Nose piercing - MD school interviews

[coquito]

I just received my first interview invite, finally! I have a tiny and very conservative nose stud (not a ring!). I am a public school teacher in a big city and have no problems with my piercings where I teach, but I am probably biased because I live in a very liberal area right now.

I am fairly certain that a hole in my nose looks less professional than my small jewelry. Do you think it is okay to leave it in for interviews? Many people say they didn't even notice I had it.

I plan to leave in my small tragus piercing, too (google it if you like - it's just a non-traditional ear piercing). My appearance overall is pretty conservative besides these two small piercings.

Your opinion appreciated 🙂

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[Fivo]

How can wearing your nose ring help you in the eyes of interviewers?

How can wearing your nose ring hurt you in the eyes of interviewers?

If you can answer that question, you're golden.

In all seriousness though, I'm sure it wouldn't hurt you to lose the nose ring for a day.

 

[Eiot]

Dress super duper fancypants, exhibit confidence, and you should be able to pull it off.

 

[PingPongPro]

As a male with pierced ears I can somewhat relate. I will definitely not be wearing my studs to interviews because it will give a bad first impression since it will be one of the first things they notice. Its just not worth it to even risk. I think the actual piercing is not a big deal to most people, but the fact that you didn't have enough sense to take them out for this important interview reflects badly on you as an individual.

 

[MDWannabe90]

As a male with pierced ears I can somewhat relate. I will definitely not be wearing my studs to interviews because it will give a bad first impression since it will be one of the first things they notice. Its just not worth it to even risk. I think the actual piercing is not a big deal to most people, but the fact that you didn't have enough sense to take them out for this important interview reflects badly on you as an individual.

Agreed. Just take it out, it's literally one day. Not even... more like a few hours. Its not that serious.

 

[Irish Football]

If you have to ask then you probably already know the answer.

 

[LifeTake2]

On this one I'm going to side with you, partially.

Academic faculty as a group are more liberal than society as a whole. However, medical school faculty can range from ultra conservative (the Jesuit schools and some DO programs) to very liberal.

If you are interviewing in the Midwest or South I'd say remove it. Northeast or CA, probably fine to leave it.

The risk is someone you talk to sees it and just really hates nose piercings and let's it cloud their professional judgement, but you might have the same issue with someone that hates the color of your blouse.

Ultimately, know your audience and let that guide your decision. Regardless, be confident and don't let something so small distract you from your goal.

 

[ComfortCreature]

As a male with pierced ears I can somewhat relate. I will definitely not be wearing my studs to interviews because it will give a bad first impression since it will be one of the first things they notice. Its just not worth it to even risk. I think the actual piercing is not a big deal to most people, but the fact that you didn't have enough sense to take them out for this important interview reflects badly on you as an individual.

I can't help but read this as if you're Tupac and I'm really happy about it. Not bad advice, either.

 

[Fivo]

On this one I'm going to side with you, partially.

Academic faculty as a group are more liberal than society as a whole. However, medical school faculty can range from ultra conservative (the Jesuit schools and some DO programs) to very liberal.

If you are interviewing in the Midwest or South I'd say remove it. Northeast or CA, probably fine to leave it.

The risk is someone you talk to sees it and just really hates nose piercings and let's it cloud their professional judgement, but you might have the same issue with someone that hates the color of your blouse.

Ultimately, know your audience and let that guide your decision. Regardless, be confident and don't let something so small distract you from your goal.

I really don't understand advice like this. Lots of things cloud professional judgement which is why a conservative look is the best thing to shoot for in an interview. You don't have to worry about someone not liking the color of your blouse if it is charcoal, navy, or even black. And likewise, you don't have to worry about someone not liking your nose ring if you *GASP* don't wear it.

OP, every interview day you go to is going to last no more than 8 hrs. Ask yourself if you really love that nose ring so much that you can't go without it for 8hrs and are willing to risk being looked at in a negative light because of it.

Do yourself a favor and leave it out as nothing good can come from it.

 

[init2winit]

If this were a job interview I would say "leave it in, because you wouldn't want a boss/employer that is that concerned with a tiny nose piercing anyway."

Alas, this isn't a regular job interview. Still, if its a tiny little stud, I can't see it being that much of a big deal. I would suggest what the other poster did--consider the location and type of schools where you are interviewing.

 

[AdrianVeidt]

I really don't understand advice like this. Lots of things cloud professional judgement which is why a conservative look is the best thing to shoot for in an interview. You don't have to worry about someone not liking the color of your blouse if it is charcoal, navy, or even black. And likewise, you don't have to worry about someone not liking your nose ring if you *GASP* don't wear it.

