Interview outfit question

A number of colleges he’s exploring offer interviews at admissions for rising seniors and seniors. And alumni interview if you can’t get to the school. Part of his admissions package.

@cbdnyc: The outfit you describe is the typical ‘interview uniform’ for all of the selective New England prep schools in warm weather. Those schools are certainly more “traditional” than most colleges today, so I think your son is going to look just fine in the shorts and button-down.

I wouldn’t let him go in less than khaki pants and polo shirt, that should be fine. I don’t think shorts are acceptable for an interview at the school. Business attire seems to much. I just shows he’s serious.

OhioParent, that’s what I thought too, but the other students at these interviews dress so incredibly casually, that I wonder if I’m wrong to insist on this.

Well, again, split the difference if you’re so concerned - walk around in shorts, but plan time to cool off and change into the khaki pants before the interview. Problem solved.

Watched an episode of W. Kamau Bell’s show United Shades of America (great show by the way) He was speaking about the hipsters taking over Portland. He said something to the effect of hipster all try to show their individuality by dressing exactly the same. I think if the other kids do something your child may want to do the same NOT to stand out. All teens want to blend in. But it does not make it the proper way to dress for an interview. Better an hour early to an interview than a minute late. Better to be the guy in khakis who is a little overdressed than the kid in shorts offending an important conservative economics professor.

Eh, or do neither.

That hasn’t been our experience.

On one level some people may say the whole outfit thing is kind of silly, but to me it speaks to the larger issue of these kids dealing with the Imposter Syndrome and feeling like robots who have to check all these boxes or they won’t be successful.

If we can’t even let them dress like they want, study what they want, and be what they want, how are they supposed to know who they are when we keep telling them that the face they want to present isn’t ok and shoving them into a suit?

There has to be balance and wisdom, and respect shown to the person interviewing you, but sheesh, all this fear about showing other people who you are really does the kids no favors.

Mother of Dragons, have you ever read a child you know’s resume. They are not showing people who they are they are pretending to cure cancer and raise millions for charity when they just helped out once a book drive.

I don’t think a pair of beige pants and clear polo shirt is “stuffing them into a suit” just taking away the clothing as a distraction.

I have interviewed people for grad school and post grad positions. I try to read through the resumes and pick out the BS. Like to try to get to know the person but I don’t want to be distracted by flip flops and Hawaiian board shorts and a tank top. Maybe I’m just too conservative.

^^That’s not on my kids’ “resumes”. It’s part of the problem, in my opinion. People are packaging and marketing their children, regardless of who the children really are. I think it’s incredibly harmful.

However, you’re missing my point about clothing-flip flops are as disingenuous as a suit, because they say to the interviewer “I can’t be bothered to be considerate of your needs as an interviewer”, just like an involuntary suit says to the interviewer “I’m not going to show you who I really am.”

No one is talking about shoving anyone into a suit in this instance.

But I do think part of raising kids is to help them understand what outfits may be appropriate for certain circumstances. Believe me, my kids are in t-shirts and jeans 99% of the time for leisure wear but they know how to step it up when called for. D is business casual (nice jeans are fine in her workplace, but not for client visits) and S often needs a suit in his job. And I think part of teaching them this is teaching that it’s not “compromising their individuality” - they still are who they are. And not to look like you’re being bitten by fleas because you’re soooooo uncomfortable in khakis and a polo - that’s like a little boy, who squirms when he’s “fancy.”

My S just wore flip flops to one of his interviews. They were the nice cloth ones from Vineyard Vines but flip flops nonetheless. It has been in the high 90’s here for the last week and he wore a nice pair of flat front, khaki shorts with a light blue long sleeved T tucked in with a grosgrain belt. The T had the logo of his high school on it - he had no other clean shirts! It was this look exactly except the T shirt was light blue and his flip flops were a dark blue cloth with some sort of pattern:

http://www.vineyardvines.com/mens-shorts/americas-cup-8-inch-performance-breaker-shorts/1H0445.html?cgid=Mens-Shorts#start=1&cgid=Mens-Shorts

I thought he looked fine but even if I didn’t he would not have changed.

I know several people have suggested that he wear shorts for the tour etc and then change for the interview. I’d thought of that, but given that the tours/info sessions start at the admissions office, where he’ll introduce himself when he arrives, it seems weird (to me) that he’ll come back from the tour and then change his clothes for the interview, given that they may have already met/seen him. I think we’re going to go with the dressy shorts/shirt/nice shoes. I don’t feel it’s disrespectful, and it’s what he wants to wear. I appreciate all the input.

Re: #71

Yes, if it will be awkward to change clothes, then it would be best to choose clothing suitable for the day’s activities (walking around on a hot day) that is reasonably neat, properly fitting, comfortable, not distracting, and will still be that way when the interview at the end happens.

Re: #70 and http://www.vineyardvines.com/mens-shorts/americas-cup-8-inch-performance-breaker-shorts/1H0445.html?cgid=Mens-Shorts#start=1&cgid=Mens-Shorts

That brand does seem to be a rather expensive brand.

They have great sales @ucbalumnus and the clothing is well made. You will get a lot of wear out of their line.

Go to the “sale” tab online - a lot is already marked down 30% .

So what, ucbalumnus? No one is saying it HAS to be that brand. It’s a pretty common brand for preppy-style young men. It’s just a suggestion. My son’s khaki shorts are from Kohl’s.

No, doesn’t need to be that brand…but the style is pretty classic and a “safe” bet across the entire country for kids at least in our hood.

Both of my kids didn’t vary much from their usual jean wardrobe for any of their interview sessions. It didn’t seem to hurt them at all.

If the school is scheduling interviews after public tours in August, it will be expected that those being interviewed will be more casually dressed. No one expects a 17 year old to be wearing a shirt and tie to walk around the dorms and gyms, inside and out, on a 90 degree day.

However, if the OP and her son might have the slightest doubt that his outfit is inappropriate and this is going to nag at them for years should he not be admitted to this school, he should wear a more formal outfit. I don’t think it matters, no one on this thread thinks it matters, but the OP has to decide if it matters to her.

I think the OP did decide.

@HarvestMoon1 wrote

We call those thongs, and I don’t mind them because they have structure and function.

What I’m talking about is the 3 dollar flip flops from Walmart that force people to shuffle when they walk, make grotesque slapping noises on the soles of their feet, and are inevitably stained and flattened. It’s just one of those things in life that there’s never a good reason to wear them unless you’re trying to protect your feet in a public shower…

Vineyard Vines is really popular in Atlanta-I see the little whale stickers on the back of people’s cars everywhere.