Too dapper for interviews

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premedk

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I going on my first interview tomorrow. I know most people say dark suit on dark shoes, but is it ok to wear a grey suit with light blue shirt and red plaid tie, with brown belt and light brown cole haan oxfords.

Similar to this guy(don't worry, I'm not going to be striking any poises on interview day
0e0d520a44f4be72e8350e336c5b66fc.jpg


....with these shoes and matching belt.
C12204_B.png
 
This sounds crazy, but when I interviewed a couple years ago, I took a tally of the ratios of black to navy to dark grey suits to entertain myself. I interviewed at midwestern/southern programs, the most prestigious of which were Barnes, Vandy, Michigan. The general trend was a higher proportion of black suits at the higher ranked places.

That being said, light grey is fine, but nothing else should be too far out of the norm. Solid color shirt (blue or white), not a crazy tie, brown or black shoes always. You want your appearance to be professional and nice but not stand out too much. Your CV should stand out.
 
I think the guy in the picture would do fine. My quibble is with the contrasting collar; that has never really appealed to me, and may be a bit too flashy for medicine.
 
If you can rock it, go for it. If you get downgraded for looking awesome on interview day, f*** them.

I happen to love that look but I know I could never pull it off myself so wouldn't try. But I'd high-five the guy who did at the end of the interview.
 
tryptophan321 said:
maybe a dumb question but resident dinner dress is casual, right?
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Yes, but like business casual? I don't know how to decribe it.

I never saw sneakers.
I saw jeans occasionally but think it is a big mistake honestly.

I wore slacks that were less formal than pants that went with my suit, and a more flowy casual button up shirt. Or I wore a camisole (no cleavage, some girls don't have to try hard to hide it but I do) with a matching sweater.

Most dudes wore non-jean like slacks, kakhis, or else very nice dark jeans, not faded, not too skinny, too loose, no bejeweled or embroidered butt non-sense, a button up shirt less formal than the one for interview day (also you do NOT want to risk food getting on it) that didnt need tucking, maybe a sweater vest, a nice sweater, or polo shirt. Skip the tie for sure.

As far as more casual sweater, polo, with dark jeans, vs slacks and casual button up, I would let the spirit of the program or region dictate. Like, at Mayo where everyone wears a suit on rounds, or Boston, a more conservative city in general, especially what you see average golk wearing, a more formal dinner casual outfit, at New Mexico, a way more laid back place, polo and khakis fine.

You can also go by restaurant they're taking you to. Upscale steakhouse vs low end bar with buffalo wings?

I lived on the road for a while, so I had a grey suit (back up suit that provided slacks for dinner before), main suit which was black, main button up for under suit, more casual button up for dinners but could be back up for suit, sweater/cami set & nice jeans for dinner if more casual, and also to have general clothes if I was was weekending it in the city. If I ever start my blog I will go into more details for packing strategies.

Hope this makes it more clear.
 
Crayola227 said:
Yes, but like business casual? I don't know how to decribe it.
Click to expand...
You just did. Business casual. It's a well established standard. The remaining several hundred words were just to (as my uncle used to say), hear your head rattle.
 
Crayola227 said:
Yes, but like business casual? I don't know how to decribe it.

I never saw sneakers.
I saw jeans occasionally but think it is a big mistake honestly.

I wore slacks that were less formal than pants that went with my suit, and a more flowy casual button up shirt. Or I wore a camisole (no cleavage, some girls don't have to try hard to hide it but I do) with a matching sweater.

Most dudes wore non-jean like slacks, kakhis, or else very nice dark jeans, not faded, not too skinny, too loose, no bejeweled or embroidered butt non-sense, a button up shirt less formal than the one for interview day (also you do NOT want to risk food getting on it) that didnt need tucking, maybe a sweater vest, a nice sweater, or polo shirt. Skip the tie for sure.

As far as more casual sweater, polo, with dark jeans, vs slacks and casual button up, I would let the spirit of the program or region dictate. Like, at Mayo where everyone wears a suit on rounds, or Boston, a more conservative city in general, especially what you see average golk wearing, a more formal dinner casual outfit, at New Mexico, a way more laid back place, polo and khakis fine.

You can also go by restaurant they're taking you to. Upscale steakhouse vs low end bar with buffalo wings?

