Professional dress

Started by TSUJC
Veterinary Science Graduate Programs from U. of I.
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TSUJC

TSUJC

CSU c/o 2013
10+ Year Member
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Mississippi is pretty strict about their dress code. I spoke with a few of the current students and they said that the dress code IS strongly enforced. I want to look professional but don’t want to spend hours ironing my clothes (I hate ironing dress shirts or anything with buttons)!!

My boyfriend has some “smart shirts” from Nordstrom’s that never wrinkle. You put them in the dryer and they come out perfectly flawless!!! I looked to see if Nordstrom’s had these types of shirts for women but I couldn’t find any.

Does anyone now who sells wrinkle free shirt for women?? Any experience with them?
 
I don't know specifically for MS, but worked professional jobs for 5 years, so I'm a bit familiar with that kind of wardrobe. (I give my MS caveat because each environment is a little different.) However, for every environment that I've been in, the nice truth about women's clothes is that it's somewhat easy to fudge...

For example, I love the fact that there are shirts that are not button down but have a collar. So they can kind of substitute. There are also mock sweater/collared shirt combos where it's just a sweater, but has collar and cuffs of a collared shirt sewn into it so it looked like you've layered one beneath.

There are also slack you can get that do not need ironing. Some are made of fabrics that don't wrinkle (I can't remember the fabric name that I'm thinking of...it's something like varicose, but not quite that😛) so they keep their iron lines forever. Others are just made of a nice looking fabric and have the crease lines sewn into them. They're basically just pants, but look more dressy because of that crease line addition.

I'm sure I have more tricks up my sleeve on how to look dressy but not really be that dressed up, but I can't think of them right now. I'll go take a look at my closet for some ideas.

But mostly, in my experience, dress shirts need ironing, so it's best if you can avoid them! (I always wore a shell or some other shirt and then a jacket over it because you can wear almost anything that looks halfway decent (no tshirts or text, of course) for a shell. But you may not want to wear jackets to class necessarily. Though I do recall that Gap or J Crew or someone had some cute vaguely business looking (though more casual) jackets a while back, and those might be nice.

Oh, and one more thing that I can think of...for pants, even dress pants...get ones with some stretch. Makes sitting for 8 hours (whether at a desk job or in lecture hall) much much more comfortable. Stretch is in everything these days, even dress/professional clothes!
 
Wow. I had no idea that vet schools had dress codes for students while in lecture. When I visited some schools and sat in on some lectures, most people were in jeans and sweatshirts. Hmm. I guess you learn something every day.
 
Brooks Brothers and Banana Republic both carry the non-iron button down shirts. I had some of those for all my interviews--they were great! My mom is an attorney and she swears by them--just throw them in the washer/dryer and they come out looking almost perfect (not quite as perfect as a starched professionally ironed shirt, but close enough).

I decided Miss St wasn't for me when they said you can't go to class with wet hair, haha. I absolutely abhor blow dryers and always start my day with wet hair. 😀
 
Ben and Me said:
Brooks Brothers and Banana Republic
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Beat me too it 🙂

Believe it or not, Brooks Brothers, has in my experience, produced better and cheaper Oxfords (talking about mens here). BR is usually overpriced and not as great a selection.

I went out and bought ~20 Oxfords, mostly from Brooks when they had one of their great 50 - 60% off sales.

Washing and Drying is too much work for me. Instead I am going to go the the DC's in the area, and work out a deal with them (Bring them in 2 a month, all at once, tell then don't worry about the plastic or ties, and get it down to $1.00 a shirt). Then it will end up costing ~30.00 a month, and save me the deal of ironing and washing.

Thats my plan anyway

I look forward to getting back to professional dress TBH
 
Both also have a pretty good selection at their outlet stores usually, if you have an outlet mall nearby. I just checked out both online, and BR was a little less expensive than BB...but I do think that the BB no iron shirt I have feels like better quality than the BR one I have.
 
Thanks for the great suggestions!!! I love Brooks Brothers and Banana so I will check out those places. I didn't realize that that BB had an outlet, now I am excited!!! Since I am located between Austin & Houston I am sure there has to be an outlet around me somewhere.

Here at A&M the students get to choose between scrubs or professional dress. I was really looking forward to wearing scrubs to lecture but MSU doesn’t allow that. I guess I will bring a set of scrubs to change into for labs.

