Interview – Suit or not

It’s not just ticking a box though anyway. Not wearing one conveys all sorts of messages about unwillingness to fit in, not being prepared to put in that bit extra, etc.

A nice suit can be had for £100 from M&S, it’ll fit well and look good. Dress up, polish your shoes, wear long black socks and ensure clean nails.

If they wanted to see your Panama shorts and t-tank top they would’ve asked.

You can easily dress down, it’s less easy to dress up. Is something my Gran used to say, I guess meaning if you arrive for a job interview without having researched the dress code of the organisation, then you can easily take off your jacket and tie, but if you’re not wearing them, then you can’t ‘magic’ them from somewhere. I’ve rarely worn a proper ‘suit’ for an interview, but then I’m female and it’s easier for us to do ‘smart’ without necessarily wearing a full on matching jacket and skirt/trs.

I dont think it conveys those messages at all. We can all give examples of suit wearers who are not team players and pony tailed “wacky” types who are.

I dont necessarily think it should be necessary to wear a suit for an interview but I think you are mad not to as in reality if you are in a position senior enough to make recruitment decisions you are likely to be older and probably consevative.

For the position you’re applying for I’m surprised you have to ask.

Suit 100%.

A future employer will be looking at you and thinking, hmmm he’s not bothered wearing a suit for this, what will he wear to turn up on a customer site.

If it was a job where I’d be required to wear a suit to work, I’d wear one for the interview. I’d probably not apply for that job, however.

I’m very lucky to have a job where I can wear whatever I like. Some people wear suits, others jeans and T-shirts, and most somewhere in between. There is no correlation between dress and ability to do the job.

…you’d probably end up wearing the cup of tea

Nothing’s gonna change my love for you
You ought know by now how much I love you
One thing you can be sure of
I’ll never ask for more than your love…

(Goes off to practice smoochy dance moves, ready for Saturday…)

Maybe their is no correlation between the two but you are missing the point I fear.

Maybe their is no correlation between the two but you are missing the point I fear.

It was a comment on suits in general, rather than the specific issue of suits in interviews.

since when has a thread ever gone the way it’s meant to!

oh and rudeboy – that is just not going to happen (email in profile to take this discussion elsewhere :wink:)

Aw, go on! You’ll enjoy it, once you get going.

Got any spare computer mouses at your work? Pinch one for me; I keep smashing them up. 4 gone, recently.

Oh, and a plug-in phone would be useful, too. They don’t last long with me, either.

Ta. XX

A nice suit can be had for £100 from M&S

Really? I bought one for £200 in the sale there the other day and only just regard this as an acceptable suit for work (I’m skint, the others are getting wrecked). I shudder to think just how gash a £19 suit is.

Oh, and since you’re now going to have to buy a suit, unless you’re spending lots, then DO NOT BUY BLACK. You’ll look like you’re about to take the central role in court. Navy blue is always the safest bet.

As for other sartorial tips:

*light coloured shirt – white is safest (long sleeved always, top button done up)
*black shoes (leather, polished)
*no “wacky” ties
*tie knot smaller than a baby’s fist
*tie “point” to reach top of belt

Do all that and you’ll probably look smarter than the person interviewing you.

like i’d get sacked for you over a flaming mouse! 😆

I’ve only ever had 3 interviews and never wore a suit to any off them just went dressed smart, trousers, shirt,shoes. though none of them were an office based job. I got the jobs on each occasion.

Ourmaninthenorth
I bought one for £200 in the sale there the other day and only just regard this as an acceptable suit for work (I’m skint, the others are getting wrecked). I shudder to think just how gash a £19 suit is

Agreed on:
1. I’m Skint (current suit out of date, last changed jobs 3 years ago)
2. £19 suit must be a pile
3. £200 seems a reasonable amoutn to pay

Additionally:
4. Anything I spend on a suit comes out of the “New Carbon MTB Fund”
5. I’m glad your not interviewing me, all this talk of babies fists and “point”s reaching tops of belts.

I had decided a suit was the way forward after debating it amongst some chums, but their reaction was kind of like this thread (but with more abuse aimed at me), which is why I thought I’d see what peoples expectations were on here.

Scary thing is I’ve been out out pricing up the cloth today and already calculated the downgrades I will have to make to the new bike for each £50 increment in suit cost, either that or I sacrifice the Haglofs Oz/Ozone until next winter.

I wore a suit to an interview that included a physical assessment and a driving assesment. Imagine 20 mins on the running machine in suit and tie, followed by an hour driving an ambulance!

However, I also wore my “interview trainers” once and didn’t get the job. Wear a suit, the ladies love it!

I would always wear a suit, to my mind it shows that you respect the importance of the meeting. In day-to-day work I wear a suit without a tie, but I would interview with the full lot (with a suit preferably in a classic cut – a cheap suit with double vents always looks far better than a same priced suit with only one or no vent at the back).

As someone else has said, when you get there if things are going well you could always take your tie off. Get a shirt though that looks classic without a tie, and not like it was one of your school shirts. Polish your shoes too.

It doesn’t matter what the dress code of the firm is, in interview being well dressed is an indication of your attention to detail.

