What to Wear to a Job Interview?

Posted by Zoe Bartholomeusz

Oh my goodness, I got a grad job interview! Whatever am I going to wear?

If you’re like me and you’re graduating at the end of this year with no corporate/office experience whatsoever, you might be stressed about everything relating to job interviews. And with good reason! It’s daunting to put yourself out there in the Big Wide World where everyone seems to know what they’re doing. Of course, you’re not expected to know everything straight away, but it is important to employers that you believe in yourself.
 
One seemingly unrelated but incredibly powerful way you can boost your self-confidence is with what you choose to wear. People always say, “dress to impress”, implying that you are supposed to impress others with your chic eleganza extravaganza et cetera. But what if we reframe this as dressing to impress yourself? That is: dressing to best represent a professional version of yourself that is still fundamentally you. Here are some tips on how you can get started.

1. Research: see if you can ascertain the company’s dress code – this may be somewhere in your onboarding materials, and if not, you can use the interview as a trial for how formal or casual you can be!

2. Inspiration: rather than immediately hitting the shops for some inspiration, go to your wardrobe and have a thorough look through all your things. You might find something you forgot you had, or something you can dress up into a corporate fit.

3. Identify gaps: figure out what else you need to build an outfit on what’s already in your wardrobe.

4. Don’t forget the shoes! Maybe check in on your shoe collection too.

5. Shop with intention: buy only what you need to fill those gaps. If you’re on a budget, hit up Target, Kmart, or some op shops! I’ve purchased all my favourite shirts second-hand – op shops are real treasure troves once you have a goal! And don’t be afraid to invest in a good pair of nice-looking, comfortable shoes to tie it all together.

Now that you have your clothes: congratulations, you’ve done the hard bit! Make sure you try your outfit on (a couple of times) before you have to get dressed on the big day. You’ll probably want to make some last-minute changes, but try to trust the judgement of your more clear-headed self when you weren’t stressed about the imminent interview!
 
Feeling comfortable and confident in your clothes is integral to your mood, which in turn affects the impressions you’ll make on your future employers.
 
Go be yourself, you wonderful human! You’ve got this!


About The Author

Zoe is a recent graduate from Monash University. She has a double degree in arts, majoring in linguistics, and music, specialising in composition. Zoe was one of the 2023 editors of Lot’s Wife, the student magazine of Monash University Clayton campus. She has worked in retail for nearly 7 years, and plays violin and viola in community musical theatre shows. She loves reading, writing, making music, and putting together elaborate costumes for theme parties.


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