Serious What should I wear to an interview?

[Nix_Hex]

Hey guys. I know that there are several users here who are professionals (for lack of a better word) and I'd like to get some feedback. I have an interview scheduled for next week with a very well-known and widespread engineering company and I am unsure of what to wear. My usual clothes are a dress shirt, tie, dress slacks, and dress shoes along with a clean-shaven face (I can't complete Movember this year) and I have gotten job offers from other firms with that outfit. However I want to try something that doesn't say "I'm a desperate, unemployed college student" but instead a little more confident. I was thinking of wearing a polo shirt, slacks, and my usual dress shoes. Any other ideas, or is this a good choice?

Also, as far as discussion goes, what kind of jobs have you interviewed for and what did you wear?

 

[Acklow]

If you go to an interview, I recommend OVERdressing rather than going business-casual. It is all about the first impression. You want to sell yourself to the prospective employer. If you aren't serious, your potential employer will see that. I dressed up in a full suit for my job interview and I don't even wear that kind of stuff at the job. Nevertheless, it was Important for me to do so in order to properly land the gig. If they see you are a dedicated person, they will hire you.

 

[The Grand Babido]

when you go for an interview u always want to dress one level up from whats worn in the work place.

 

[faint]

Clothes.

 

[DM]

Wear a fucking suit. Be a grownass man.

 

[Shinryu]

Honestly for an engineering job, I wouldn't bother with a sports jacket or suit coat personally, unless the occasion benefits it (ie you live somewhere cold and have a reason to wear it). Dress shirt/slacks/tie/shoes should be sufficient enough.

 

[blarajan]

basically what dm said lmao

suit up at all times it's the illest and seriously

a suit is a man's best friend. you look sharp and it shows you're taking it seriously. just don't even think "what should i wear to blank" just wear a suit.

 

[Honko]

Depends on if this interview is in California.

I wore a polo and khakis to the interview for my current job and if anything I felt a little overdressed.

 

[Typhlito]

As long as you have your suit and tie you'll be fine. But in all seriousness, if you stay confident in the interview, they would probably like you. They care more about how you present yourself than if you wore the right clothes (to an extent of course)

 

[darkie]

if you're overdressed, it might hurt you a little bit, and you can always take a tie off before you step into the room.

if you're underdressed, it'll hurt you a lot and you have nothing there to fix at the last minute.

 

[youngjake93]

I always overdress for interviews. I've actually had a boss tell me that overdressing at work helped me get a promotion.
You need the confidence to back up what you are wearing of course. Plus the most crucial thing is to remember that you are selling yourself, not presenting yourself. Always keep in mind what they are looking for and stress WHY hiring you will specifically solve for that problem rather than rambling off credential after credential.

Good luck!

 

[macle]

suit up

 

[FireMage]

Depends on if this interview is in California.

I wore a polo and khakis to the interview for my current job and if anything I felt a little overdressed.

Do you Work at a nudist beach?

Echoing the above - everytime I've gone to a job interview (part time retail, where I work now - part time at a chinese restaurant, bookies etc..) I've always put on a nice clean pressed shirt, Black dress trousers and a pair of well maintained black shoes. I'd say keep it slim. No-one wants to look as if they're in their dads clothes.

I've been in situations in which other applicants have turned up in less appropriate job clothing and have been turned right away and ejected from the place without a greeting nor an interview.

 

[Honko]

I work for a very well-known and widespread software company. I also interview new candidates pretty regularly, so I can say with confidence that what you wear to an interview here doesn't matter as long as it's clean and not offensive. You should wear whatever you will feel most comfortable and confident in, whether that's a suit or jeans.

Of course this varies by job and by location. If you're interviewing for a retail job, or if you're on the East coast, don't wear a t-shirt. But for an engineering interview in California, I wouldn't wear a suit unless they specifically tell you formal business attire. There's also no harm in just asking them beforehand if you're really not sure.

 

[Aldaron]

i can tell you with near certainty that what you wear for engineering / software interviews does not fucking matter, so long as it isn't offensive and you don't look sloppy / dirty

"suit up" cries are for business majors and lawyers

do you really want to work for a company that would do something as 1980s IBM as judge you based on business casual vs. business formal ??

(i sincerely hope the answer to that is no)

 

[Nix_Hex]

It is in southern California, east of Los Angeles (not East LA lol), and is DoD, if that makes a difference (doubtful, but I don't want to assume anything). Does anyone else think Honko's advice on just asking if work attire is business casual / formal? Because I'm leaning toward that myself.

 

[Shinryu]

Still say basic dress shirt/slacks/tie is the way to go, it's not overtly formal and overdressed, but it's not jeans/t-shirt either, so it should strike a decent balance considering it's business casual.

You could have like a friend call and ask or something, that'd be a good way to see what any dress codes are. Or if you're driving by there (as you should be scouting out where the interview location is anyways) you can observe and see what's being worn.

 

[Princess Bubblegum]

Wear a fucking suit. Be a grownass man.

uh

 

[MrIndigo]

Any professional job, like business, law, IT, engineering, etc., you should wear a suit with tie.

Other jobs, it depends a bit more. A suit would be inappropriate for many jobs, you'd just look like a tool.

Everything else (well-kept hair and facial hair if any, clean and ironed clothes, etc.) is just basic presentability.