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Interview Attire Questions!


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I KNOW I'm being way too in-depth about stressing over what to wear, but I just don't want to give off a bad impression with my attire. 

I'm planning on wearing a charcoal gray pantsuit, black heels with a black belt. I have a navy pattern blouse and a black pattern blouse that I think are fine and will be worn tucked in, but my question is, for one school I bought a light blue red floral blouse. I think it looks nice but my fiance thinks it's not "professional" enough. This particular school's color is red so I was sort of looking for a way to stand out but still fit in, you know? Please let me know if I should pass it up and just do black or navy. Here's the blouse:

125632206_ScreenShot2018-07-26at11_49_26AM.png.b766f06ed31bb4744e7af11a52c1d223.png

Also, more nit-picky questions. Is wearing your hair down with one side braided acceptable? Some people have told me up is the way to go, but I look awful with my hair up. 

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I wore my hair down and I think that's fine, but I wouldn't put a braid in it. I had a few pieces pinned back around my face so it didn't hang in my face. But, I have a short forehead so that's a problem for me. 

As for the blouse, I think it's fine with a blazer. I'm personally not crazy about navy with black, but without seeing it altogether I can't say what I might think. But, if you like how it coordinates, I think the blouse is plenty professional with a jacket. I wore a conservative pink sleeveless and collarless top under my jacket. (Got accepted.) 

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1 hour ago, DarcyJ said:

I wore my hair down and I think that's fine, but I wouldn't put a braid in it. I had a few pieces pinned back around my face so it didn't hang in my face. But, I have a short forehead so that's a problem for me. 

As for the blouse, I think it's fine with a blazer. I'm personally not crazy about navy with black, but without seeing it altogether I can't say what I might think. But, if you like how it coordinates, I think the blouse is plenty professional with a jacket. I wore a conservative pink sleeveless and collarless top under my jacket. (Got accepted.) 

My suit is gray, so it would be gray and navy. I just have a black belt and heels because there was really no other options for those other than brown, and I couldn't find brown heels. But thanks for the input on the blouse! I agree that I think it'll be fine, but just wanted to make sure there was no unspoken rule about florals or anything. And by braid I mean I braid the pieces that were once bangs but are just long now and pin it back. Trying to find a picture online is hard but a more tidied version of this:

 16e79dafc0b311872979d66d036893a0--boho-braid-fringe-braid.jpg.87c218595920d41a717ca5aa6aeadf21.jpg 

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OK I can see what you mean now. I was picturing a side part with the smaller side French braided back (just a little too pop culture for an interview IMO).

I think that would probably be fine, though.

Best of luck!

Sent from my SM-G950U using Tapatalk

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21 minutes ago, DarcyJ said:

OK I can see what you mean now. I was picturing a side part with the smaller side French braided back (just a little too pop culture for an interview IMO).

I think that would probably be fine, though.

Best of luck!

Sent from my SM-G950U using Tapatalk
 

Ahhhhh, yes! How people do it tight and around to the back of their head to make it look shaved I guess? No no, just the larger parted side where my bangs once were. I just find my hair falls into my face sometimes (not as bad as when I had bangs but that phase has ended for me) and I hate tucking behind my ears ( also have a daith piercing that, while not inappropriate, just a silver bar, I don't want to put on display just in case). I heard it's distracting to to interviewer when you keep fiddling with hair getting in you face so I figure I'll just do that because I'll be less likely to touch it. Thank you for your input! I really appreciate it! 

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I have been to three PA interviews (and was accepted at one!) and used to interview prospective students at my undergraduate institution. I would say my number one rule is to wear something you feel comfortable and confident in. As an interviewer, I hated watching student tug at their clothing, look generally uncomfortable/awkward in their clothing, or fidget with their hair repeatedly. When I interview I wear a professional patterned blouse and suit that makes me feel like a boss! I wear my hair down, but that's how I normally wear it. If you hate your hair up, don't do that. Unless you love your heels I would advise you to wear comfortable shoes since most interviews include a tour.

I think the floral blouse is plenty professional if worn with a suit. Wear what makes you feel your best! Best of luck to you!

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2 hours ago, panglossian said:

I have been to three PA interviews (and was accepted at one!) and used to interview prospective students at my undergraduate institution. I would say my number one rule is to wear something you feel comfortable and confident in. As an interviewer, I hated watching student tug at their clothing, look generally uncomfortable/awkward in their clothing, or fidget with their hair repeatedly. When I interview I wear a professional patterned blouse and suit that makes me feel like a boss! I wear my hair down, but that's how I normally wear it. If you hate your hair up, don't do that. Unless you love your heels I would advise you to wear comfortable shoes since most interviews include a tour.

I think the floral blouse is plenty professional if worn with a suit. Wear what makes you feel your best! Best of luck to you!

Thank you so much! I think I'm just really over-thinking all of this. My suit is professional, I love it and I know it's going to look great once I get it pressed. I went charcoal because I didn't want to blend into a sea of black while staying a traditional color. I think once I put it all on together I'll feel more confident seeing the entire ensemble. 

My biggest concern was really the blouse. I'm glad to hear having hair down isn't a big deal, I feel like it once was! I always keep my hair down so I'll do that for the interview, I know I'll feel more confident. And regarding the shoes, they're an inch and a quarter heel and I've never really had any problem wearing heels for long periods of time (thank you Alpha Chi Sigma for that one... being master of ceremonies meant I spent a LOT of time in full professional dress running around making sure events ran smoothly). The blouse I just wanted to be sure wouldn't be frowned upon. I think some sort of pattern looks better but who knows, I know nothing about the true professional world! It was part of my position to hound people about professional attire in my fraternity as an undergrad and here I am second-guessing myself! Thank you both for making me feel better! 

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I know this isn't probably what you want to hear, but your attire is probably the least important part of the interview process. Unless you wear something entirely unprofessional (tank top and flip flops), they won't think twice about what you wore. They are much more interested in your merit, what would make you a good PA, etc. I'm a PA student and there was a girl in my program who was 30 min late to the interview. And she was still accepted. I promise you it doesn't matter as much as you think it does. Focus on preparing for interview questions

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