Dressing for interview--female with religious dress code

[Sweet_Tooth]

After getting most of my apps verified and submitted the next thing on my mind has been preparing for potential interviews, particularly, dressing for interviews (If I am lucky enough to get invited to any...)

As a female Muslim who covers her hair and wears conservative (loose, non skin exposing) clothing, I am trying to figure out how can I balance an interview dress code with my own personal dress code, especially since this is the first time I've had to dress professionally for anything so I would appreciate some feedback!

Would it be okay if I wore a blazer + pant suit set with a longer white blouse underneath (by longer I mean like mid-thigh length, rather than the typical waist length tops most people would wear with a suit), would it look unprofessional? Thinking something like this (ASOS TALL Sleeveless Cotton Shirt Dress at asos.com) or this (ASOS PETITE Cotton Shirt Dress at asos.com) under the blazer and with the pants?

I tried looking for some skirt suit options also but all the skirts seem to be knee length. In the event that I do find a maxi skirt length suit set, would it be appropriate or would it look unprofessional? Are maxi skirts in general considered unprofessional? If I were to wear a knee length skirt suit set, would it look unprofessional to wear pants underneath it (because I don't expose bare legs and also don't wear leggings or pantyhose)?

Thank you, all suggestions would be appreciated! And I understand that we live in a secular society and some might see me to be backwards for my beliefs but please keep any negative comments to yourself. There are a lot of Muslims in healthcare and I'm sure many others have the same question as me.

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[DentalNucleicAcid]

I didn't know what a maxi skirt was so I had to look that up lol. I think you have the right idea, but I think the baggy pants that Muslim girls often go for is a great option. Looks really professional and modern (not that the skirt doesn't). Here's some examples of what I mean:

I think the second and third ones are really good. Works perfect with a blazer and a loose button up shirt. I think these look better than a long skirt, but I'm also a guy so my opinion may be different.

 

[crumps]

Agreed with the poster above. Am female but not Muslim. I wouldn't do the long blouse that you linked. Looks unprofessional Imo but the pics the poster above linked looks really nice and would totally recommend that look (but do black and white professional). Maxi skirt mm I wouldn't do it, better to be safe than sorry.
*edit: a letter

 

[fit2]

#simplelifeforguys

 

[itsJazz]

Unless you were planning on tucking in those shirts/dresses you linked, I don't think you should wear them for your interviews. To put it in context, it reminds me of this type of style:

which is way more casual than professional. I don't think a maxi skirt is appropriate attire. If anything, it's applicable to business casual at the most. Don't think a business suit skirt with pants underneath is a good idea either. For one, business skirts have limited legroom to begin with, so adding another layer of clothing underneath one will probably make it even harder to walk around. Secondly, you'll have to buy the slacks anyways in this option, so why spend the money on a skirt? The options DentalNucleicAcid pulled are nice. I think slacks and a pair of flat oxfords (since you'll be walking around) will be a good combo to keep skin exposure to the minimum. I personally think a straight cut will work best with this combo if you decide to go with it

 

[Sweet_Tooth]

Thank you very much for the responses and pictures, this was super helpful best of luck to any of you that are also applying this cycle!

 

[Sweet_Tooth]

I didn't know what a maxi skirt was so I had to look that up lol. I think you have the right idea, but I think the baggy pants that Muslim girls often go for is a great option. Looks really professional and modern (not that the skirt doesn't). Here's some examples of what I mean:
View attachment 220850View attachment 220852 View attachment 220857
I think the second and third ones are really good. Works perfect with a blazer and a loose button up shirt. I think these look better than a long skirt, but I'm also a guy so my opinion may be different.

In these pics, I really like the longer blazers, because they give added coverage, however, would they be professional to wear? I'm thinking to wear something like this: Women's LC Lauren Conrad Double-Breasted Blazer to wear with black dress pants

 

[DentalNucleicAcid]

In these pics, I really like the longer blazers, because they give added coverage, however, would they be professional to wear? I'm thinking to wear something like this: Women's LC Lauren Conrad Double-Breasted Blazer to wear with black dress pants

Hm looks good to me. If you can find a pair of pants that are not revealing at all, I think you could even skip the blazer entirely and just wear a tucked in shirt. Not sure if blazers are required though. But what you linked looks fine.

 

[Sweet_Tooth]

Hm looks good to me. If you can find a pair of pants that are not revealing at all, I think you could even skip the blazer entirely and just wear a tucked in shirt. Not sure if blazers are required though. But what you linked looks fine.

From reading all the interview threads on SDN I keep seeing everyone saying blazers/suit jackets are a must, that's why I'm trying to stick with that. Thanks for your help!

 

[Krentist_72]

Sorry, jumping in a little late it seems, but also a woman here (although without religious dress code)... don't envy you for having further complication in the never ending female struggle of "what do i wear to this" loll
Your initial post sounded like you wanted something hanging above the top part of the pants for extra coverage? If so, I really like that link you attached, although I agree that wearing an extra long blouse under a blazer may look unintentionally unprofessional. If not, I think the pictures above were a great start too!

Although- and I mean this to hopefully quell any anxiety- I doubt anyone would question you. I assume you wear a hijab (sorry if I'm wrong here), so admissions would guess you follow a dress code and not nit-pick your outfit. I would bet that most interviewers are male and/or non-Muslim, so they'll know it's based off your own rules. Plus, on the (many) female outfit threads out there, everyone encourages each other to wear whatever's comfortable, whether it's skirts, pants, heels, flats, whatever. The same rule applies! Whatever you would wear to an office and feel confident in is the right choice.