Interviewing: What to Wear to Land the Job
What you wear to a job interview can make or break your chances of landing that job. But finding the right interview outfits can feel overwhelming. Keep reading to learn how you should dress for the job you want.
Interview Outfits Guide
Before you start planning your outfit, make sure you know what the company’s dress code is. You don’t want to be wearing a suit in a business casual office environment where your interviewer is wearing flannel and jeans. But you also don’t want to be wearing flannel and jeans if your interviewer is in a suit.
You’ll also want to make sure that your outfit not only fits the office environment but also are clothes you feel confident and comfortable in. You don’t want to be fidgeting the whole time because your pants are too tight or your shoes hurt.
You also want to make sure your clothes aren’t too revealing and are seasonal. Make sure all clothing items are pressed, and free of pet hairs, holes, snags and stains.
Overall when picking out your interview outfit, you’ll want to use your best judgment trying to not overthink anything. The night before your interview, hang up your outfit and or layout your clothes. Make sure your outfit is out of reach of any pets, housemates and or children.
How to Match Your Interview Outfit to the Workplace
Now that you’ve already researched the company, you should have a good idea of how formal the workplace is. Check out photos of the workplace on social media sites to get an idea of how people dress in the office.
For a Casual Workplace
If the workplace is more casual, then you’ll want to dress casually but also professionally. This would be dark jeans with a blouse and or cardigan or knee-high skirt with a button-down blouse or shirt.
With either of these looks, you’ll want to avoid open-toe shoes and wear heels or flats.
For men, this look could be dark jeans or dark pants with a polo or button-down. For shoes, you’ll want to stick with closed-toed shoes that are clean and neat. Nice designer sneakers such as Fendi at SSENSE could also work!
For a Business Casual Workplace
If it’s a business casual setting, you’ll need to dress up a bit. So for women, this could be navy or black dress pants or a pencil skirt. Also, a button-down shirt and cardigan or jacket with closed-toed flats or heels would work.
For men, a business causal interview outfit could be black or navy dress pants paired with a belt, button-down shirt, and tie, with an optional blazer. For shoes, go will loafers or oxfords.
For a Formal Workplace
If the workplace is formal, you’ll want to wear a dark-colored suit. Or for women, this could be a tailored dress with a jacket that matches, or suit pants or a skirt with a matching jacket. For men, this means suit pants, with a matching jacket, button-down shirt, and tie.
Dress for the job you want today. Remember to dress for the workplace environment and to wear something you feel comfortable and confident in.
