what are you going to wear to the interview?

[Smooth Operater]

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I am planning to wear a nice dress shirt with khaki. Is that formal enough? Anyone is planning to wear suit and tie?

 

[Mia305]

If I was you I would definitely be wearing a suit and tie. I had an interview a few days ago and thats what all of us were wearing.

 

[litldime]

I would definately wear a suit...my first interview every single person was in a dark suit...everyone looked very professional....
-ld

 

[Regmata]

I wore jeans and a t-shirt...it is good to stand out

 

[JamieMac]

Damn, I was originally thinking flip flops and a wrinkled shirt!

Seriously though, as someone already recommended...wear a suit. Nothing crazy - Navy or charcoal grey with or w/o pinstripe. Black might be a bit too formal. If cost is an issue, go to a men's warehouse type of place, and they should be able to help you out for a reasonable amount of money.

 

[Tygerm9]

Like everyone else said, wear a suit. At my interview, all 10 guys were wearing suits.

 

[lemoncurry]

SO, you've been a member of this forum for 3 years now. I'm surprised in all that time you haven't read a thread that has stressed the importance of wearing a suit.

 

[bruinpredent]

i'm going in my birthday suit. beware...

 

[DrSmiles12]

i'm going in my birthday suit. beware...

Put a thong on please....

 

[Montserrat]

Well ... at least you'd stand out.

 

[small]

I honestly am not going to wear a dark suit (i.e. black/blue/grey). It's brown for me, baby. That's right, brown. I have light brown pants with light grey and beige plaid plaid running through it. Throw in a golden-brown tie, shiny tan shoes, a dark walnut-colored corduroy jacket, and a Guinness harp tie-clip and I'm ready to pimp my way into dental school! Not sure about the shirt yet, though. Probably just white, to play it safe.

 

[rdhdds1]

For all of those out there that are wondering what to wear for an interview. It is really fairly simple.

You are interviewing for the school, yes, that is true but in reality you are interviewing for a job/career. You should always always dress the part.

GUYS: shirt, tie, sport coat and slacks with dress shoes (please coordinate), clean shaven, hair cut and clean

LADIES: pant suits, not to revealing blouse closed toed shoes (not high heels either; pumps or flats are always welcome), light makeup (if you have to bake it on in layers you are wearing to much), easy on the mascare/eye shadow and lip stick. You are going for a professional interview not a try out at a strip club

 

[Vapor1122]

GUYS: shirt, tie, sport coat and slacks with dress shoes (please coordinate), clean shaven, hair cut and clean

I dunno, that seems a little too casual. Do the suit.

 

[Montserrat]

I honestly am not going to wear a dark suit (i.e. black/blue/grey). It's brown for me, baby. That's right, brown. I have light brown pants with light grey and beige plaid plaid running through it. Throw in a golden-brown tie, shiny tan shoes, a dark walnut-colored corduroy jacket, and a Guinness harp tie-clip and I'm ready to pimp my way into dental school! Not sure about the shirt yet, though. Probably just white, to play it safe.

So you're going for the Tucker Carlson look... good thing you ditched the bowtie.

 

[rdhdds1]

I dunno, that seems a little too casual. Do the suit.

A sport coat is a suit jacket, yet can be multifunctional, meaning it can go with slacks of 2-3 different colors. Slacks are another term used for formal pants. It is universal when dealing with business attire. Ties and shirt to match. However, if you prefer to go out and pay for a full on "suit" then more power to ya.

 

[Regmata]

Sport coats are a bit casual...maybe a traditional blue blazer with a nice pair of khaki slacks...suit is preferable.

 

[BamaJo]

Who all thinks a black suit is too formal?

 

[rdhdds1]

Who all thinks a black suit is too formal?

I

 

[SanOnofre2002]

Who all thinks a black suit is too formal?

I've seen several posts that black is too formal. I disagree and practicaly all of the guys where I interviewed, were wearing black. Ofcourse navy, grey, charcoal, etc work too; but if you already have black, you'll be fine.
What would be too formal: double breasted and/or french cuffs.

 

[i like dat]

 

[DentaLizzy]

So it seems all of this talk is mostly for guys suits, but is a black pantsuit too formal for girls?? What about black w/ a pinstripe? Also, I guess jewelry should be at a minimum and classy? 🙂

 

[lemoncurry]

black is only too formal if it starts looking like a tux. I wouldn't be surprised if most guys out there only owned a black suit. In my opinion, double-breasted isn't too formal, it's just not in style right now. These days, it's all about the 3-button. double-breasted would have worked 5 years ago, maybe more, but I just don't see guys wearing them anymore.

