Beards and Facial Hair for interviews?

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Ikarium

Ikarium

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What's everyones thought about facial hair and its impact on interviews? I have a well groomed chin strap that I love having but I'm debating shaving it off for my interview. Are beards and facial hair looked down upon in interviews?
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That's a great question... I love my beard and don't mind trimming it, but I don't want to look like I'm 12 again. :/
 
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It's not a problem. If it was, every male Sikh candidate would show up clean shaven.

If my faculty colleagues can have beards, why can't the students?

So don't sweat it.

Ikarium said:
What's everyones thought about facial hair and its impact on interviews? I have a well groomed chin strap that I love having but I'm debating shaving it off for my interview. Are beards and facial hair looked down upon in interviews?
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Goro said:
It's not a problem. If it was, every male Sikh candidate would show up clean shaven.

If my faculty colleagues can have beards, why can't the students?

So don't sweat it.
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So a chinstrap is fine?

46-large.jpg
 
I imagine it'd be okay. though I was coerced by my folks into shaving my beard (which is now in full service again)
 
It's pretty much agreed upon, to my knowledge, that facial hair is professional as long as it's neat and well trimmed.
 
thisisansley said:
It's pretty much agreed upon, to my knowledge, that facial hair is professional as long as it's neat and well trimmed.
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I agree, I'll be rocking my beard to interviews, full with mustache but trimmed.
 
Clean and professional looking beards are fine. If you are a hirsute man then great, rock the beard. If your beard consists of 12 spare hairs, you should shave it.

In general, chin straps look douche-y and juvenile and should be shaved off... especially for interviews. You're not 15 any more.
 
what is this, 2005? who the hell even has a chinstrap in public anymore? grow a real beard or shave it altogether.
 
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guylewis said:
what is this, 2005? who the hell even has a chinstrap in public anymore? grow a real beard or shave it altogether.
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Haha, I agree. I would not go with the chinstrap to an interview, but would not go with a chinstrap at anytime in public either.
 
Instatewaiter said:
Clean and professional looking beards are fine. If you are a hirsute man then great, rock the beard. If your beard consists of 12 spare hairs, you should shave it.
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I've got a full beard that I keep trimmed and tidy, but with my first interview next week I'm about 90% sure I'm going to shave. What I've been told is that the least chance of rubbing anyone the wrong way is to be clean-shaven. Basically, that having a beard can only hurt you.

That said, I really would like to keep it, so I'm open to hearing these differences of opinion. Just seems that everything I've ever read or heard about interviewing is that your safest option by far is to roll in shorn and shaven.
 
Ikarium said:
What's everyones thought about facial hair and its impact on interviews? I have a well groomed chin strap that I love having but I'm debating shaving it off for my interview. Are beards and facial hair looked down upon in interviews?
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I would avoid chin straps, "flavor savers," and lamb chops in any professional setting, interviewing or not. Before going on the interview, review pictures of the popular boy bands, bieber and remember the people you see shopping at Hot Topic. If your hair resembles any of these, go down to the CVS and get a razor to cut off what shouldn't be there and shower that Bed Head out of your hair afterwards.

You'll never know exactly why one person got in and you didn't, so this is definitely time to play it safe. If you see someone that looks like any of these at an interview, rest assured that you will be ranked higher than them, just for showing up like a professional should. You're interviewing to be a Physician, not the fry cook at McDonald's!
 
Going to agree with the last few here and say you're better off shaving it. I have a beard about 90% of the time (coolingglasses could verify. His beard is looking mighty fine.) but I kept it clean shaven for all my interviews. While most people won't care, the last thing you need is your interviewer thinking something poorly about you because you have a beard, and that person hates beards.
 
abolt18 said:
Going to agree with the last few here and say you're better off shaving it. I have a beard about 90% of the time (coolingglasses could verify. His beard is looking mighty fine.) but I kept it clean shaven for all my interviews. While most people won't care, the last thing you need is your interviewer thinking something poorly about you because you have a beard, and that person hates beards.
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:highfive:

it can be an issue in anatomy lab, though
 
As long as it's well trimmed and not anything crazy (no lightning bolt side burns!) you're going to be fine.

Survivor DO
 
Are scruffs/5 o clock shadows fine? My facial hair grows pretty quickly and I get a 5 o clock shadow pretty much the day after I shave. Can't help it 😎.

Not applying this year but just curious when I do.
 
abolt18 said:
Going to agree with the last few here and say you're better off shaving it. I have a beard about 90% of the time (coolingglasses could verify. His beard is looking mighty fine.) but I kept it clean shaven for all my interviews. While most people won't care, the last thing you need is your interviewer thinking something poorly about you because you have a beard, and that person hates beards.
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Agreed just make sure you shave correctly and don't go to the interviews all cut up looking as if a 2 year old shaved you :laugh:.
 
Chinstraps are fine as long as it is well trimmed. And anyone who says chinstraps are for kids are ridiculous and narrow-viewed. In many cultures it is the norm. Just because it's not YOUR norm...well no one cares.
 
abolt18 said:
Going to agree with the last few here and say you're better off shaving it. I have a beard about 90% of the time (coolingglasses could verify. His beard is looking mighty fine.) but I kept it clean shaven for all my interviews. While most people won't care, the last thing you need is your interviewer thinking something poorly about you because you have a beard, and that person hates beards.
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Now I know why you didn't go to a certain well-known private undergrad school in your state 😉

Edit: I just gotta add that my face is relishing its new-found liberty.
 
I feel odd now, I decided to betray my manly locks and shaved it off while listening to "raspberry beret."
 
Just make sure its nice and cleanly trimmed. I saw tons of people on my interview route with beards, and heck probably half of my interviewers had facial hair of some kind. In school now at least 1/3 of the male faculty has facial hair (usually well-groomed beards).
 