OP, every interview day you go to is going to last no more than 8 hrs. Ask yourself if you really love that nose ring so much that you can't go without it for 8hrs and are willing to risk being looked at in a negative light because of it.

Do yourself a favor and leave it out as nothing good can come from it.

I absolutely despise the tie that the guy in your avatar is wearing. There's a reason spazz out about what they wear during an interview; you never know if someone else is going to 'like' what you're wearing. Same goes for this person's nose ring. Also, this whole conservative thing really is overblown and like someone else said: it all depends on where you live and the type of school you're applying/going to. For example if a female is interviewing in Mississippi she might want to wear a skirt while if she is in a liberal area such as California or Washington, a pants-suit is perfectly acceptable.

 

[Freesia88]

But what if your interviewer is a Mississipi native who moved to CA or a CA native who moved to Mississipi? The thing is, you really can't know and the implications of letting such a small thing as a possible personal prejudice influence one of the biggest decisions of your life, cannot be ignored. As premeds we get all neurotic about whether 50 hours of shadowing is better than 50.5 hours, why is taking off a nose ring for a couple of hours such a big issue?

 

[darkjedi]

On this one I'm going to side with you, partially.

Academic faculty as a group are more liberal than society as a whole. However, medical school faculty can range from ultra conservative (the Jesuit schools and some DO programs) to very liberal.

If you are interviewing in the Midwest or South I'd say remove it. Northeast or CA, probably fine to leave it.

The risk is someone you talk to sees it and just really hates nose piercings and let's it cloud their professional judgement, but you might have the same issue with someone that hates the color of your blouse.

Ultimately, know your audience and let that guide your decision. Regardless, be confident and don't let something so small distract you from your goal.

The risk is still too high that an interviewer will view a piercing negatively. Why take the chance?

The point of professional attire during interviews is to actually not stand out. If you are too over-dressed or under-dressed you will draw negative attention, just as having a visible piercing may as well.

 

[Fivo]

I absolutely despise the tie that the guy in your avatar is wearing. There's a reason spazz out about what they wear during an interview; you never know if someone else is going to 'like' what you're wearing. Same goes for this person's nose ring. Also, this whole conservative thing really is overblown and like someone else said: it all depends on where you live and the type of school you're applying/going to. For example if a female is interviewing in Mississippi she might want to wear a skirt while if she is in a liberal area such as California or Washington, a pants-suit is perfectly acceptable.

The guy in your avi has a purple suit on; your opinion is invalid!

But seriously, now you're just nitpicking. Wearing visible piercings, aside from earrings for women, and having visible tattoos are something you should avoid in an interview. And if you're the same poster from that tattoo and professionalism thread, then I don't think this argument can go any further.

OP save yourself the trouble of finding what's right to wear based on location and strive to make your ensemble appropriate for all locations.

 

[Euxox]

I absolutely despise the tie that the guy in your avatar is wearing. There's a reason spazz out about what they wear during an interview; you never know if someone else is going to 'like' what you're wearing. Same goes for this person's nose ring. Also, this whole conservative thing really is overblown and like someone else said: it all depends on where you live and the type of school you're applying/going to. For example if a female is interviewing in Mississippi she might want to wear a skirt while if she is in a liberal area such as California or Washington, a pants-suit is perfectly acceptable.

You seem to have a misunderstanding about what an interviewer is looking for in an interviewee's clothing. It has nothing to do with the interviewer's personal preference. It is a kind of check on whether the interviewee can follow some basic social conventions about interviewing. For men this means wearing a suit and tie; for girls, a skirt suit or pant suit. Interviewers are fine with individualism (like, say, wearing a red tie when everyone else wears black) but not rebeliousness (like wearing a nose ring or a neon green tie or a white suit). Don't be the rebel.

To the OP: It might be fine to wear a nose ring at work or in class at med school, but conventions are different at the interview. Just as I said above, dressing for the interview is a kind of test. Don't wear the nose ring.

 

[Praefectus]

I'd avoid it. You're bearing unnecessary risk without any reward.

 

[noworkhistory]

I always just tell anyone who asks about the 2-inch holes in my earlobes that I wear them so that anyone who's in front or back of me can see better. 👍 If you can give a reason pertaining to a particular function of the piercing, then you will be all right. 👍

 

[45408]

I don't think it would hurt you if it's a small stud. My sister has one, and I hardly even notice it when I'm talking to her, and I've known her from birth.