DLizzy, I'd say the black pantsuit would be just fine, w/ or w/o pinstripe. You are correct about the jewelry. I would say studs or very small "hangy" earrings, one simple necklace (thin chain with a small pendant/cross/medal, or maybe even a string of pearls, but I don't know about that), a watch but not a bracelet, and maybe a ring on each hand, tops, on your ring finger. This is all my opinion, but it's the advice i would give if asked.

 

[jza70]

 

[Fonz]

Who all thinks a black suit is too formal?

I think its a generally accepted rule in the fashion world that a black suit is too formal and shouldn't be worn to something like a interview.

 

[lemoncurry]

I agree with that in principle, but I think the reality is that your average black suit either has pinstripes, or has a subtle weave in the fabric that gives it a hint of being more like charcoal grey, rather than the black of a tuxedo. I honestly think that a truly BLACK suit is either going to be a really cheap suit or a tuxedo. Any reasonably priced, non-formalwear suit is not going to look too formal. At my last interview, there were several gents, and I think both of the ladies as well, were in black suits of some sort, and I thought they looked just fine.

 

[TheRighteous]

From what I understand in the Money and Banking course I took a while ago, black suits are not optimal for interviews. The reasoning was that black suits are usually worn by workers, for example, limo drivers, hunchmen, and whatnot. I cannot attest to this, because I was under the impression that black suits are only worn in the most formal circumstances.

 

[yorkiepoo]

do not wear a hideous brown velvet suit as pictures above in one of the earlier posts. do not wear velvet or corduroy or anything else with hairlike material.

For the girls --> wear a suit one of a few options:
- pants suit
- skirt suit (usually are made right below the knee or at the knee)
- dress suit - dress with jacket on top (see bananarepublic.com to see what i'm talking about)

you can wear: black, gray, dark gray, dark brown, pin stripe or solid.
if you want to take a risk and go with the trendy thing, i think some form of plad has been out too.. see united colors of beneton on line for that one.

DO NOT WEAR a baby blue pants suit made of polyester!!!

 

[yorkiepoo]

although it may be tempting.. don't wear this:

for some of us everyday may feel like a chance to be on a runway, but dental school interviews are definitely not the place to look anything but professional.

this is better:

 

[JamieMac]

I've seen several posts that black is too formal. I disagree and practicaly all of the guys where I interviewed, were wearing black. Ofcourse navy, grey, charcoal, etc work too; but if you already have black, you'll be fine.
What would be too formal: double breasted and/or french cuffs.

Just because all of the guys you saw were wearing black doesn't necessarily indicate that it is the most appropriate thing to wear. Let's face it - many soon to be dental students are not likely to be the best examples of good fashion sense. I personally think that black is too formal. It would be more suitable for an evening or formal function. As another poster indicated... if it has pins through it or something that gives it a different appearance, it would be more acceptable. Straight up black = no.

 

[litldime]

black,brown, navy...those are standard colors for interviews.... i don't think they really care which one you wear as long as you look professional
i just think black is the easiest thing to get since color coordinations are quite simple w/ black... i bought a grey suit and ended up returning it b/c i didn't like the color combinations i found at the store...plus, black is slimming for you fatties...jk...
-ld

 

[futuredds08]

I may be wrong, but I think we are being a bit too nit-picky on EXACTLY what colors are appropriate, when it would probably be better to spend more energy on PREPARING FOR THE INTERVIEW QUESTIONS!

Just a thought. 🙂

 

[small]

I may be wrong, but I think we are being a bit too nit-picky on EXACTLY what colors are appropriate, when it would probably be better to spend more energy on PREPARING FOR THE INTERVIEW QUESTIONS!

Just a thought. 🙂

You mean questions like "And just why did you decide to wear THAT to our interview today?"

 

[futuredds08]

You mean questions like "And just why did you decide to wear THAT to our interview today?"

Yeah, that would probably be a good question to prepare for. 🙂

I do think the subject needs some attention... but if you think too hard about it, you might miss the forest for the trees.

 

[Flipper405]

I may be wrong, but I think we are being a bit too nit-picky on EXACTLY what colors are appropriate, when it would probably be better to spend more energy on PREPARING FOR THE INTERVIEW QUESTIONS!

