# interview dress code - ask the interviewer?? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [January 7, 2011, 6:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/interview-dress-code-ask-the-interviewer/566720 "2011-01-07T06:10:50Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 9\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![wolfman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/a8b319/32.png) [@wolfman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfman)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2011, 12:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/interview-dress-code-ask-the-interviewer/566720/61 "2011-01-12T00:27:49Z")
One thing about IT is that the manager is usually an idiot. The biggest part of an interview is conducted by on Staff SMEs(subject matter experts) They are people who would rather do something useful than move into management, and will possibly count against you if you wear a suit. ---
**Author:** ![godix](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/278dde/32.png) [@godix](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/godix)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2011, 12:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/interview-dress-code-ask-the-interviewer/566720/62 "2011-01-12T00:40:56Z")
From my experiences, IT is not expected to dress up quite as much as other positions. Most IT jobs require at least a bit of grunt work as you run cables, get behind computers, or otherwise get into stuff that is dusty. Companies know this and don’t expect a guy cabling the office to do so in a business suit. Now if you’re going into IT management or an IT position such as programming where there’s zero chance you’ll be doing this sort of thing, the suit is the way to go. Alternatively, go to the companies website and see if they have pictures of employees somewhere. Dress a step or two above what you see in the pictures. ---
**Author:** ![Icarus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/icarus/32/72_2.png) [@Icarus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Icarus)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2011, 12:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/interview-dress-code-ask-the-interviewer/566720/63 "2011-01-12T00:48:02Z")
> [@Krokodil](#): > > These are okay work shoes, but not good interview shoes. Earlier I said you’ll drop at least $500 for an outfit; that included $300 for the suit and $150 for shoes. Balderdash on the $ outlay - as others have pointed out, you can find really decent suits much cheaper. And I’ve never paid that much for a pair of shoes in my long and distinguished life. Yeah, I’m frugal - and it sounds like the OP doesn’t have that kinda scratch to begin with. ---
**Author:** ![DianaG](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/7ab992/32.png) [@DianaG](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DianaG)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2011, 3:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/interview-dress-code-ask-the-interviewer/566720/64 "2011-01-12T15:26:25Z")
Yeah, I have to say, I’m as big a proponent of “buy yourself some decent damn clothes” as you’re likely to find here, but apparently Krokodil has never heard of sale day at Macy’s (which happens approximately every third day), let alone TJ Maxx. Hell, I’d even agree that $500 is not unreasonable to drop on an outfit, unless of course you don’t HAVE $500. You don’t have to choose between dressing decently and eating something other than Ramen this month, if you just shop a little strategically. ---
**Author:** ![Morgenstern](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f9ae1b/32.png) [@Morgenstern](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Morgenstern)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2011, 3:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/interview-dress-code-ask-the-interviewer/566720/65 "2011-01-12T15:45:07Z")
> [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](#): > > Just dress up as much as you can. You’ll never lose out on a job for overdressing in the interview. I don’t know if I agree with the second part of that. There is a guy on the local news here who is on once a week for a little piece on “job hunting.” He warns against under dressing, for the obvious reason, and over dressing. He claims over dressing gives the wrong impression about you fitting in. His advice, dress 1 level above what the employees are wearing. My advice, don’t show up in tux and tails with a top hat for an IT job. ---
**Author:** ![Swallowed\_My\_Cellphone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9d8465/32.png) [@Swallowed\_My\_Cellphone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Swallowed_My_Cellphone)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2011, 3:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/interview-dress-code-ask-the-interviewer/566720/66 "2011-01-12T15:46:48Z")
> [@jz78817](#): > > I’d have to ask what industry this is, and if it’s something that people widely know. > > 'cos I tend to dislike attitudes like that. Like it or not, for any job in a professional capacity (and plenty that aren’t) business attire is the default expectation for an interview. Expecting someone who is looking for work to “take a chance” at underdressing for an interview just because you/your company doesn’t like it is, well, dickish at best. A buddy of mine is a film editor and once interviewed at a major video gaming company for a position tangentally related to his then current job. His buddy in the gaming industry had to work really, really hard to convince him _not_ to wear a suit or even a dress shirt. My buddy went to the interview wearing a polo shirt/golf shirt and khakis. The guy who interviewed him was wearing Bermuda shorts and flip-flops. ETA: It probably wouldn’t have actually made a difference if he was wearing a dress shirt though, because they were expecting him to be all presentable and were not expecting him to come in beach wear. IIRC, in his industry he typically interviews for editing jobs in “business casual”. ---
**Author:** ![Cluricaun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/bb73d2/32.png) [@Cluricaun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cluricaun)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2011, 5:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/interview-dress-code-ask-the-interviewer/566720/67 "2011-01-12T17:45:07Z")
This can be difficult in colder climates during the winter, but I’ve gone before and sat in my car in the parking lot around starting time and watched people go in to work and noted how they were dressed before the day of my interview. Might seem a little creepy, but it works. Another thing that bears mentioning, groom yourself well. Get a haircut three days before if you can, that way it can grow out enough that it doesn’t look like you just got a haircut but it’s still in good shape. Shave carefully, trim your fingernails, eyebrows and nose hair, shine your shoes and go easy on the cologne if you wear any at all. What you wear sometimes isn’t nearly as important as how you present overall. A filthy guy in a $2500 Brioni suit isn’t going to look nearly as attractive as a neat and clean person in dress clothes from Target. ---
**Author:** ![Horatio\_Hellpop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e5b9ba/32.png) [@Horatio\_Hellpop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Horatio_Hellpop)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2011, 12:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/interview-dress-code-ask-the-interviewer/566720/68 "2011-01-14T00:03:27Z")
> [@Fuzzy\_Dunlop](#): > > On the other hand, I’ve heard people insist that a sports coat must always be cut very sportily. So if it doesn’t have a sort of outdoorsy heritage, it’s a blazer. Then we have **Krokodil** saying blazers need to be summer weight wool, which I’ve never heard of. So definitely there’s a bit of disagreement. That was the dictionary definition, in the dictionary where I worked two years ago. Most of the online dictionaries say “lightweight” and/or “durable” cloth. One traces it to the HMS Blazer, a Victorian ship whose crew was outfitted with them. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Hamster\_King](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/8edcca/32.png) [@The\_Hamster\_King](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Hamster_King)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2011, 12:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/interview-dress-code-ask-the-interviewer/566720/69 "2011-01-14T00:35:23Z")
> [@myskepticsight](#): > > Then likely everyone’s wearing jeans and there’s a breakroom with a fridge full of Red Bull somewhere. We get free Doritos too. > [@](#): > > My bf and his coworkers make fun of “noobs” who come in for interviews in $600 suits. Not in a mean way, just in the “noobs” kind of way…because they stick out like a sore thumb to an extreme when they are in the building. Yeah. As I said previously, a guy who showed up for an interview in a suit would come off as charmingly clueless if it were for an entry-level position. But if you were applying for a senior position, wearing a suit would send a very unserious message. You’d come off as out of touch, and it would raise questions about your willingness and ability to do hands-on creative work. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/interview-dress-code-ask-the-interviewer/566720.md?page=3)