Interview Dress for Men

[Graphic: Interview Dress for Men]
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Jonathan Uitto
College Student] / I just want to come in here and get a sense of what clothing is appropriate
for the interview situation.
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James Francis
College Student] / I’ve been having this lifestyle of wearing relaxed clothing for a long time now and it’s going to require a change… and I’m not sure which direction to go in.
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Joe Rullo
Regional Manager of Joseph. A. Bank] / Good morning and welcome to Joseph A Bank. I’m Joe.
(Jonathan) / But obviously going into a work setting now, we have to change our mind set and dress the part.
(James) / I have an interview coming up …not sure what I should wear and what’s appropriate.
(Joe) / You always hear that there’s never a second chance to make a first impression and that starts with the second that you walk in the door. From head to toe, the person interviewing you is going to check you out, how you’re dressed and make sure that you fit the image that this person wants for his or her company.
(Joe) / A lot of guys think that they need black for an interview… and I’m going to lead you in different direction. What you should wear for a job interview which is typically charcoal and navy.
(Joe) / Blue pinstripe, gray pinstripe, blue solid, gray solid, 2 or 3 button, you can do plain front slacks, you can do pleated slacks, whatever your preference is. But the most important thing to remember is …it needs to be tailored
correctly. I don’t care what the suit looks like if it isn’t tailored correctly, it just doesn’t look good.
(Joe) / I think a lot of people take advice of Mom, or their girlfriend or a friend of theirs who told them what to wear… and that’s not always the best place to get the information. You can call the human resources dept. of the company that you’re interviewing with, you can check on the web, check on different sites about how to dress appropriately for a job interview.
(Joe) / Now I’m putting a black shoe on you which is appropriate for the gray suit that you’re wearing. You always have to remember that your shoes match your belt and your socks match your pants.
(Joe) / If you wear them too low, it’s going to look sloppy so you’re going to wear your dress pants right at your natural waist which is right below your belly button.
(Joe) / Your pant length is a very important part of your suit fitting. You don’t want your pants to be too long because that will look unfinished, untailored.
(Joe) / Make sure your jacket is balanced--- And this is a 2 button jacket so you button just the top button… you never button the bottom button.
(James)
(Joe) / Yeah, it feels nice up here.
Yeah it fits you well.
(Joe) / Now as far as color is concerned, you’re OK with white for a first interview, also with light blue. Those are the only 2 colors that I would recommend for a first interview.
(Joe) / When it comes to neck wear for a job interview, you want to stay conservative and you want to stay small. You don’t want to get anything with too big of a pattern or too bright of a color.
(Joe) / A stripe is always appropriate either in burgundy, red or gold.
(Joe) / Now there’s some tie colors that you don’t want to wear to a job interview. Like for example, your Dad’s pink sailboat tie. It’s a little too flashy. The same thing with some fashion forward colors like fuschia and dark olive.
(Joe) / You want to be confident and the biggest part of confidence is to know that everything fits you properly…. That you have the answers to the questions that people are going to ask, that you have researched the company. So all of these things go into being ready for an interview.
(Joe talking to James & Jonathan) / Why don’t you go put them on with your suits and we’ll get a look at your whole outfit.
(Joe) / Hey, you guys look good. Let’s get your jackets on you.
(James) / I definitely feel more confident. This is a great step going forward. I really understand how to look presentable in the interview world and in the daily job world.
(Jonathan) / Going into a job interview now, my mind’s not worried about my suit, my dress… now I can actually worry about why I might actually be hired for that job.
(Joe) / OK, guys your set Good luck on your interviews. You looked great.
(Joe) / At the end of the day it’s about getting the job… that’s the bottom line to all of this. None of this matters if you don’t get the job and being prepared is the most important thing.
(James) / Today walking out of the store…
I feel like I am able to navigate the world of appropriate dress much, much better.
(Jonathan) / Today’s experience was great. Coming in here in the morning and being overwhelming and now being confident in my dress is a good feeling.