I lived on the road for a while, so I had a grey suit (back up suit that provided slacks for dinner before), main suit which was black, main button up for under suit, more casual button up for dinners but could be back up for suit, sweater/cami set & nice jeans for dinner if more casual, and also to have general clothes if I was was weekending it in the city. If I ever start my blog I will go into more details for packing strategies.

Hope this makes it more clear.
Click to expand...

Maybe a nitpicky question but I'll hazard it anyways...did the ladies every wear dresses to the dinner the night before? Like a nonflashy, at the knee dress? Haha just asking because I feel the most confident in a dress. Also I have a lot of "nice dinner" dresses.

Please start your blog! 😛
 
cootieshot said:
Maybe a nitpicky question but I'll hazard it anyways...did the ladies every wear dresses to the dinner the night before? Like a nonflashy, at the knee dress? Haha just asking because I feel the most confident in a dress. Also I have a lot of "nice dinner" dresses.

Please start your blog! 😛
Click to expand...
Please don't encourage her.

And yes, wear a dress if that makes you feel comfortable. FFS...it's not that complicated.
 
gutonc said:
You just did. Business casual. It's a well established standard. The remaining several hundred words were just to (as my uncle used to say), hear your head rattle.
Click to expand...

I think you underestimate the range of what people think business casual means.

Jeans? Polo? Uncollared shirt or sweater OK for guys? Sneakers? Dress? Skirt?

So don't be a jerk just because I make my answers very explicit. And again, the problem with explaining what "business casual" means?

I can tell you're the kind of doc that tells a patient "your platelets are low" without further explanation, like that means anything even to your average college grad.

These kids are understandably nervous about even the little things, like, polo vs button up. Since I went on 20+ interviews, probably more recently than you did, and probably a much larger spread geographically than you did, I can tell you some people had no f*ing clue and it was program and region dependent if you felt like you were over or underdressed in a button up blouse.

I grew up in abject poverty, no one in my family owned a suit let alone knew what business casual was. I always had to do research online to figure out what to wear beyond jeans and a tshirt. I could just blurt out business casual, and they could research that, but that doesn't give them as much guidance as someone that went on a lot of residency interview dinners.

So if all you want to do is be snarky when I'm actually offering advice that is appreciated, why don't you just keep rolling.

You may not like that my post offered an explanation, but what did yours add? That's right, nothing. Now who like to hear their head rattle? Maybe there's a reason it was your uncle saying that.
 
And if you wear a dress, keep in mind that interview season in most regions is COLD and a lot of interview dinners you were expected to walk from the hotel or wait for a shuttle from the hotel, or park and walk. Meaning, a lot of time in the cold wind. Consider the snow too depending on the shoes you pick. I lost a heel once to a storm grate in Boston, plus my toes didn't like snow. Plan accordingly. And depending on the dress, you may be overdressed, or underdressed enough to distract the sex starved male residents. I was keeping the ladies under wraps and was getting hit on nonstop, which was irritating some of the lady residents. Ani Defranco lyric, "God help you if you are an ugly girl, course too pretty is also your doom. Cuz everyone harbors a secret hatred for the prettiest girl in the room."

I also don't recommend heels either for interviews, because of the walking tour, the obnoxious click clack the tour guide has to talk over, the stomped toes in crowded elevators, and yes, heels snapped off and girls that tripped.

House once told a woman he was interviewing that her choice of designer heels told him she placed more value on vanity than utility. Just things I keep in mind on the trail.
 
Crayola227 said:
I think you underestimate the range of what people think business casual means.
Click to expand...

Business casual for men means business without the tie and jacket. Sometimes you can replace the dress shirt with a polo shirt but I wouldn't.

Also @gutonc is killing it in this thread. I'm so glad someone else actually thinks you should look GOOD at an interview. Blue shirt red tie is not "flashy" it's what the president wears all the time. Blue shirt yellow tie is another classic combo. I'm so tired/bored of all the white dress shirts on interviews! Brown shoes are perfectly fine too! They go very well with a navy or grey suit. Can we please lay this "medicine is conservative so you need to look like boring crap at your interview" to rest. Everyone appreciates someone who is dressed in a visually appealing fashion.
 
