Interview outfit - Help!

[saturn]

So, after several months of job-searching, I finally have a job interview this Friday!!! It sounds really promising - from what they''ve told me it sounds like I am their top choice. I''m really excited about this job.

But... I''m not quite sure what to wear for the interview. In the past, when I interviewed for laboratory positions, I always wore a dress shirt and some nice black pants. But this is for a hospital job, so I figured that I should dress up more.
I don''t want to spend a whole lot for a suit, so I went to the outlet mall and got a jacket I like. It''s dark gray, and I thought it would look okay with my black pants. But now I''m reading that my jacket and pants should match exactly. Do you think I need to go back and get the pants to match? Or is it okay to have a gray jacket and black pants? Or, should I go even more conservative and wear a skirt?

I want to look professional, but at the same time I don''t want to spend a bunch of money.

Anyone have any advice? Thanks.

 

[monarch64]

Personally, I would go back and get the matching pants if you liked them. An interview suit in a conservative color can also work for other events in life, such as (I hate to say it) funerals/wakes, or you can wear the jacket and pants separately on other occasions when you need to be dressed up a bit. And while it sounds like you will receive a job offer from this upcoming interview, ya never know--you might not decide to take it, and need a suit for other interviews.

I don''t think it''s totally necessary to wear a skirt suit, but I would encourage you to wear matching pieces. It just gives a more professional, well-put-together appearance overall, IMO. I would think about what males would wear to an interview for the same position as well...would it be acceptable in your field for men to wear say, a gray jacket and black trousers? Or would they probably wear a matching jacket and trouser? Just food for thought.

 

[Alisoun]

I''m working for Ann Taylor Loft while I''m going to school, and right now, it seems like there''s a lot of mixing and matching of neutrals - even in work attire. (Dark brown paired with light brown, black paired with grey, blue paired with black, etc.). Check out the website for reference.

This said, I''m not sure if the color combo matters as much as the cut of the clothes (it always comes down to cut, eh?). If it were me, I''d want the suit to be well-tailored and sophisticated (not too baggy or long, etc.). An entirely black suit might be a bit more formal, but I would say the way the clothes fit is more important.

BTW, I *love* skirts. Any excuse I had to buy one, I''d use it :-p

 

[Dee*Jay]

Saturn, I agree with Monarch. If the pants are available I think you should get them and make a "suit" for the interview. And you can always wear them separately to make the outfit more versitile in the future if you don''t need a suit.

 

[qtiekiki]

I would get a matching color pants too. And considering that it is a hospital position where you are most likely wearing pants for everyday work, I wouldn''t wear a skirt because it just doesn''t seem appropriate for the position. It''s not just about dressing nice for the interview but dressing for the profession.

 

[ladykemma]

i think the outfit you have presently is good. i wouldn''t spend for a suit that you will ever wear again.

 

[chrono]

I agree with most of the other posters: It is best to have a matching suit and pant combo for the interview, and once you have a job, you can mix and match other colours. It doesn''t have to be a skirt, as these days, pants are very well accepted in the workplace for women.

 

[nejarb]

If this is a job where you will EVER need to dress business-style, rather than business-casual (e.g. for the occasional meeting with clients, vendors, executives, who ever), then it is important to wear a nice suit and look very conservative at the interview. This shows that you have a nice suit and look professional in it. It also shows that the interview is important to you, and you respect the person who is interviewing you enough to dress well. Even if the position doesn''t call for this, who knows? Maybe they''re looking for someone who they can possibly promote or who might need to take on additional responsibilities.

If this is not an administrative job, but rather you will always be wearing scrubs or you are applying for a position where you''ll wear some other uniform, then the super-conservative suit is not as important--but it doesn''t hurt. It''s always better to be more dressed for an interview than necessary than it is to be less dressed. Nobody will ever fault you for it.

As for the expense: it''s an investment. You should have a black skirt-suit in your closet anyway, in case of a funeral. But....one time I purchased a navy skirt suit for a lunch interview. I wore it for a few hours and by the time I got home I realized that I didn''t like the way it fit at all, b/c it would ride up past my waist and I needed to tug on it after I stood up from sitting. It was still perfectly clean, so I took it back and got a refund. I''m not exactly suggesting that you do this, but it''s just food for thought.

 

[~*Alexis*~]

Well good luck on your interview. I have working in HR before and I will give you a few tips.

*be early. NO more than 10 minutes but not late either. Being there too early rushes the person that is interviewing you and it makes you look desperate. Being late, well, you get the idea.

* When it comes to what you wear- always dress up ONE level ahead of what you would dress for the job on a day to day basis. The jackets sounds nice. If you pair it with a black skirt or a neutral tone what you have is just fine. If you have something that is too matchy it can look cheesy.

*I will agree that everyone needs at least one decent black suit, but whether you wear it to the interview or no, is up to you.

* Bring a list of questions that you want to ask. Write them down. This makes you look prepared and interested in the position.

* Do research on the company, the more you know the better you will have a shot at looking like you know what you are talking about, even if you have no clue.

Hope that helps. Anymore questions, just post. I will help you out as much as I can.

 

[monarch64]

Date: 10/3/2006 8:01:59 AM
Author: ~*Alexis*~
Well good luck on your interview. I have working in HR before and I will give you a few tips.

*be early. NO more than 10 minutes but not late either. Being there too early rushes the person that is interviewing you and it makes you look desperate. Being late, well, you get the idea.

* When it comes to what you wear- always dress up ONE level ahead of what you would dress for the job on a day to day basis. The jackets sounds nice. If you pair it with a black skirt or a neutral tone what you have is just fine. If you have something that is too matchy it can look cheesy.

*I will agree that everyone needs at least one decent black suit, but whether you wear it to the interview or no, is up to you.

* Bring a list of questions that you want to ask. Write them down. This makes you look prepared and interested in the position.

* Do research on the company, the more you know the better you will have a shot at looking like you know what you are talking about, even if you have no clue.

Hope that helps. Anymore questions, just post. I will help you out as much as I can.

I''ve been in charge of hiring as well, saturn...and I second everything Alexis has mentioned! I was in charge of hiring for retail management, though, so I am a little more biased on the dress code aspect! Alexis made some great points though. I wish you the best of luck for Friday''s interview! Please let us know how it went!

 

[saturn]

Thanks everyone for the advice - I went back and got the pants to match. I definitely think it was the right decision, since the pants ended up being on sale and I feel much more confident about the outfit now. Plus, I realized that at this point in my life it is really a worthwhile investment to own a decent suit. Thanks everyone! I knew I could count on the PS folks as enablers!

I also really appreciate the interview advice. I really really want this job - it''s pretty much my ideal job for this point in my career. Plus, I''ve been living here for almost 3 months and I''m starting to go stir crazy not having much to do. Not to mention, DH is a student so we could really use the money and benefits. So I really hope that I get it, but I''m trying not to get toooooo emotionally invested since it may not work out. But the hiring supervisor said she wanted to set me up for several days of job shadowing after the interview so that I can make sure that I like the job (it''s what I went to grad school for, but I don''t have any experience). I figure they probably wouldn''t do that if they had a lot of candidates and weren''t especially interested in me. So keep your fingers crossed for me! I''ll definitely follow the good advice you gave, Alexis.