressed my friend up for an interview he wore:</p>

<p>A V-neck sweater with a pinstripe dress shirt underneath, with a tie
Dress Pants
It was a cold day, so he wore a nice trench coat.</p>

<p>He goes to Harvard now.</p>

<p>It depends on how the interviewer is. For my Princeton interview, my interviewer told me I could wear sweats if I wanted, and he showed up in shorts.</p>

<p>I'd recommend just something nice that you could even wear to school, but no T-shirts or ugly jeans.</p>

<p>I went to my MIT interview it jeans and a tshirt.</p>

<p>The point of an interview is to show him/her who you are so they can tell the university more about you. Hiding behind a suit, being false, etc will only hurt you (unless you normally wear a suit).</p>

<p>Go with what you would normally wear to a friends house.</p>

<p>thanks for all the inputs guys! i think i've decided to wear either a sweater with dress shirt layered underneath or just a dress shirt--depending on the weather. hope all turns out well. thanks!</p>

<p>I think the most important thing is to wear what you feel comfortable in. Personally, I hate wearing a tie, or a buttoned down shirt, so I avoid those at all costs. I've said this before, and I'm not trying to boast, but I think I am quite a good interviewer. I am completly comfortable in my own skin, and I have been told by many people that I am a good conversationalist. That being said, the clothes i wore to my different interviews(I ended up doing 4 total), depended entirely on where/who my interviewer was going to be. For two of the schools, I wore a nice sweater and slacks, because I was doing the interview in a law office for one of them, and meeting with the Dean of Admissions of the college at another. For my top school, my alumni interviewer was a 24 year old who worked at the indie radio station in my town, and she set up the interview at a donut shop, so I went casual, wearing the school t-shirt I had, and she loved me(I ended up getting into that school, and will be going there). I saw her a few weeks later at an information session, and she came up and just said how much she enjoyed talking to me, and how she was really really hoping that I would go there. For my last school, it was an unusual case, because my alumni interviewers were one of my good friend's parents. I have known them for a long time, and they have always loved me, so I felt completly comfortable wearing anything to that. However, I kind of went with a joke, because the week before, we were having a "team dinner" for my basketball team at the kid's house, and I was wearing a Middlebury shirt(the parents were Colby grads), and they were giving me a hard time for it. So for the interview, I wore my Colby sweatshirt that I had bought last year, and on the back, taped "Midd sucks". They got a kick out of it, and they loved me.</p>

<p>So, after all that, I say what matters most is if you are comfortable in your clothes, and the place where you are being interviewed. Law office/business place=dressier(slacks, sweater/nice shirt), coffee shop/public space/house=casual(jeans, school t-shirt if you have it, something that is comfortable)</p>

<p>im having an interview in a library and cant tell if that is formal/semi formal/casual, any input?</p>

<p>I think the safe way to go is the middle road. Don't take it quite to the suit level, but avoid jeans as well. Nice slacks, a collared shirt, black shoes, and a vest or jacket is a nice median that will not make you look either ostentatious or sloppy. That way, you can blend in no matter your situation.</p>

<p>I'm a girl, so the situations are not quite analogous, but my interview outfit was a knee-length black skirt, black pumps, and a colorful, Japanese-inspired flower-pattern collared shirt with a sweater-vest over it. The shoes and skirt were formal enough to make me look professional, but I tried to get across the fact that I'm not particularly staid by chosing a more interesting shirt. </p>

<p>My 2 cents.</p>

<p>If for example, they invite you to their law firm, house, or place of business, then wear a suit and tie unless they specifically tell you not to. </p>

<p>However, if it's a more informal meeting in a place like a cafe, a restauraunt, a bookstore, or a park, then you can dress more casually.</p>

<p>Actually, in Katherine Cohen's book (I don't remember which one), she suggests that you dress a little bit above what you wear normally. If that means you're in slacks, and a coat, so be it. But wearing a suit (wait for it) reveals nothing of who you are, which works against the interview's ultimate goal of relating something about you!</p>

<p>woowy woowy</p>

<p>i recommend a dress shirt and pants; forget the tie and coat- seems way too much for a interview</p>

<p>My daughter has her Harvard interview this afternoon. I told her not to wear too many jewelry, especially the 2 large art deco rings on her fingers. I gave her some suggestions about her outfit also. She decided on a white dress shirt, blue stylish cardigan and a pair of black pants (very nice and proper). Then on her way out she held up hands and said, "I love my rings, they stay." Without giving me a chance to say anyting, she left with a smile on her face.</p>

<p>For MIT, I wore nice jeans, an abercrombie shirt, and a nice pea-coat type jacket. It was at Starbucks, so I just dressed like I would any other time. I did buy new shoes for good luck though, haha.</p>