Interview Style

I know in my last post I said I would be making my next post about leaving home, but I just had a callback interview this morning, so I figured a post about proper interview attire would be more appropriate! 

In my ten months out of school and on the job market, I have been fortunate enough to have been invited on six interviews.  With the job market the way it is for teachers, I consider this to be fairly lucky.  During most of those interviews I have been able to see my peers before or after their interviews, and thus been able to observe what today's educators seem to be wearing on interviews.  I'm sad to say that I can only remember one or two of those job candidates wearing an actual suit.  One woman I encountered wore a flared dress that hit her at thigh level.  Another woman at another location was wearing dress pants about six inches too long covering open-toed sandals.  I've even seen several men without ties, just a dress shirt and chinos.  Since when has such casual attire been okay for an interview?  Especially in the field of education, where teachers often struggle to be considered a professional.

So why aren't young educators, and maybe other young professionals too, wearing suits?  In my opinion, it's essential to wear one to an interview unless you are specifically told not to.  Obviously what you're wearing won't get you the job, but it will help and will make your first impression better.  You have to look the part, especially if you're young.