Dressing ‘smart’ for a job interview old fashioned after pre-pandemic relaxed working culture?
By
Stacey Selway

​White Recruitments recent survey, based on the article from PunchL!ne, we asked our audience over on linkedin ‘Would you go suited and booted to a job interview’. We were pleasantly surprised with the results…

Can you be ‘overdressed’ for an interview? 

According to survey results 61% of people would go ‘suited and booted’ to a job interview, chron. believe there is a direct link between dressing to impress and self confidence – it’s about mindset. 

Whether the interviewer believes you to be overdressed or not, it shows that you’re serious about the job interview and made an effort. As well as the impact it has on your mindset, helping you stand tall and interview from a place of confidence, who wouldn’t want to feel like that in an interview? 

Could being ‘underdressed’ for an interview lose me the job? 

Similar to the above statement about making an effort, turning up underdress can leave potential employers with the wrong impression. We feel the best way to overcome this is to dress according to the job. Consider this;

  1. What would you wear if you were successful? What’s the uniform like? – As long as you’re always smarter than what the job uniform requires, then that shows effort. 
  2. Consider what your interviewer may be wearing – ideally you’d want to be on par or ‘smarter’ attire than the person interviewing you. 
  3. What’s practical? – Do you need to have a trial run in your interview, or are you sitting in a meeting room? (You should know this before your interview, if in doubt ask!)
  4. For more ideas on what to wear, The Nest, have plenty of articles to guide you on what and what not to do. 

Survey Results and Comments

Overall, be the smartest dressed person in the room, wear confidence and go in with the correct mindset and you’re on to a winner. Dress to suit the interview and make an effort, this shows the employer you’re serious about the job. Whether that’s a suit or smart trousers and a t-shirt, identify what you’ll wear in the job and what your interviewer may be wearing. Being smart will never go out of fashion.