MeatTornado said:
Business casual for men means business without the tie and jacket. Sometimes you can replace the dress shirt with a polo shirt but I wouldn't.

Also @gutonc is killing it in this thread. I'm so glad someone else actually thinks you should look GOOD at an interview. Blue shirt red tie is not "flashy" it's what the president wears all the time. Blue shirt yellow tie is another classic combo. I'm so tired/bored of all the white dress shirts on interviews! Brown shoes are perfectly fine too! They go very well with a navy or grey suit. Can we please lay this "medicine is conservative so you need to look like boring crap at your interview" to rest. Everyone appreciates someone who is dressed in a visually appealing fashion.
Click to expand...

This may be a bit of an overstatement. I wear fitted (but not skinny-fit) pants, and have received a number of snide comments about them.

And, yes, they do look good with my build.
 
MeatTornado said:
Business casual for men means business without the tie and jacket. Sometimes you can replace the dress shirt with a polo shirt but I wouldn't.

Also @gutonc is killing it in this thread. I'm so glad someone else actually thinks you should look GOOD at an interview. Blue shirt red tie is not "flashy" it's what the president wears all the time. Blue shirt yellow tie is another classic combo. I'm so tired/bored of all the white dress shirts on interviews! Brown shoes are perfectly fine too! They go very well with a navy or grey suit. Can we please lay this "medicine is conservative so you need to look like boring crap at your interview" to rest. Everyone appreciates someone who is dressed in a visually appealing fashion.
Click to expand...

Exactly! I went "interview clothes" shopping the other day and was just upset the whole time. Why do I feel I have to look frumpy for the whole interview process?

As for the male residents hitting on females...are you kidding me? Whyyyyy? Whatever. I don't think it'll happen to me. But I guess it's something I wouldn't have thought about?
 
Dave89 said:
This may be a bit of an overstatement. I wear fitted (but not skinny-fit) pants, and have received a number of snide comments about them.

And, yes, they do look good with my build.
Click to expand...
Haters gonna hate. If you can rock it, rock it. If you can't, you probably deserve the comments.

Also, you're a med student. Snide comments are par for the course. If it wasn't about your pants it would be about your hair, or your clinical chops. Be happy it's about your pants.
 
Oxford shirt for some dinner before interview nights was way overdressed for men. I think it depends on region and where you eat. I was somewhere in the south that was a dive bar and the "dinner" was buffalo wings and french fries and chili. Not oxford shirt food unless you roll up the sleeves, even then. Another reason not to try to reuse the shirt you wear for dinner for interview as well. Better off with an extra shirt.
 
Crayola227 said:
Oxford shirt for some dinner before interview nights was way overdressed for men. I think it depends on region and where you eat. I was somewhere in the south that was a dive bar and the "dinner" was buffalo wings and french fries and chili. Not oxford shirt food unless you roll up the sleeves, even then. Another reason not to try to reuse the shirt you wear for dinner for interview as well. Better off with an extra shirt.
Click to expand...

No one is suggesting you wear the same shirt to the dinner and interview!!
 
BertMacklinFBI said:
This sounds crazy, but when I interviewed a couple years ago, I took a tally of the ratios of black to navy to dark grey suits to entertain myself. I interviewed at midwestern/southern programs, the most prestigious of which were Barnes, Vandy, Michigan. The general trend was a higher proportion of black suits at the higher ranked places.

That being said, light grey is fine, but nothing else should be too far out of the norm. Solid color shirt (blue or white), not a crazy tie, brown or black shoes always. You want your appearance to be professional and nice but not stand out too much. Your CV should stand out.
Click to expand...
So i can't rock my Lakers tie? or tie that reads Celtics suck when i go to interviews in MA? damn!
 
Dave89 said:
This may be a bit of an overstatement. I wear fitted (but not skinny-fit) pants, and have received a number of snide comments about them.

And, yes, they do look good with my build.
Click to expand...

They always say black is more slimming.....

If your package is likely to be a distraction, I would say pick darker colors.

It's not that people don't love things that come in big packages, they do, but I know it's not so big you can't dress and sit and hold your legs so you're not pulling a male Sharon Stone interview manuveur, and the guys that either aren't aware enough of their own image and meat to keep the butcher block under subtle wraps... or just choose to advertise it in the medical setting, yeah it's memorable, not in a good way in my opinion. The staff of Asclepius is all you need to strut IN the hospital, or you're just not doing it right.

