It’s hot in summer. Is it really necessary to wear a jacket to a job interview? I know people think they look smart, but would it make enough of an impression to make up for the discomfort?
I’m a scruff, generally, so with collar and tie and sleeves I’m already hot and uncomfortable. I can’t even wear a nice breeze-friendly skirt because of these stupid culturally assigned gender-roles. Tell me I don’t need a jacket too!
I don’t normally wear one, but I don’t normally get employed, either. I’m hoping that’s more due to my total lack of qualifications and experience and my awkward and hostile manner, along with the idea that I’m too good for their stupid job. Could be the jacket, though.
Most offices are air-conditioned. Nobody says you have to wear the jacket all the way there. Carry said jacket, arrive about a quarter of an hour or so early, stop in the lobby before you go in, cool down and make sure you’re not sweaty, put jacket on then go in/up and introduce yourself at reception.
Some employers believe that they can teach anyone how to do the job. When they do an interview they look for people willing to learn - which means people who respect the job enough to wear a jacket to the interview.
Carry the jacket, and the tie if you like, introduce yourself to the receptionist and ask where you can wash your hands. Dampen a papertowel if very cold water and blot your face and the back of your neck.
Last summer I was interviewing for an internal job, in a acquisition environment—they let us know our old jobs were done, but we were encouraged to apply for jobs in the new organization.
I called my dad and said pretty much what you did about the hot weather and overall stuffiness of a jacket. I pointed out that I already knew many of these folks and that it was internal and blah blah blah…
His response, from a senior manager who has done lots of hiring over the years, was quite simple: “A suit is never wrong for an interview.”
Depends upon the job as to whether a jacket is appropiate. It sounds like you’re talking about an office job in which case:
White Collar position - Wear a suit. As has been said by many already - make it a suit if you can, not just a jacket that matches or ‘sort of’ matches your pants. If nothing else it shows you care enough to get dressed up. Besides which it would be very rare that very early in the interview you weren’t offered the opportunity to remove your jacket anyway.
Blue collar position - not so much.
Funny storey, a job I went for (and got), the interviewer said in the first 30 seconds or so “OK So we’ve proved you own a jacket, feel free to take it off and sit down and we can get started!”
A jacket will
a. separate you from the riff-raff
b. let them know that you are serious
c. give them one less reason to diss you
d. make them think you are capable (somewhat)
I find it difficult to believe that adult people would eve ask this question. Wear the damn jacket and forget about it. The person interviewing you isn’t the least bit interested in your comfort.
You never get a second chance to make a first impression. I hate like hell to wear a coat and tie, but I will always wear one to the interview(s) and on the first day of work. After that, I dress to match the business culture.
I hate high heels and am not a fan of makeup, but when I have an interview or a new job starting, the first day I’m wearing at least some gloss and base, and a pair of nice shoes with my work outfit.
I may prefer to live in sandals or sneakers the rest of the time, but you suck it up when you’re making that first impression.
Okay, go with the jacket, gotcha. Seems silly to me, but I suppose the world of work, based on my previous experience, is largely based on conforming to the unreasonable demands of others.
A few other questions, while I’m here, as this thread has made me think I should probably have already known the answer to this:
Shoes: obviously leather and laces, but is brown okay? I have four pairs of shoes, all shiny and well polished, but the only black pair make a clip-clop noise like high-heels or horses, so would it be better going with the brown, or is that not a smart colour of shoe?
Tie: solid colour, or scene from a landscape by Lowry (seriously)?
Shirt: presumably white would be best, but are pin-stripes considered unreasonably garish, or are they fine? How about blue chequed?
Headware: I had dismissed the idea of a nice smart hat, but then again I’d nearly dismissed the idea of a jacket too, so, trilby? Fedora? Flat cap?
Well, obviously I’d love to magic myself better social skills and to believe that I’d be honoured to be given a chance as, say, an industrial cleaner in a sugar factory, but that’s not gonna happen.
Which brings to mind another question: as I’ll be going for a variety of different lines of work, would ideal clothing be different when interviewing for light clerical work compared to, say, fashion retail or industrial cleaning or light manufacturing or computing retail?
That’s the sort of practical advice I’m looking for.
Not sure I like the idea of working with people like that. Anyway, I don’t do many interviews. I’m 26 and I’ve had one job, albeit one which lasted several years, and now I’m doing voluntary work (smartness at interview not major issue) to keep my hand in. Might well start another thread asking for creative lies to put in your CV, but I thought I’d start with the basics.
Go plain and simple as possible. A solid-colour tie, a plain white or lightly pinstriped shirt. Nothing too outrageous.
If the only problem with the black shoes is that they’re clippy cloppy, wear them. You’ll probably be on carpet most of the time, and black shoes are more formal than brown.
Sales? Definitely a suit. Office work? Depends. If you’re talking about just a general low-level office, a nice jacket and trousers with a good shirt. If you’re talking a higher-profile office like a law office or soemthing like that, you’re back to the suit. For fashion retail? Depends on what sort of aesthetic the place already has. They may appreciate you wearing an outfit that shows you’re up with fashions that they might be selling.
You can never be too overdressed for a job interview. You can definitely be much, much too underdressed.
And yes, work is very much about adhering to what may sometimes seem to be arbitrary or stupid standards and unreasonable demands. They are paying you money to play their game. For your part, you then have to decide if they are paying you enough to adhere to those demands, or whether you’re going to seek something more suitable for you.
Don’t lie on your CV. If you secure a job and get found out, you will be fired and may open yourself up to the potential of a lawsuit. It’s acceptable to edit things for brevity (for example someone who worked a bunch of temp jobs for an extended period might put in “Temporary Work” and a list of some of the roles they sat in), but don’t lie.
As someone who gets hot easily, I second the idea of going early and cool down. I always go hang out in the bathroom to cool down. Another idea–powder is your friend. Use it liberally, but make sure it is unscented.