IT ?, go in your jimjams,

I actually picked up a new suit from Jermyn Street the other day, as it happens. Semi-bespoke (Off the peg then tweaked) for about £300. Excellent value.

Saw a bunch of interview candidates at the fairly laid back place where I work. All 4 had turned up in suits of a totally identical light grey. All the shirts and accessories were nearly identical too. I was not involved in the interviewing, but I have to say thier lack of individuality and personality put me right off the bunch of them. They were scary to look at, bit like a male version of the Stepford Wives.

Always a suit for interviews. I own a 1950’s demob suit which I use. Its smart, far better made than any suit I could afford and gives a slight individual quirk without upsetting the dress code. Navy blue /black pinstripe Thin lapels, single button no vent. Worn with white shirt and thin neutral tie. Black shoes.

You don’t have to be a clone to fit in.

Anyone being interviewed for a position of responsibility wouldn’t take the views of the STW collective into account on dress, decorum, tie size, route, underwear, shoes, helmet, lights, grips or facial hair.

Thats just scientific common sense.

if you are in a position senior enough to make recruitment decisions you are likely to be older and probably consevative

Depends where you work, I suppose. The top guy at our place is 40. He was 39 when I was last interviwed by him, for an internal post (four of us were interviewed, none in suits).

First impressions play a big part in how someone responds to you and if you don’t create a first good impression it can be difficult to make up for it.

They’re generally not going to decide who to employ based on who wore a suit and who didn’t, but they probably will take small elements into account if they need to quickly whittle down a big list of candidates. I’ve even seen managers in McDonald’s tear up application forms straight away just because they were folded in 4!

There’s 27000 Woolworths staff just out of work and countless other layoffs around the country so you can bet they’ve had a lot of applications.

I have done some interviewing. Never give a job to anyone wearing white socks or loafers – or grey shoes. Or even brown shoes in town. A suit shows you are trying. I did give a job to a chap in a 70s brown suit – partly because he was showing he was trying ( homeless chap trying to get his life together.

I’ve even seen managers in McDonald’s tear up application forms straight away just because they were folded in 4!

We once had over 200 applicants for 3 positions
We really weren’t expecting anything like that number

In the end we randomly chose 30 CVs & binned the rest – sight unseen

I wore a brown pinstripe suit with a checked blue shirt and yellow tie for my job interview in IT Sales and got the job.

Agency, said make sure you wear a black suit and white shirt… Not a chance!

I wore a brown pinstripe suit with a checked blue shirt and yellow tie

A wide brimmed purple felt hat & it would have completed the ‘Huggy Bear on a night out’ look

Semi-bespoke (Off the peg then tweaked)

You mean tailored, Flash.

Agency said make sure you wear a black suit and white shirt…

Quite. Like i said up there^^^, only if you want to look like you’re doing your best not to get sent down for GBH….

If you can stand a suit I think you should. Look at most of the comment above, people still think you will need a suit. However if like me you just don’t stand wearing one dont, smart trousers and shoes, nice wooly jumper and a shirt will do just fine.

Just been 2 days in York (lovely city btw) for what is the best UK meeting of specialists in my field, and the only 3 people were wearing a suit 2 of them were actually from the state

I am lucky I will be hired from my CV rather than just for my wardrobe.

I’d expect people to turn up looking quite smart, but wouldn’t demand a suit.
But impressing at an interview is a layered thing anyway, it’s the sum of a number of parts and if wearing a suit is going to give you a little bit extra, why not wear one?

Not wearing one to make a point is certainly going to lose you the job.

Personally I’ll always wear a suit to an interview, it can only help me and costs me nothing (assuming I already own a suit). So what if one person doing the interview is the type of person who is impressed by a suit, I’m not getting the job for his benefit, it’s for mine.

We once had over 200 applicants for 3 positions
We really weren’t expecting anything like that number

In the end we randomly chose 30 CVs & binned the rest – sight unseen

yeah, that’s quite an interesting point. What you’ve done there is chosen, and presumably employed, a lucky person.

As it happened they put a stop on recruitment before it got to interview selection
We simply didn’t have the resource to process 200+ CVs so it was a good idea as any to reduce the number

I wasn’t knocking it, choosing an individual at random rather than on merit is arguably beneficial. A lucky employee can often be just as if not more useful than a good one.

Unless of course he spends all his time in the store room getting head off all the good looking girls in the company.

15+ years in recruitment, I would be gutted if any candidate didn’t turn up to an interview in a suit. It is an absolute pre-requisite. And apologies and with the greatest respect to anyone who thinks otherwise, but “I wouldn’t work for a company that wouldn’t hire me for not wearing a suit” utter bollocks. Sure some companies won’t care and you will be over-dressed, but never, ever under-dress for an interview, it will get you nothing unless you are very lucky.

Nuff said, go buy something nice, you’ll need it for funerals and weddings !

Unless of course he spends all his time in the store room getting head off all the good looking girls in the company.

In which case, he would indeed be a very lucky man!

go buy something nice, you’ll need it for funerals and weddings

I don’t wear a suit for those either 🙂