Just a thought. 🙂

I was thinking that too... but hey, that's what SDN is for: over-preparation 😀

 

[ajaxkid]

What about a military uniform? Is that too formal? I was thinking about the Army Class A's (traditional green uniform with shirt and tie, etc)

 

[lemoncurry]

I'd say any sort of dress uniform would be fine, but that's my opinion.



I would like some input about touring, not interviewing. If you have a tour set up for a school you applied to, but haven't been granted an interview, how would you dress? I was originally thinking dress shirt and slacks, but my politician brother-in-law thinks I should wear the suit. Now I'm thinking of compromising and wearing a tie but no jacket. Any opinions?

 

[Regmata]

When I toured, I wore khaki slacks, a white shirt and a blue blazer...it is what local dentists recommended I do and it seemed to work just fine...wear it and you can't go wrong

It can be tough, just because the faculty are often quite a bit older and dress conservatively.

 

[lemoncurry]

my choices right now are suit or shirt/slacks and tie. i don't have the sport coat option. Personally I think the suit is too formal for a tour, but I don't want to be under-dressed.

 

[Flipper405]

Hmm... I definitely wore a t-shirt and shorts for a tour at MCG.


... oops 😀

Although actually they said to just wear something comfortable cause we have to walk around the campus a lot.
So I guess it depends on the school. I personally wouldn't wear a suit though. It seems a little excessive to me. I think you should be fine with a shirt/slacks and a tie.

 

[Blando]

suit and beard if you can 🙂 made me look older/only school i got into i grew a beard 🙂

 

[DentistRob]

Suit all the way. I don't think of black suits as being too formal either. The beard though. . . hmmm. Never considered that one. My brother attending UNLV swears that his clients take him more seriously when he's got a goat.

 

[Mcglock]

Is there an uspoken rule about wearing a white shirt with a suit? I wore a blue one with a black suit to my interviews last year and from what I can remember I was the only one not wearing a white shirt.

 

[GatorDDS]

no, i had a couple of people wearing blue shirts at my interview yesterday. White shirts just usually symbolize power moreso than blue or other color shirts

 

[wigglytooth]

I'm going to be wearing a purplish shirt or a baby blue shirt with my black suit. I don't think it's a problem, and colors make me happy sooo

 

[Fonz]

Is there an uspoken rule about wearing a white shirt with a suit? I wore a blue one with a black suit to my interviews last year and from what I can remember I was the only one not wearing a white shirt.

Nah I think you're fine. Personally I wouldn't wear a plain white shirt. I like solid colors or a nice striped shirt. I think white is too plain and unimaginative. Those other interviewees probably weren't too fashion savvy.

 

[djeffreyt]

Black suit is fine.

The majority of students wear a black or off-black suit to the interviews. No, future dental students are not exactly who fashionistas would go to to learn about fasion, but we aren't applying to fasion design school.

The fact is that if the majority of students wear a certain type of suit, and 40% of those students get into dental school, then wearing that kind of suit isn't going to HURT your chances of getting into a dental school.

On the other hand, being extravagent or different can set you apart in positive or negative ways. Feel free to risk that if you like, but if you're into safety (and after spending thousands of dollars and years of scholastic work to get to this point, most of you will probably take the safe route rather than the risky route on this final hurdle) then just wear a black suit.

 

[H0pe]

For you girls what are you wearing under your jackets? a colored camisole, a shirt, a button shirt with collars? Ahhh the choices of being a girl.

 

[DentaLizzy]

I toured Columbia when i was in NYC in January, and we were on a tour with interviewees. They had just finished lunch and a casual-seeming group discussion. Most of the girls had taken their jackets off, and from what I remember most had button down collared shirts, some looked pretty stylish, some not so much. Anyway, I guess just make sure it is something you can take the jacket off of if you needed to? Also, I have a suit that has a 3/4-length sleeved jacket. Do you think it is okay for an interview for a girl? 😕

 

[hawaiiguy24]

What would be too formal: double breasted and/or french cuffs.

Do you really think french cuffs are too formal? I just picked up a new shirt to wear with my brown suit (which is double breasted by the way...🙄) but the sleeves were a bit too long. The tailor suggested french cuffs and cuff links and I think it looks pretty sweet... I don't want to come off as some kind of arrogant rich kid though.😳 Rich is definitely not how I would define my parents or myself.