I shouldn't complain too much, there could be worse things than being forced to look nice! 🙂

My friend that graduate from MSU did say that the professional dress thing is nice because it sets you apart from the undergrads.
 
twelvetigers said:
No wet hair? Seriously? That's what I skip if I'm running late! What if your hair is <2in long? Maybe it would dry before they noticed...

Shoot, that's crazy.
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I don't actually know how they "enforce" the dress code. When I asked during the interview orientation they said that the class elects an honor council to deal with those kinds of things. I am pretty sure they don’t take you out back and flog you but hey I haven’t ever lived in Mississippi so I can’t say that doesn’t happen 😀
 
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VAgirl said:
There are also slack you can get that do not need ironing. Some are made of fabrics that don't wrinkle (I can't remember the fabric name that I'm thinking of...it's something like varicose, but not quite that😛) so they keep their iron lines forever.
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Haha, it's viscose! 😛
 
I was looking at the Banana shirts and I love that they are opaque and not sheer. Maybe it is just me but sometimes I just don't want to search around for a cami!!! That just adds one more factor to the equation.
 
If you call up uniform supply shops, they can also put you on track to find cheap, wrinkle free button down shirts. The nice thing about many of those places is that the shirts for women are cut well, and if you tell them you need to be able to move in the shirts, they will have some good options. That is how we obtained all our zoo shirts, which obviosly had to deal with a lot of stress in terms of movement, creasing, and stains, and they held up very well.

Are polos allowed? That can be a simple option.
 
I'm not sure how they feel about polos for women??? I will have to check into that.
 
All I know is that women have it easier with "Professional Dress". I currently teach, and all the women teachers dress "Professionally", but it is always more comfortable than the males.

Personally, I don't/can't iron. I just pull my clothes straight from the dryer and hang them up immediately. If you don't over-crowd the dryer, they come out without any wrinkles. Hey...it works for me, anyway.

I just have to vent a minute. I am very hot-natured (I sleep with a fan all year long!). I don't mind wearing a tie, but a long-sleeve shirt is another story. I could wear short-sleeved shirts, but I would look like a used car salesman.😎 The other option at MSU is wearing a sweater!! I mean, we're in Mississippi, not Michigan!! A sweater?! That's the extant of my rant. I'll just suck it up as I have done for the last two years.

For any MSU'ers: Do you have to dress-up if you come to the school and you don't have a class at that time, such as the evening? Or is it just set times?
 
No Imagination said:
Please, I'll trade your cammie for my tie. Not looking forward to having to learn how to tie a tie again
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I just learned two years ago!! A man from church taught me (my Dad NEVER dressed up, but one time in his life and it was a tuxedo with a clip bow-tie). I'm pretty good at it now, I must say.😉
 
BR549 said:
For any MSU'ers: Do you have to dress-up if you come to the school and you don't have a class at that time, such as the evening? Or is it just set times?
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My understanding is, anytime you come to the school during normal hours (classes or no classes)

And I don't think we can wear sweaters in stead of a tie, think we can wear SWEATER VESTS. Erghh, thats NOT gonna happen for me

And yeah, I can tie a tie, but if you don't do it for a while, you quickly get bad at it. Takes me like 3-4 tries right now to nail it
 
ugh. i went to a catholic high school with a dress code. shirts had to be polo. bending the rules was a game though- i've never dressed more creatively in my life- the colors, the accessories, the not-quite-natural blond hair, hehe. i was more than willing to follow the rules to go to the school, but i STILL have anxiety dreams in which i find myself in class and realize, with a panic, that i'm out of dress code!

personally, i wouldn't want to go back to school dress code- feels like oppressive authority to me (i'm not saying vet schools shouldn't have them, just that i don't like them). i'm glad my clinic is lenient with dress- we get to choose our own scrubs, and the doctors don't wear white coats. maybe it's a regional cultural thing.. we're relatively casual in the bay area.
 
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BR549 said:
Personally, I don't/can't iron. I just pull my clothes straight from the dryer and hang them up immediately. If you don't over-crowd the dryer, they come out without any wrinkles. Hey...it works for me, anyway.

I just have to vent a minute. I am very hot-natured (I sleep with a fan all year long!). I don't mind wearing a tie, but a long-sleeve shirt is another story. ... A sweater?!
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You sound like my husband. He tumbles his clothes in the dryer every morning right before putting them on. He wears button-up shirts tucked into well-fitting jeans with a belt... which is fancier than most of the other guys he works with, lol.

