<p>For what it’s worth, I’ll pass along what an educational consultant advised on this point. For boys, he said always go “one item” more dressy than the school’s every day dress code. So if the school has essentially no dress code, go with a collared dress shirt. If the school requires collared shirts, add a blazer. If the school requires jacket or tie, wear a jacket and tie. It ends there, obviously if the school requires jacket and tie, you don’t need to break out a tux. I felt like this advice stood my son in good stead – he looked like he was dressed up and taking this seriously, but wasn’t far out of step with the school’s every day norms.</p>
<p>Interesting. I would think always a blazer if not blazer and tie, even at a school without a dress code. And no sneakers. Use the tie to convey personality - pattern, bow tie, etc.</p>
<p>Coat and tie. Nice shoes. Pressed clothing. No suits.</p>
<p>It shows respect for the interview process. Even if you never wear a coat and tie again, it’s important to show respect when you go for the interview.</p>
<p>I find it interesting how suits seem to be out of the question. I guess my everyday wardrobe is a suit, so just assume for an interview it is appropriate. If you aren’t wearing a suit, is the thought blue blazer and khakis? I dislike khakis and my son never wears them. Is the no suit rule mainly because it is overly formal?</p>
<p>Definitely not a suit. I didn’t see a single boy wearing one in all our trips. None of the AOs or teachers at prep schools wear suits, so it would seem very out of place for a boy to be wearing a suit. It’s just the wrong vibe. No reason it needs to be khakis if you really hate them. A navy blazer and gray dress trousers would be fine, or I suppose even nice cords and tweed blazer (though I know my son wouldn’t be caught dead in cords).
Personally, I’d argue with ThacherParent that a coat and tie seems a bit overdone at a school that has a very casual dress code. This is obviously totally a matter of personal opinion, so there really is no right or wrong, but to me a coat and tie in that circumstance reads as though you don’t know much about that school.</p>
<p>For the dad, wearing suit would be fine. I did see suits on dads and rarely interviewees. At casual schools, I saw
many sweaters and vests, no blazers.</p>
<p>Sox…Thacher is a southern California school located in Ojai, not exactly a bastion of sport coats or suits (unless you’re an FBI agent). About a third of the interviewees the day we went were casual. The other two thirds had on coats and ties. Their sheepish looks brightened when they saw that they weren’t the only ones who had dressed up a bit.</p>
<p>Ties? Blazers? Never crossed ChoatieKid’s mind to dress like that. Clean pants. Clean polo. Bright smile. Full heart.</p>
<p>We pretty much followed the advice that sox mom shared in post #21. For his Thacher visit, DS wore nice jeans (stone-washed medium blue Levis), a collared polo-type shirt, and brown boat-shoe type loafers. At Deerfield, he wore khaki pants, brown belt, light blue button-down oxford shirt, a blue blazer, striped tie, and the same brown shoes. He was accepted at both schools.</p>
<p>Yes, clothes do matter - but it is much, much more important to be comfortable enough in what you’re wearing that it’s not a distraction. The way you present yourself (body language, posture) and your ability to project confidence (eye contact, firm handshake) will take you much further than whether or not you wear the “right” clothes.</p>
<p>I can’t imagine letting a boy go to boarding school interviews in a polo shirt, but I admit to being old school about this. It’s more about my own views of what’s “appropriate” than about any real sense that an AO would reject a kid for being too casual. I often make my DS put on a polo shirt to go out for dinner at any restaurant fancier than our neighborhood burger place, so that’s where I’m coming from.</p>
<p>I would add this thought. It’s not good enough that your son wears a jacket, tie, penny loafers – he needs to look comfortable wearing them. If he keeps playing with his tie, adjusting his jacket sleves or whatever, the impact of the nice clothes is diminished. As we went through this process last year, you could easily spot in the waiting rooms those kids who were not used to wearing jacket and ties. </p>
<p>If you son is someone who has not regularly worn a jacket and tie, I would suggest you make him wear it all day a couple of times before you start your interviews. The most impressive presentation is, I think, a well dressed kid who clearly feels at ease with himself and his clothes.</p>
<p>My DS was comfortable in his first jacket/button-down/tie/khakis/laced shoes at the interviews. We stopped by at fastfood chains for lunch. He complained “I can’t go in there wearing these!” He took off jacket and put on hooded sweatshirt (zipping it up all the way covering the tie) as we enter McDonald’s. He knows which clothing belongs where. :)</p>
<p>@friendlymom - I completely agree with you. Obviously never been through the BS interview process, and am likely jaded from the type of work I do, but with job interviews to me a suit is not only appropriate, but expected. Clearly this is something entirely different and you dress to your audience, so it’s very good to hear the opinions of people who have been through this before. At son’s current school, it’s slacks, shirt, tie and blazer, so presume he’ll be in something similar to that if we decide to go through with this process.</p>
<p>I really agree that while jeans and t-shirts are obviously not appropriate, the admission officers are not making notes about the clothes the kids are wearing. I’ve seen boys who wear suits with ease and others who clearly feel suffocated in a tie. This is probably a regional thing too–until eight grade, my kid never had a reason to put on a tie, never mind a suit. I think he did wear a shirt and tie for his interviews, but not a blazer, even at schools that required them. He was dressed up enough to mentally feel the weight of the occasion without feeling physically uncomfortable. If I had thought he’d be uncomfortable in a tie, we would have gone with a polo shirt or a dress shirt under a sweater and he’d have been just fine. (Now, incidentally, he loves the whole coat and tie thing, which completely throws his father for a loop)</p>
<p>Quick note: I did see a kid at Exeter in a suit. A black one, for that matter. He looked like he was part of some “young entrepreneur” club…but not that comfortable.</p>
<p>Ralph Lauren’s clothes are nice as well, the quality of the clothes is pretty high and tend to last for years.</p>
<p>Good info—thx to all!!</p>
<p>To clarify my post #35: I was referring to the color of the suit.</p>
<p>DS wore a blazer/button-down/tie/khakis/merrills to all his interviews. Dress codes at the schools varied from anything goes to coat and tie. We saw a few kids in suits, but not many. There were some kids who were a little more casual at the ultra casual day school.</p>
<p>I read this thread and tried to convince my son to wear something other than his usual “uniform” of polo shirt and khaki shorts when we visited Exeter and Andover, but he wouldn’t budge. It’s hard to get him to do anything but what he wants; polo shirt and khakis are NOT what other kids here wear, but it’s what he likes. I did call both schools to ask what he should wear and they said his outfit was fine for a summer interview.</p>