interview clothes, colors, hair questions

[btchance]

I need a little advice here. I'm not the best in the world when it comes to fashion so though some of you ladies might be able to help me out. I'm getting ready to start interviewing for residency positions in ob/gyn. Have 7 inteviews right now, including 3 out of my top 4 programs. :D

I have two different suits that I'm planning on wearing, both are skirts. One is a dark chocolate brown, almost with a little bit of a dark plum coloring to it, and has light pink, thin pinstripes. This one is from Georgiou and is of a very high quality (a graduation gift). I have a matching light pink shell that goes underneath and a cream scarf in case I get nervous and my neck/chest/face starts turning bright red :eek: something to help cover that up with.

My other suit is a dark grey with a bluish/navy hint to it. It is also has pin stripes, with almost a teal type color and a light brown/cream colors. Matching camisole that picks up the pinstripes to go underneath.

The question now comes to accessories and colors. Is there any color of shoe that you can think of that would work with both? I already have a pair of shoes that work with the brown, but somehow my feet seem to have grown and they don't really fit now. For the dark grey/navy - my navy shoes don't look right with it, black looks decent but is that a total no no?

Bags - last year I heard that most ladies carried a portfolio type bag with them and no purse. This year I was told we are to carry a small purse with a nice folder/binder to put info in (hand held - not sure how to describe it). Does it make a difference which one I do? Personally, I would like one portfolio bag - less to keep up with. And as for color - would a cream color work for both suits or do you have any other ideas?

One last question - hair up or down? I've heard both from people in positions of power. I have very long hair, but it is layered and well styled down when I actually do it. I could also do a french braid, soft bun, or some other basic up style. What do you ladies think?

Thanks!

[Zen]

Black shoes would be fine. they aren't going to be looking at your feet.

Hair up or braided. Loose would be a bit too casual, I think.

If you're comfortable carrying just the one larger bag, do that.

Both outfits sound like they look very nice. Which one are you more comfortable in? They aren't making clothing assessments, they're making YOU assessments. If you're comfortable, I think you'll feel more confident instead of worrying about a tight waistband, too-long sleeves or other trifling details.

Good luck!

[Duck on Wheels]

I'm no fashion diva, but I agree with Zen. You'll look your best if you're feeling comfortable. Both those suits sound gorgeous! Don't wear shoes that pinch, but if you find a nice pair of brown shoes that fit well, why not go ahead and replace the outgrown ones? Brown should work with either suit, or tan, or cream. I also like the French braid idea. It looks neat and serious, but also youthful and feminine. I can see where a French braid would feel relaxed in that you wouldn't worry about being either too dressy or too casual, and you wouldn't have stray locks you'd feel a need to brush out of your face. No-worry hair. Go for it. As for the small purse vs. document-size portfolio, I haven't a clue. In my line of work an "interview" means giving a lecture, which means laptop (they provide the beamer). Some might take a laptop carrier that doubled as a purse. Since I always have to have a change of clothes handy, and a change of ostomy appliance (if I don't have 'em, that's when I'll need 'em :eek: ), I always carry a backpack. If I were interviewing, I might invest in a neat new backpack (my old one's getting grimy after years of use indoors and out). Whew, am I ever lucky to be done with interviewing! Tenure, good retirement plan, and could retire in 3 years if I chose to. But hey! On the up side, if you're still interviewing, that prob'ly means you're still young :p Good luck, enjoy the ride, and land a great job!

[Triskeliongirl]

I hate to say this cuz I disagree with it, but while the gray suit sounds fine, I wouldn't recommend wearing the one with pink pinstripes. I say this because I heard discussions over NOT admitting to medical school female applicants that wore suits to their interviews that deviated from the standard issue blue (I am on the faculty of a medical school). My understanding is that this is a uniform. The argument they give is that conservative dress makes your patients trust you more, lets them know who to trust, etc. While I vehemently disagree with all this, I am a pragmattic person, and if the goal is to get a certain job, then I would wear what it takes to achieve that goal. Granted, that doesn't mean you won't get the job in the pink pinstripe suit, but why take the chance. Perhaps your current female professors can advise you on what is acceptable in your area. Shoes again, conservative, NO OPEN TOES. Not sure on purse vs briefcase but go by what your advisors tell you.

[light_sabe_r]

Black shoes would be fine. they aren't going to be looking at your feet.
Good luck!

LOL Zen My employers told me in the months that followed they were very impressed with my shoes. (closed Toe, modest heel, covered nearly all of my foot since I was going for a science Job in a hospital, and they were RED LEATHER!)