I just finished watching Magic Mike. Yeah, medicine really is a big bags of Dicks (Toms, Harrys, SDN allowed words?) but I like to think putting your best foot forward we should show some command of anatomy and lead with that.
 
I'm all for ponies and meat outside the clinical arena or tastefully at the before dinner interview if it's casual enough.

Sorry, somehow the pants comment and this thread http://forums.studentdoctor.net/threads/eras-pictures.1165059/#post-16999523 has me thinking color should be taken into account with cut, and thought given to coverage.

The pic posted was just too form fitting. The cut of the shoulders or maybe this guy's posture plus color seems emasculating, and then what, the compensation is too tight inseam? That's all probably sexist but whatevs, look dapper or just wear whatever @MeatTornado would dress his meat with.
 
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Crayola227 said:
I also don't recommend heels either for interviews, because of the walking tour, the obnoxious click clack the tour guide has to talk over, the stomped toes in crowded elevators, and yes, heels snapped off and girls that tripped.
Click to expand...


Some might argue flats look unprofessional for interviews. What are you thoughts? Wedges?
 
copperpenny189 said:
Some might argue flats look unprofessional for interviews. What are you thoughts? Wedges?
Click to expand...

Yeah I heard that too. But I doubt it'd be a make or break factor? But I'm still going with some short heels. I would think people were used to hearing heels especially during interview season. I guess I've been wearing heels for so long I don't even notice (not at work though). Wait is this why nobody wants to be my friend? :bag: Also my pants have been tailored for heels.
If I trip I trip I guess. But all good points!
 
As one person pointed out, ballet flats are definitely a no no.

Most people will say the best to wear are heels of some sort. There are more conservative ones like the kind you might find on loafers, like a short block heel.

I think if they are too high it reminds me of less professional things like pumps or dance club wear. As far as tripping, I saw that more with girls wearing ridiculous 4 inch stilettos.

It's easy to look online for guidelines on professional shoes for interviewing.

A good idea is to have a pair of more comfortable (but still professional appearing) shoes in your bag for the walking tour. You often will have a chance to switch in/out of them easily in the room they usually have you wait in or use the restroom. If I swapped shoes in the conferencr room I would have hand sanitizer on me and use that after so it wasn't unseemly (usually this was just in front of other interviewees). I was frequently complimented on my sense of the practical on this.

While people will say the best is heels, I know for a fact you can wear flats, that is totally appropriate. The key is to find a pair that are professional and go with your suit. In fact, I got a lot of compliments for wearing more practical shoes, from residents, interviewers, program directors, coordinators.

Like I said, caveat is to find professional appearing ones.
 
MeatTornado said:
Business casual for men means business without the tie and jacket. Sometimes you can replace the dress shirt with a polo shirt but I wouldn't.

Also @gutonc is killing it in this thread. I'm so glad someone else actually thinks you should look GOOD at an interview. Blue shirt red tie is not "flashy" it's what the president wears all the time. Blue shirt yellow tie is another classic combo. I'm so tired/bored of all the white dress shirts on interviews! Brown shoes are perfectly fine too! They go very well with a navy or grey suit. Can we please lay this "medicine is conservative so you need to look like boring crap at your interview" to rest. Everyone appreciates someone who is dressed in a visually appealing fashion.
Click to expand...

You ****ing bet.

I'm honestly surprised at the low standards of dress and grooming most people seem to hold themselves to on these interviews....on the rheum trail this year, I've seen the sloppiest haircuts, dudes that didn't bother to shave, tons of people wearing black suits (this is technically 'wrong' - you're not at a funeral...), people wearing black sneakers, boat shoes, penny loafers, and moccasins with suits, wrinkled suits and shirts, some idiot wearing a tuxedo to an interview, black suits + black ties (as if you're wearing a 'men in black' costume), shirt patterns that clash hideously with ties, and so on.

At times I felt like a chump for actually bothering to clean up and dress like I'm going to an interview.
 
dozitgetchahi said:
You ****ing bet.