He can not tie a tie to save his life... that's wife to the rescue for ya. My dad taught me when I was six or so and I tucked it away in my little brain... 🙂 I can do a half or a full windsor. 👍

No complaints, boys - your dress shoes are probably more comfortable than ours, and nothing is worse than uncomfortable shoes. What do you MEAN Danskos don't look good with slacks?? Pshh. I think I would hate MSU 😱!
 
twelvetigers said:
No complaints, boys - your dress shoes are probably more comfortable than ours, and nothing is worse than uncomfortable shoes. What do you MEAN Danskos don't look good with slacks?? Pshh. I think I would hate MSU 😱!
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Pish posh...you can find perfectly comfortable women's shoes if you don't care about wearing high heels. They don't have to look awful, either. We do it to ourselves. I'd take the flexibility of women's dress clothes over the rigidity of men's any day, regardless of shoes.
 
VAgirl said:
Pish posh...you can find perfectly comfortable women's shoes if you don't care about wearing high heels. They don't have to look awful, either. We do it to ourselves. I'd take the flexibility of women's dress clothes over the rigidity of men's any day, regardless of shoes.
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...Unless, of course, you're over 6'2" and wear size 11 shoes... in which case your choices as a woman are ugly, high-waisted slacks with equally hideous orthopedic-looking shoes. Why is it that clothing stores assume anyone over 5'7" is moderately overweight and blind?
 
VAgirl said:
Pish posh...you can find perfectly comfortable women's shoes if you don't care about wearing high heels. They don't have to look awful, either. We do it to ourselves. I'd take the flexibility of women's dress clothes over the rigidity of men's any day, regardless of shoes.
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...Unless, of course, you're over 6'2" and wear size 11 shoes... in which case your choices as a woman are ugly, high-waisted slacks with equally hideous orthopedic-looking shoes. Why is it that clothing stores assume anyone over 5'7" is moderately overweight and blind? (sorry, sore subject for me)
 
Ninnerfish said:
...Unless, of course, you're over 6'2" and wear size 11 shoes... in which case your choices as a woman are ugly, high-waisted slacks with equally hideous orthopedic-looking shoes. Why is it that clothing stores assume anyone over 5'7" is moderately overweight and blind? (sorry, sore subject for me)
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Yea, anyone that's an outlier does seem to get shafted by that kind of stuff. Sorry. 🙁
 
Also, shorter people like to wear heels (I'm reminded of a recent conversation with someone... hmm...) so that could make a difference. I LOVE heels... but not how they feel on my feet. I'm so in love with my Danskos that tennis shoes aren't even comfortable anymore. So even those unassuming flats are basicially torture IMO. That, and slacks make my butt look big(ger).
 
Ninnerfish said:
...Unless, of course, you're over 6'2" and wear size 11 shoes... in which case your choices as a woman are ugly, high-waisted slacks with equally hideous orthopedic-looking shoes. Why is it that clothing stores assume anyone over 5'7" is moderately overweight and blind? (sorry, sore subject for me)
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I'm a 6'9" guy who isn't morbidly obese. IF a big & tall place has pants that are long enough, they are like a 70"+ waist. It's insane.

I also have a 40" arm length. Needless to say, all of my long pants & long sleeve-shirts are all custom made. I have no other option.
 
WOW! My husband has a tough time finding stuff that fits sometimes - he has to go to Drysdales to get his 34/36 jeans since department stores only go up to 34 length - but wow, that's gotta be a major pain in the butt. On the plus side, I guess everything fits you really well since it's custom!

Do you have to order shoes from places too? Or is it easier to get large sized shoes?
 
ninnerfish said:
...unless, of course, you're over 6'2" and wear size 11 shoes... In which case your choices as a woman are ugly, high-waisted slacks with equally hideous orthopedic-looking shoes. Why is it that clothing stores assume anyone over 5'7" is moderately overweight and blind? (sorry, sore subject for me)
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tell me about it.
 
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twelvetigers said:
Do you have to order shoes from places too? Or is it easier to get large sized shoes?
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When I find shoes that fit, I buy like 4 pairs of them. I have gotten lucky at Kohl's many times with shoes.

I am going to have MAJOR troubles when it comes time for coveralls and boots. Wish me luck now! haha
 
Wow, culture clash! We don't even have to wear shoes, and much of the class is in shorts and flip-flops on any given day. A couple of guys in our class started Formal Fridays as a joke -- it's catching on, the wearing of ties, collared shirts, and even jackets with shorts.
 