My Mum teaches business and gave me some tips when I was going for my job. (she picked out my lucky red shoes!)


The important thing with your interview is you don't want to look like a pushover. Pink is a great colour, rule it out because it's a pastel. It's warm but if you're being interviewed by a strong personality that mightn't rub them the right way. The suit you're describing sounds nice. And very stylish to work in but it's probably not interview material.

Pin stripes are AWESOME. they're slimming and draw the eyes up. If you've got any gold jewelery, wear it. Navy and gold set each other off nicely.

Hair?

As long as it's neat. Up or down won't matter. BUT bear in mind that if you're constantly flicking your hair out of your face or playing with it in the interview your interviewer will think you're easily distracted.

Okay. SHOES. ^_^

Go and spoil yourself with a new pair of Navy shoes or another colour that matches your suit. ake the suit along if you want. Like others have said, NO open toes. I'll add that I'll probably get some objection to this but If you have female interviewers they will notice the effort. Most companies usually do have at least one female on an interview panel these days and they'll pick up subtle details like that and use it to judge your suitability. In my job we'd never hire someone who rocked up to an interview wearing strappy heels because it'd show that they knew nothing about or totally disregarded the Occupational health and safety laws governing our workplace. This is probably just as true in residency because you'll probably be wading in the crap we wade in everyday.

As an interviewer I never thought I'd judge people on what they were wearing. But I did. It's amazing how the best dressed candidate is usually the most well mannered, well prepared and equally qualified (even if experience is lacking a bit) candidate out of the lot. The fact that they've put effort into their presentation says a lot about their willingness to take the job.

BTchance! Good luck! Make sure you prepare your answers as well as your outfit and you'll blitz them! :)

[KnottedYet]

I'm sorry, but I would also say "no" to the pink. As I was reading your post, all my alarm bells went off.

Mind you, I don't work in OB/GYN, but even in my clinic pink would be an unfortunate choice for interview wear. (work wear would be a different matter.)

French braid or soft bun for the hair. Not loose. (again, *after* the interview loose hair might be ok for work wear)

New shoes. Always make sure you are wearing the best quality best fitting shoes you can find and afford.

And scr*w the little Barbie purse thing. What kind of baby-doll world did that order come from? Was that from the faculty advisor? The female docs I see carry portfolio bags, not dollie purses and Pee-Chee folders.

[Dianyla]

Agree on the navy suit. It's not fair, but nobody ever lost a job interview for wearing navy.

I also agree that long hair should be up. Even if it would be acceptable to wear the hair loose while performing job you're interviewing for, it should be unobtrusive during the interview itself. I've also got very long hair down to my ankles, and when it is down it is a complete distraction - I might as well walk in with a pet monkey on my shoulder. Containing it in a neat and secure way such as a braid or an elegant bun keeps the hair from being the focal point of your visual presentation. Granted, I personally think my face looks nicer with my hair down and framing it, but when I'm interviewing I don't want them focusing on it.

In summary: Date? Hair down. Interview? Hair up. :D

[btchance]

Okay - so hair up it is. That's what I had always thought then our advisor said either was fine, but I'll go with the safer one of the two.

For a bag, I just don't like the idea of carrying two different things, so I'm just going to go with a portfolio bag. That's what I heard a number of people did last year, but again was thrown for a loop when the advisor said purse plus portfolio, but not a bag. Would a cream color work here?

Shoes - I'm going conservative here, closed toe, low heel. And you think black would work with navy? It's so dark the navy shoes I have just stand out against the suit more than the black does. I guess I'll just have to see what I can find.

On the suits - I will definately be using the navy one. I'm wondering, though, about the other, and thinking I may have described it wrong. It is a dark chocolate brown with very thin, light pink pin-stripes. Is it that the pin stripes are pink that you make you think it won't work? I can switch out the shell that goes underneath from pink to a cream type color. Would that make it more appropriate. I'm attaching a pic of it from a while back - not sure how well the colors show up, though.

[btchance]

Oopsie - let's see if this works

[KnottedYet]

Pink pinstripes, whether or not you wear a pink shell underneath; that's what grabbed my attention.

I'd actually rather interview someone wearing a dark suit and a pink shell, than a neutral shell and a pink striped suit. (guess I kind of look at the shell color like a man's tie color - be adventurous with the shell but conservative with the suit)

But if I'm going to see my doc, I'd feel all warm and cozy over a pink-striped suit.

Navy for the interview, pink for warm homey cozy patient visits.

