Skirt or Pants?

[Flora MacDonald]

I vote skirt for an interview suit as well. If you can find pants to match -get both. It's safer to wear a skirt--especially in the south.
Interviews are all about how you perceived as opposed to the way you really are.
I agree with Sk8m8 about considering navy as well.
Black can be intimidating and studies show navy blue is perceived as friendlier.
Of course it all depends on the job, what looks best on you etc etc.
Have we given you enough information to totally confuse you yet?

 

[diver chick]

I went to an all girls school and we had to wear skirt, to be honest it never really bothered me. A friend of mine went to a mixed school where girls had skirts and boys had trousers. When the girls protested that they should be allowed to wear trousers too the school agreed quite readily, much to everyones surprise, that was until they realised that the new rule allowed them to wear only the same uniform trousers as the boys and not their own stylish version.

For most of my interviews I have worn tailored trousers and a smart fitted blouse. I don't wear skirts to interviews as I would fidget too much and that is a big no-no in an interview situation, and I don't buy suits as I do not have occasion to wear them and I begrudge the money for a matching jacket and trousers when I know full well the jacket is just going to hang in the wardrobe while I get great wear out of the trousers.

That being said mot of my interviews have been for summer jobs through college and I am was quite young so would have looked silly in a suit. I would see if you can a three or four piece suit. LaRedoute sometimes has beautiful suits that consist of trousers, a shift dress, a skirt and a jacket and you can usually mix and match colours, trouser styles and skirt lengths.

 

[Ptichka]

One last suggestion...since you don't like either the skirt or the pants, due to your height, it is also a nice change of pace and completly appropriate to wear a nice dress with a jacket. A longer dress length with a shorter jacket can give the appearance of height. Good luck and happy hunting.

Good advice. I'm very short (under 5'), and my "formal" outfit is a dress/jacket set.

 

[Doggygirl]

Hi Longhorn Liz!!

Good luck to you with your upcoming Interviews!! Many valid reasons have been pointed out already for wearing a skirt suit. Here is one more to consider - that this goes back to my years in sales management interviewing candidates for jobs.

Rightly or wrongly, the way you are dressed contributes greatly to the very first impression someone develops. Regardless of the "dress code" of the actual work environment, your appearance at the first interview will leave a first impression (often unconcious to the interviewer) about how serious you are about the job / interview. Dressing conservatively and taking great care about it just says something about how serious you are. You can never go wrong with a conservative decision - and for women, I would say a skirt suit fits that category.

Men never complain about women in skirts (not that I've heard anyway LOL) and women completely understand the whole pantyhose thing. So either way you won't risk anything with a skirt suit attire.

Even when I used to interview internal company candidates for positions, where the candidate was already familiar with the company dress policy, I appreciated candidates who "dressed" for the interview occassion. While it wasn't a big conscious thing on my part, I realized over time that candidates who carefully considered their attire were also carefully considering the job. It was far from a "critical" factor, but sometimes made a difference when things were close.

Hope this helps!!

DG

 

[Piel]

Off topic slightly........back to high school. We could only wear dresses or skirts, no pants or slacks allowed unless you attended an away football game and had to ride the student busses. Home games you had to wear skirts or dresses, even though the weather was freezing.........thanks society. I was so relieved to graduate and attend college, where the gals could wear warm pants to class.

Off topic still. In elementary school for Phys. Ed. class all the girls would have to be lined up in the back of the classroom so that you could do toe touches without the boys looking up your dress, LOL. Sneaking a cartwheel or two on the playground was not so easy either. You had to get as far away from the boys as possible and the girls would form a circle to shield whoever's turn it was.

 

[Longhornliz]

So I went with a skirt suit like most of you suggested, and it has some coordinating pants I can pick up later (like after getting a job perhaps). It's a black silk/wool blend, its very formal so I could get away with wearing a shell instead of a button down. I also bought some sensible pumps and a pair of really nice panty hose (boo panty hose).

I'll update you on how the first "grown up" interview goes tomorrow.

Thanks for the support golden skaters.

 

[PrincessLeppard]

Bah, conformist.

I hope you did well in your interview, though, and let us know what you hear.

 

[Longhornliz]

Ok, so I feel like my interview went very well this morning... but I dont know. I was the first one he interviewed, and I think there were like 3 scheduled right after me. He said that he was very impressed and that I had set the bar very high. But I think he might have said that to whomever was first. What do yall think?

 

[show 42]

Sounds like you "kicked booty". It also sounds like you looked great, but I have a feeling that your "spot on" interview will ultimately get you the job...........42

 

[Doggygirl]

Hi LonghornLiz...

It sounds like you did a great job in your interview!! Keep us posted.

DG

 

[Vash01]

Ok, so I feel like my interview went very well this morning... but I dont know. I was the first one he interviewed, and I think there were like 3 scheduled right after me. He said that he was very impressed and that I had set the bar very high. But I think he might have said that to whomever was first. What do yall think?