I had the opposite experience, no one in the south had beards at my interview. I'm personally glad I shaved it so as not to stand out
 
I can grab my beard and pull it up to my eyes! Hair is the mark of a man... After all, if we were all meant to look like clean (women)...No offense but we wouldn't get facial hair growing through puberty....Besides, I don't waste time or money shaving... Im keeping it... Love to stand out! lets do it!
 
kratosis said:
I can grab my beard and pull it up to my eyes! Hair is the mark of a man... After all, if we were all meant to look like clean (women)...No offense but we wouldn't get facial hair growing through puberty....Besides, I don't waste time or money shaving... Im keeping it... Love to stand out! lets do it!
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Most ppl I know grew a cleanly cut scruff or beard (for religious reasons)
 
kratosis said:
Yupp...just trying to follow the way of Jesus! He had a sick flowing beard! I got one too! 😀
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Yeah I can grow a 5 o clock shadow pretty easily. Can't grow a thick beard, well not yet.
 
Dreamstoo said:
Yeah I can grow a 5 o clock shadow pretty easily. Can't grow a thick beard, well not yet.
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i have some asian friends and some friends from tropical areas where they barely have facial hair, if any. so to each his own. just gotta take good care of whatever you have... i don't like to shave because the razor really irritates my skin. besides facial hair is a form of physical protection against air pollutants and UV rays! 🙂
 
kratosis said:
i have some asian friends and some friends from tropical areas where they barely have facial hair, if any. so to each his own. just gotta take good care of whatever you have... i don't like to shave because the razor really irritates my skin. besides facial hair is a form of physical protection against air pollutants and UV rays! 🙂
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Aha, when I was in high school my skin was very sensitive to razors. Used to go to class all cut up 😛. In college now, I prefer being buzz cut and clean shaven during formal events such as weddings, etc. You should see me during finals week. I go to all my finals with blood shot eyes and a 2-3 week old beard in my PJs :laugh:. I take a before and after shot during finals week and its really funny how different (homeless) I look 😀
 
Dreamstoo said:
Are scruffs/5 o clock shadows fine? My facial hair grows pretty quickly and I get a 5 o clock shadow pretty much the day after I shave. Can't help it 😎.

Not applying this year but just curious when I do.
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You get a 5 o'clock shadow by the next day? If your hair grew quickly, you'd get a 5 o'clock shadow the same day you shaved in the morning. 😉



How about the classic goatee? With a shaved head? Show up breaking bad style to an interview, that should be an ice breaker. 😀
 
No one likes a pencil beard.. 😛
But seriously we aren't going into the food industry, as long as it looks good and clean, you should keep it!
 
I have worn a full beard since I could grow one. To shave it off would have been "not being myself" so I just had my barber trim it in and make it look nice and clean. No one said anything and I got accepted so I am guessing it was fine,,,
 
Batou said:
How about the classic goatee? With a shaved head? Show up breaking bad style to an interview, that should be an ice breaker. 😀
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Funny story. One of my interviewers had a PHD in chemistry and it sparked a 10 minute conversation about Breaking Bad...best interview ever.
 
HotHamH2O said:
Funny story. One of my interviewers had a PHD in chemistry and it sparked a 10 minute conversation about Breaking Bad...best interview ever.
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:laugh: Even then, I'm curious how that came up...

Interviewer: "I have a PhD in Chemistry"

HotHam: "I bet you cook a mean batch of crystal" :naughty:
 
O Grady said:
:laugh: Even then, I'm curious how that came up...

Interviewer: "I have a PhD in Chemistry"

HotHam: "I bet you cook a mean batch of crystal" :naughty:
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Lol. It was so laid back and we had already been laughing about some other things (he was also an EM physician), that I straight up just asked him if he watched Breaking Bad. IDK why I did it, it kinda just slipped. Luckily, he was a BB addict and we talked about the final season.
 
HotHamH2O said:
Lol. It was so laid back and we had already been laughing about some other things (he was also an EM physician), that I straight up just asked him if he watched Breaking Bad. IDK why I did it, it kinda just slipped. Luckily, he was a BB addict and we talked about the final season.
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That's pretty awesome. A doctor I shadowed said he got into his top choice, a top 10 school back in the 80's. He said during his interview they talked about politics for about 30 mins. He got into that school even though it was one of his mega-reaches.
 
it's sad medicine doesn't put emphasis on the doctor with the giant handlebar mustache anymore. Your trust with a doctor used to be directly correlated with the epicness of his facial hair. look at the old school pics of D.O.s from Still's first students and tell me I'm wrong. I know I will let my stache grow out to epic proportions as soon as I get accepted (gods willing)
 
guylewis said:
it's sad medicine doesn't put emphasis on the doctor with the giant handlebar mustache anymore. Your trust with a doctor used to be directly correlated with the epicness of his facial hair. look at the old school pics of D.O.s from Still's first students and tell me I'm wrong. I know I will let my stache grow out to epic proportions as soon as I get accepted (gods willing)
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Yea, soon as that acceptance comes in, it's time to aim for mountainman status.:laugh:
 
Batou said:
Yea, soon as that acceptance comes in, it's time to aim for mountainman status.:laugh:
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Aha. Got my acceptance last week and I've already begun
 
guylewis said:
it's sad medicine doesn't put emphasis on the doctor with the giant handlebar mustache anymore. Your trust with a doctor used to be directly correlated with the epicness of his facial hair. look at the old school pics of D.O.s from Still's first students and tell me I'm wrong. I know I will let my stache grow out to epic proportions as soon as I get accepted (gods willing)
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Oh man. You should see the pictures on the walls here.

epic.
 
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