The picture looks good as a work outfit, though. I'm sure I'm just an old fuddy-duddy, but is your interview shell a bit more, umm, modest? Not that there's anything wrong with low-cut in general, but maybe a bit higher neckline for the interview? How warm is it there, anyway? Here in Seattle, we get cold and wear more high-cut tops so that's what I'm used to seeing... so forgive me if I'm off base on that.

[light_sabe_r]

Post a picture of the Navy one BT! ^_^

Yeah. I'd say keep the brown/Pink one for when you get the job and you're seeing your patients. ^_^

[VeloVT]

I think I agree that the brown suit is not the best choice for interviewing in a conservative setting. I'm sure the navy is fine though. I love pinstripes. I don't wear navy so I can't offer much advice on what color shoes to put with it. Navy shoes are a little old looking, though, usually, so that wouldn't be my first choice.

I like black suits for interviewing. I have a few black pantsuits and a black skirt suit. They're less traditional than navy, but still professional and fairly conservative for women, and accessorizing is fool-proof -- black shoes, black bag, pearl earrings, whatever shell or necklace you like (I often wear black camis underneath but sometimes opt for cream if I don't want to look severe, usually stick to neutrals), whatever makeup you like. It's also great to have a few black suits because they're super versatile for everything -- go from work to nice dinner or semi dressy event after work, can do funerals, are great for almost any non-black tie, but non-casual occasion when you're not sure what to wear.

I too would definitely choose a brief-type bag over trying to juggle multiple items gracefully.

Good luck!

Oh, and I vote for hair up. When mine was long I used to wear it in a french twist quite a bit, or a bun.

[velogirl]

since I own my own business, it's been a long time since I've interviewed for a job (or been a hiring manager). but the shoe comment made me remember a funny story.

I'm the kinda girl who gets multiples of things in different colors. for example, if I like a sweater, I might get the same style in both black and red. I do this with shoes as well. so, back in my interview days, I had a totally awesome pair of shoes in black, brown, and blue.

I arrived early for an job interview, went to the restroom, and happened to look at my feet -- I had worn one brown shoe and one blue shoe.

I was early for the interview, but there wasn't enough time to go home and change shoes and still be on time for the interview. so I decided to go in with the mis-matched shoes, hoping the interviewer wouldn't notice.

I was torn whether or not just to mention it, thinking "she's human too and she might get a kick out of this." in the end, I did mention it, we both laughed about it, and I got the job offer.

good luck to you!

[HappyAnika]

I agree with most: hair up.

I would do black shoes with the grey/navy suit.

I like to keep accessories simple, no fuss. Keep the earrings small, one bag vs. two.

If you have to do a second interview (do they do that in the med field? I think not, but just in case . . .) I think the brown suit would be ok. You'll still get a lot of non-interview use out of it (meetings, conferences, lectures, etc.).

Personally I like to wear a collared shirt with my suits (think J Crew or Banana Republic). I'm in the science and engineering field where it's very male dominated, so I try to blend, not stick out like a GIRL. To me, camis are very girly, I think dress shirts are more masculine. Not sure if this matters in the med field.

I know Nordstrom will schedule you a complimentary fashion consult. You could bring the suit, or a picture of it, and then get help with shoes/bags/shirts, etc. from someone who's good at this sort of stuff.

Good luck with the interviews! :)

[lph]

Nothing sensible to add - except, like last time this subject came up - this thread is TERRIFYING. :o

[Triskeliongirl]

We all need to stay focussed on the questions asked, which is how to dress for an interview for a medical residency position. For that, I believe the answer is very conservatively. On the other hand, there are many other jobs, for which the answer is something different. I imagine that if I were interviewing someone for a very creative job, I would like to see more individuality and creativity exercised even in how one dresses. And for many jobs, how one dresses simply doesn't matter. A friend of mine recently hired a research tech, and she told me she hired the person most prepared for the interview, the kid that took the trouble to pubmed her and download and read some of her papers, and then ask her good questions about them. To me, the clothes are about showing you know what is expected of you in terms of attire, but mostly about not wearing anything that will offend or distract the interview away from what it should be about, your qualifiications and why you are ideally suited for the job. So being dressed neatly, well groomed, and in attire appropriate for the task at hand is what its all about.