 

[AdrianVeidt]

The guy in your avi has a purple suit on; your opinion is invalid!

But seriously, now you're just nitpicking. Wearing visible piercings, aside from earrings for women, and having visible tattoos are something you should avoid in an interview. And if you're the same poster from that tattoo and professionalism thread, then I don't think this argument can go any further.

OP save yourself the trouble of finding what's right to wear based on location and strive to make your ensemble appropriate for all locations.

Hold on now, you better respect the purple suit. It's the utmost sign of awesomeness.

I certainly don't consider it nitpicking; there are some people who would find it a terrible act of moral treason for a female to wear pants just as there are some who would find it a terrible act of moral treason to wear a nose ring to an interview. And yes I am the same poster who advocated for the tattoo thread OP to get tattoos in places that can be covered if he desires such. Anyone who has tattoos that are visible outside of a suit can pretty much forget any established professional job outside of entertainment, but I don't feel the same way about piercings as they are much more socially acceptable.

You seem to have a misunderstanding about what an interviewer is looking for in an interviewee's clothing. It has nothing to do with the interviewer's personal preference. It is a kind of check on whether the interviewee can follow some basic social conventions about interviewing. For men this means wearing a suit and tie; for girls, a skirt suit or pant suit. Interviewers are fine with individualism (like, say, wearing a red tie when everyone else wears black) but not rebeliousness (like wearing a nose ring or a neon green tie or a white suit). Don't be the rebel.

To the OP: It might be fine to wear a nose ring at work or in class at med school, but conventions are different at the interview. Just as I said above, dressing for the interview is a kind of test. Don't wear the nose ring.

Not quite sure what to tell you if you honestly think personal opinion doesn't sway judgement. I urge you to trust me when I tell you that there are people in the United States of America that would despise seeing a female in a pants suit, and that despising certainly can affect one's judgement.

Disclaimer: Of course these examples I am giving are on the extreme side, but there is an extremely conservative side of the spectrum that wholeheartedly believes in these social conditions/standards.

 

[ShenanigansMD]

I'm not a expert here, but are there ways to cover nose piercings with makeup? Maybe some type of filler material? You could probably google it...

Oh, not sure if this would work:

http://www.ehow.com/how_2241747_hide-nose-piercing.html

 

[keyinhand]

I have my nose pierced, and I definitely would take it out. It's not a big deal to remove it, and I've never had one person mention the "hole" when I'm not wearing a stud. Better safe than sorry.

 

[Euxox]

Not quite sure what to tell you if you honestly think personal opinion doesn't sway judgement. I urge you to trust me when I tell you that there are people in the United States of America that would despise seeing a female in a pants suit, and that despising certainly can affect one's judgement.

I don't disagree that opinion plays a role, but interviewers try as hard as possible to be impartial about these things. When it comes to ettiquite or social norm, on the other hand, even a nose-ring-wearing interviewer might mark you down for wearing a nose ring because you are just not supposed to do that at an interview.

 

[coquito]

Wow! I knew piercings got opinions all over the place, but thank you all for your input.

I think some people misinterpreted my question. First, I do not wear a big nose ring. I wear a very small stud, like this person (who is not me):

Second, my question was mostly about whether it would be better to leave the stud or have the hole showing. The piercing is not so important to me to risk an interview obviously, but I work in a liberal area where, even in interviews, it's always been a total non-issue. Taking it out is not a problem. I just thought the hole looks silly.

@keyinhand... You answered my question since you state that people don't seem to notice the hole.

@ShenanigansMD... Thanks for the advice on covering the hole.

My personal opinion is that jewelry>hole aesthetically, but I'll go with the majority rules and take it out. Thank you!!

 

[Camy99]

What about upper ear studs...? I never ever considered that might be an issue. It's on my ear.

 

[coquito]

Camy99, I do plan on leaving my tragus ring in because it is "pliered" closed, and I need to go to a professional shop to remove and then put the jewelry back in. I'll take the nose stud out because it's easy, but my ear ring is complicated.

I would say your ear piercings are fine, as they are more conservative than my tragus. But the majority in this thread seems to advise taking them out. So maybe take them off if they are easy to remove. If they are like my tragus ring (requiring a professional jewelry change), I think it's a lot of trouble and very little risk to leave the ear piercings in.

But I'm pretty liberal and pro-piercing so get some opinions from others.

 

[Camy99]

I literally have one upper ear, on my right. It's just recently finally stop hurting to the touch and I'd rather not mess with it. I could just cover it with my hair...? (This is all if I ever get an interview lol)