I'm honestly surprised at the low standards of dress and grooming most people seem to hold themselves to on these interviews....on the rheum trail this year, I've seen the sloppiest haircuts, dudes that didn't bother to shave, tons of people wearing black suits (this is technically 'wrong' - you're not at a funeral...), people wearing black sneakers, boat shoes, penny loafers, and moccasins with suits, wrinkled suits and shirts, some idiot wearing a tuxedo to an interview, black suits + black ties (as if you're wearing a 'men in black' costume), shirt patterns that clash hideously with ties, and so on.

At times I felt like a chump for actually bothering to clean up and dress like I'm going to an interview.
Click to expand...

A tuxedo?

That is amazing. :laugh:
 
dozitgetchahi said:
It was utterly hilarious - I almost couldn't believe it. It really made me think of this scene...

Click to expand...


I can't help but think that by the end of the interview, the interviewer was thinking the same exact thing.
 
GOLDMARK said:
SO wants to know whether it's ok to wear a maxi dress like this to the pre-interview dinner? http://www.express.com/clothing/women/black-poet-sleeve-maxi-dress/pro/1268546/cat1910047

Hell if I know. Comments?
Click to expand...

Way too slutty.
Never seen anything this fancy/revealing for pre-interview dinner. I hope this isn't trolling.
This person would be way overdressed and not in a good way.
Medicine is conservative. So even if you're going casual for dinner I would still still be covered up.
 
copperpenny189 said:
Ok. I was planning on low heels but when you said no heels.... I wantoed to clarify. I would never wear ballet flats to an interview personally. As for wedges, obviously nothing ridiculous. Saw an interviewee (for surgery) at my home institution wearing something like this once and I thought it looked professional. http://www.colehaan.com/bethany-wedge-(40mm)--almond-toe-black-patent/D42020.html?dwvar_D42020_color=Black Patent&dwvar_D42020_width=B#cgid=womens_shoes_wedges&start=34
Click to expand...

Hard to say. I wonder what @Winged Scapula thinks.

My urge is to avoid wedges, but the specific shoe you posted, I think depending on the hem of your pants not being too high emphasizing it, you could get away with it.

I just think for the tour and interviews while looking good is key, you don't want to be in a lot of pain or too wobbly. I would go with comfort all else being equal.
 
Crayola227 said:
Way too slutty.
Never seen anything this fancy/revealing for pre-interview dinner. I hope this isn't trolling.
This person would be way overdressed and not in a good way.
Medicine is conservative. So even if you're going casual for dinner I would still still be covered up.
Click to expand...
Should've clarified. She was just wondering about the maxi dress part, it's not going to be this open.
 
dozitgetchahi said:
You ****ing bet.

I'm honestly surprised at the low standards of dress and grooming most people seem to hold themselves to on these interviews....on the rheum trail this year, I've seen the sloppiest haircuts, dudes that didn't bother to shave, tons of people wearing black suits (this is technically 'wrong' - you're not at a funeral...), people wearing black sneakers, boat shoes, penny loafers, and moccasins with suits, wrinkled suits and shirts, some idiot wearing a tuxedo to an interview, black suits + black ties (as if you're wearing a 'men in black' costume), shirt patterns that clash hideously with ties, and so on.

At times I felt like a chump for actually bothering to clean up and dress like I'm going to an interview.
Click to expand...

Agree with all of this except that the "didn't bother to shave" look is in now. U gotta know yourself through. Doesn't look good on everyone.
 
gutonc said:
Fixed that for you.
Click to expand...

It looks terrible - and on most of these people it didn't look like any sort of specific 'look' as much as it seemed, well, like somebody had forgotten to shave.

Although I think the footwear part is my biggest pet peeve. Black Nikes with a suit is NOT appropriate, and it does NOT look good. And multiple people did this. I know money's tight but for christ's sake...for less than the price of the hotel room they stayed at for the interview they could've rolled down to Kohl's and picked up a cheap pair of legit leather black dress shoes.

When people were wearing actual dress shoes, it was uncommon to see them polished. Again, for christ's sake, it's not much effort to actually polish up your shoes.

There was a time in this country when details like this were just a given...now everything's slipped. The women seem to get all these details right way better than the guys, which is just embarrassing. Buck up, dress up and grow up. It doesn't matter if your daddy didn't teach you right or something - we got the internet now. Just get your **** together and do it.
 
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