[michelem]

That cami is a definite no-no. I'd say navy blue suit with a collared blouse in light blue, white, or matching navy blue. If you must go with a shell, make sure the neckline hits no more than an inch or so below the collar bone, and make sure it is in one of the above colors (no pink!). Also a big no on cream colored shoes or bag. They should be same color or darker than the suit, never lighter or brighter. Neutral colored hose, no colored hose. No perfume. Sparing jewelry (stud earrings, a professional-looking watch - leave the Mickey Mouse watch or Swatch watch at home). Muted make-up. Definitely closed toe, low-to-medium heeled shoes (no stilletos or peep-toe shoes). Make sure the shoes are polished and in good repair. It doesn't matter so much how expensive everything is as long as it is well-fitting and in good repair. Scuffed shoes or worn clothing will come across as lack of care on your part.

[btchance]

Alrighty - that gives me a few more ideas on what I'm doing. The navy suit will be my main outfit. I plan on going with the black shoes unless I find something else that works better. Still need an undershirt to go with it. It will probably be a higher-cut shell/cami of some sort - I have never been able to wear a collared shirt underneath a jacket and have it lay right. I'm going to look for a color that either matches the pinstripes in the coat or go for a cream color. For earings and necklace, I have a set of very delicate single pearl earings and a matching necklace - very small and understated, but nice. As far as make-up goes, I've always been one to make it look natural and then enhance just a little bit. I don't like it to stand out. I'll have to see what I can find in a bag, but at least now I have ideas.

Unfortunately, finding an interview suit for me has been extremely difficult. I've gone to every mall and store in my town I can think of and found TWO!!! suits that can be taylored to fit me (and one had a weird pleat thing on the skirt that eliminated it). Everything else is so huge that it just won't work without sizes available to even order that would be small enough) and mail-order stuff I can never get to fit either. The brown suit may have to be worn a couple of times for back to back interviews where I can't get the other one cleaned, but I'm going to look for a cream colored shirt to go underneath it. Hopefully without the pink cami, the pink pinstripes won't be as visible. I'll look for another suit again later, but there is only so much I can do to get one. (I had this suit from med school interviews and had no issues with it there - got into every school that I interviewed at wearing it).

Triskeliongirl - I promise I will be prepared in every way I can think of. This whole clothes thing is because I don't have the best fashion sense and some of the stuff that I was being told to me by advisors I just didn't like or agree with (hair down is okay, two bags, etc.) I already have files going on all the places I'm interviewing at - everything from their website, emails, brochures, and I'm starting to pubmed the chairs and directors (in addition to knowing my own research inside out). I just want to be prepared down to the smallest detail.

Velogirl - that is a cute story. I just hope that if something like that happens to me, I will be able to laugh about it also.

light_sabe_r - if I had a pic of the navy suit I would post it (plus it still needs some alterations). That pic of the brown one is about 4 years old. My grandparents demanded one after they bought it for me.

lph - I agree - it is scary that we have to think about this stuff, but that's life and careers, unfortunately.

Thanks again for all the help ladies.

[VeloVT]

It sounds like you're all set. Best of luck!!!!

If you should find yourself shopping for suiting again -- I have found Anne Taylor to be very dependable for that purpose. Several years ago everything there was cut wrong for my body -- dresses were too shortwaisted, pants too high rise & weren't cut for my small waist/big hip proportions, jackets that fit my shoulders were too big everywhere else -- but it seems like they've updated their cuts and I've had great luck there recently. Their suiting is quite conservative but you can still usually find something that's not dowdy and there's usually a good range of cuts to suit different body types. They have a line of mix & match pieces that, in black anyway, match across seasons, so you can buy a new pair of pants to go with a jacket you bought a year ago or whatever. They have a pretty extensive petites line as well if that's useful. They seem to be pretty good about ordering sizes from other stores (they'll overnight them to your doorstep, very convenient). And they have great sales!!!

[smilingcat]

understated pearl earings and necklace. Purfect!
Navy suit. Purfect.

And agree with everyone else about the shoes. Black, CLOSED TOES, LOW to medium heel purfect!

Neutral color hose goes without saying. NO BARE LEGS.

shell/blouse: agree with others. bit less revealing.

Definitely one bag/purse.

In addition, carry a copy of your CV just in case one of the interviewer forgets to bring with them for your interview. Also read up about their practice. How long in business, specialty?...

My field is different; nonetheless, it is also very very conservative. Unfortunately, the dress code is sooo lacking.

Wish you lots of luck and try to relax, exude self confidence, be friendly.

smilingcat

[KnottedYet]

Helpful hints from my experience with the interviewee I dealt with today:

Do not sit all slouched and slumped while waiting for your interview.
Do not ask about benefits right away.
Do not say you only want to work the minimum hours required for benefits, not the hours as advertised.
Do not forget to brush your teeth after your last cigarette.
Do not mis-spell things on your resume.

Jeez, who knew it was so hard?!?!