Have more confidence in yourself. If he said you set the bar very high, you really did. It does not always translate into a job offer because it depends on the needs of the position. However, I hope you will get an offer.

Congratuations on a great job at the interview!

BTW, it is always better to be overdressed than underdressed. The skirt works for everyone. You made the right decision with your ward robe. First impressions do count, especially at job interviews.

Vash

 

[show 42]

Unfortunately Vash, I think you're right. But it doesn't say much about the progress women have made when their "first impression" has to do with how much leg is showing..........42

 

[Vash01]

Show42,

The first impression rule applies to both men and women. There are dress codes for men too. The skirt-suit has nothing to do with how much of a leg is showing. In fact I would not wear a very short skirt to a job interview. That would create a negative impression. Dressing conservative works well in all situations, for everyone, men and women.

I am grasping at straws here, but my feeling is that not all women look smart or elegant in a pants suit. The skirt suit makes almost everyone look very good (again, in the job interview arena).

Vash

 

[show 42]

I think men and women should dress to "suit" (no pun intended) their proportions. Some women look downright "dumpy" in skirts. I should know because I am one of them. I am very short-waisted, and wearing pants and matching jacket gives me a longer line from the shoulders to the ankles. As for men, some look very uncomfortable wearing ties, constantly tugging at them or pulling on them as the case may be. I frequently am on the interview committee at my school when we have a new teaching position. I have seen some stuff themselves into styles of clothing that do not fit their body types. They didn't make a good physical impression, but their qualifications thankfully shown through.

I realize that society still dictates certain dress codes for job interviews. Unless one wears a skirt that reaches the ankles, the leg will show, infortunately. I understand buckling under to certain dictates..........I'm just sorry we still have to..............42

 

[Vash01]

We have to do a lot of things we dislike in life. Going to work is one of them for many of us. I would just take it with a grain of salt. Afterall it is for one day, not for life time. If it's a job that would require you to wear a skirt suit everyday you should not take it but for a day I can handle many unpleasant things.

Vash

 

[Longhornliz]

Its a consulting/sales position... so most likely the dress will be formal most of the time. I can handle wearing a suit, I kinda felt good about myself in it. I even enjoyed wearing hose (I only had to wear them for about 3 hours... so perhaps they hadnt had the opportunity to become truely wretched yet). Oh by the way I was way more dressed up than the person conducting the interview; he was wearing jeans, cowboy boots a plaid button down and a navy sports jacket. He also kept calling me Mrs. I finaly told him I wasnt married and he looked surprised. I hope that he thought I was older than I am, I'm not sure they want to give a 22 year old a laptop and a car.

 

[sk8m8]

LIz,

You may have "fallen" for one of the older tricks in interviewer's arsonal. It's illegal to ask someomes marital status in an interview. However, by having you "correct" him, he learned that you were single without directly asking. I can't say for sure on that, but in professional development class, we were told to watch out for questions such as these. No matter though. From my own personal experience, these interviewers rarely put out comments like "you set the bar high" if they don't mean it. Since most of them play it very close to the vest and say things like "you have a great skill set" if they wish to compliment you, I'd take it as a good sign. I hope it works out if it's meant to be. You sound as if you'd be a "good catch" for any employer. Good luck :agree:

 

[Johar]

Is it illegal for a company to ask for a photo prior to a job interview? The company doesn't involve modeling, sales or one-on-one client/customer interaction.

 

[Vash01]

Its a consulting/sales position... so most likely the dress will be formal most of the time. I can handle wearing a suit, I kinda felt good about myself in it. I even enjoyed wearing hose (I only had to wear them for about 3 hours... so perhaps they hadnt had the opportunity to become truely wretched yet). Oh by the way I was way more dressed up than the person conducting the interview; he was wearing jeans, cowboy boots a plaid button down and a navy sports jacket. He also kept calling me Mrs. I finaly told him I wasnt married and he looked surprised. I hope that he thought I was older than I am, I'm not sure they want to give a 22 year old a laptop and a car.

I am very surprised that he called you Mrs. In every interview I have been to, and conducted myself, both sides used first names. At least in the technical fields that I have been in, people use first names all the way to the CEO. I think in the legal field and may be in the medical field they might use Mr./Ms., etc.

As an engineer I had to wear pants for many years and I longed to wear dresses or skirts. When I got out of the wafer fab environment, I was happy to dress up from time to time. I would look forward to the opportunity to wear a skirt suit, even with a panty hose. Actually here in Arizona many women wear skirts or dresses without the panty hoses (not to job interviews, of course).

If your job involves a lot of travel, pant suits may be more comfortable but it depends on the situation, environment, what level people you are interfacing with.

It is not unusual for a 22 year old to have a laptop and a car on the job. Many new college graduates have jobs that require travel and they get all these and more perks.

Vash