Hmmmm... I freaked a bit when I read the whole "they have a dress code" thing, then all of you talking about how you'd have to go buy brooks bro's or whatever shirts and whatnot.

Then I actually went to the website and tracked down the dress code. Other than the no wet hair thing, it's a heck of a lot more liberal than most places I've worked. Left to my own devices, i meet that code ~65% of the time. For bob's sake, ppl, for men the only difference from standard middle class southern uniform is socks with your boat shoes and a button down/ tie instead of golf shirt.

And for women... seems to be pretty much anything you'd wear in an office. On the whole, not that bad. Sure, you have to actually wear real clothes... but you can buy them anywhere. Even walmart.


Laura- the person who started formal friday wouldn't be the guy with the orange 'fro, would it? seems like something he'd do....

-j.
 
lazyjayn said:
Hmmmm... I freaked a bit when I read the whole "they have a dress code" thing, then all of you talking about how you'd have to go buy brooks bro's or whatever shirts and whatnot
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The brooks brother's thing was mainly for the wrinkle-free shirts, but you are right...On the whole, not that bad.
 
Yeah, I was thinking last night..."I'd dress up like a hotdog, if they had asked me." I was just venting because I get hot really easy and come from a place of always going barefoot. Now, if I start to strip in class...you've been forewarned!😀 Just be sure you bring extra ones!:laugh:
 
When I see that guy taking all his clothes off in class, you will have given yourself away LOL

I agree, I would also wear a hotdog suit if they asked me too!!
 
Maybe they'd let you wear a seersucker summer suit with bermuda shorts, if you asked nicely. It's stylin' in a scary, moneyed sort of way. And not as likely to require personal AC in summer....

-j.
 
What do school in general think about skirts? Like, black and knee length of course. I just don't want to wear a pant suit they're so ugly.
 
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twelvetigers said:
Epic! What flavor?
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Vanilla with chocolate drizzled on it and a cherry on top, wrapped snugly in a waffle cone!😛 We made over 120 flavors of ice cream in the store, however. We also made our waffle cones. I was the crowned "Waffle-cone King", but I unfortunately didn't put that on my VMCAS app!🙄
 
You could have put it under Awards/Honors, right? I guess it would have been counterproductive if the adcom preferred banana splits, though.
 
BR549 said:
Vanilla with chocolate drizzled on it and a cherry on top, wrapped snugly in a waffle cone!😛 We made over 120 flavors of ice cream in the store, however. We also made our waffle cones. I was the crowned "Waffle-cone King", but I unfortunately didn't put that on my VMCAS app!🙄
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Haha!! Boy if I was an adcom you would be a shoo-in! Waffle-cone King so trumps a 4.0 any day.
 
VAgirl, what about Davis? What is the dress code like and how strictly is it enforced? I live in jeans and hoodies, I'm going to die if I have to dress professionally every day! The only professional clothing I even own is the suit I bought for interviews!
 
jjohnston said:
VAgirl, what about Davis? What is the dress code like and how strictly is it enforced? I live in jeans and hoodies, I'm going to die if I have to dress professionally every day! The only professional clothing I even own is the suit I bought for interviews!
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No dress code that I'm aware of. People wear whatever they want. There may be some sort of dress code when you are working in the VMTH as a fourth year (I'm guessing, I have no idea). But as for years 1-3, you can wear whatever you want. (Though I assume they prefer that you do actually wear clothes. 😛)

EDIT: We also have all the standard requirements for closed toed shoes and long pants in lab, but that's the same everywhere.
 
We actually have people wear shorts and flip flops in lab all the time, and no one seems to care...I think its strange and a bit unsafe

I don't, I have a desire to not get dead horse juices all over my feet...
 
rugbychick16 said:
We actually have people wear shorts and flip flops in lab all the time, and no one seems to care...I think its strange and a bit unsafe

I don't, I have a desire to not get dead horse juices all over my feet...
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For all their statements about how we shouldn't wear shorts or flipflops, I've seen people in them, too, and haven't seen anyone kicked out of lab. Still, those are technically the rules. And for good reason, like you say! Even though our dogs don't sit in formalin, it was certainly used to preserve them, and the chemical smell in the large refrigerator where we keep cadavers (that always seems to have small puddles of unidentified fluids on the floor) could knock you out some days. So I wear sneakers and long pants!
 
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