Interview dress etiquette

S

spottypenguin

Active Member
Hi people

I know we've had a thread about this in the past but every scenario is different so a new one it is.

I have an interview on Thuirsday for a design position, essentially all in house graphic design but also traditional skills (hand illustrating gift cards, hand painted wrapping paper etc.). OK that's all good. The thing is this: the lass who is the Senior Designer is apparently the same age as me but this is only her first design role; she re-trained late and only got into this game 6years ago. I don't personally know her but one of my mate's in the trade does. I'm not being at all arrogant but I know for a fact I am more qualified and experienced than her.

So my question is do I go in booted & suited / shirt n tie & trousers / smartish combats and shirt? I just don't know. On the one hand I don't want to go in looking super professional for her to think "shit he'll want my job" then again I am your archetypical arty type (long har, beard, tattoos) and I don't want to look tooooo laid back.

I guess it's just a while since I had an interview of this kind and all my last in-house roles I was head hunted and sort of pypassed the akward "first interview" stage.

Cheers very much for any advice / opinions :icon_thumbup:
 
For me always shoes, shirt & tie, anything else and it's as though you haven't bothered and hence not serious about the position, make the effort.
 
I just think better to be over dressed and made an effort than under dressed and look like you can't be arsed. Good luck.
 
I think smart shirt, trousers and shoes should be fine, definitely not anything casual, especially with the "arty" type look - I have the same look, it takes a lot of scrubbing to get me looking smart haha!
 
Agree with the others. Smart (pref a suit) and then ask about dress code and pick up the vibe from the office when you get there. You are going to feel more of a dick turning up in combats and seeing everyone else in shirt and tie than the other way round :icon_biggrin:

Good luck with the interview.
 
Cheers for that guys. Suit it is then!!

They apparently test you in Indesign and Photosop when you're there. They just sent an email outlining the test (they don't want to scare us lol) and it is changing a jpeg to tiff in Photoshop and doing a spell check in Indesign - I think I should be OK lol
 
spottypenguin said:
They apparently test you in Indesign and Photosop when you're there. They just sent an email outlining the test (they don't want to scare us lol) and it is changing a jpeg to tiff in Photoshop and doing a spell check in Indesign - I think I should be OK lol
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I think even I could handle that!
 
Have you met any of the people you could be working with before or have you been to the place before?

When I went for my first interview, they called me beforehand to confirm a date and time. They told me specifically not to turn up in a suit, because I'd look like a knob (those were the exact words) but to dress how I would normally dress.
 
No not been there yet but my mate who knows the senior designer girl says she is pretty casual in her dress but I'll wear a suit to be safe!
 
ARRIVALS said:
They told me specifically not to turn up in a suit, because I'd look like a knob (those were the exact words)
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HA!

If I ever start my own studio I'm planning on having a "No ties past this point" sign up at the entrance :icon_biggrin:
 
Paul Murray said:
HA!

If I ever start my own studio I'm planning on having a "No ties past this point" sign up at the entrance :icon_biggrin:
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I went to an interview in a suit once and the creative director spent the whole interview taking the p*ss out of me for it. I got the job though!
 
djb said:
I went to an interview in a suit once and the creative director spent the whole interview taking the p*ss out of me for it. I got the job though!
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Yep and that was pretty much my quandry. Most creative job interviews I have been too, they have taken the piss when I have worn a suit. But hey ho I shall be a god lad and wear one.
 
spottypenguin said:
Yep and that was pretty much my quandry. Most creative job interviews I have been too, they have taken the piss when I have worn a suit. But hey ho I shall be a god lad and wear one.
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Maybe that's part of the interview process, if you can handle getting the piss taken out of you then you get a tick on that box :icon_biggrin:
 
Wear a suit: it's a basic convention, everyone's aware of it and everyone knows why you do it. You will be interviewed from time to time by people who show up in their scruffs and either a) sneer, or b) take the piss, but then design's full of people who think that working in a creative field basically makes them a rock star.
 
Dave L said:
Wear a suit: it's a basic convention, everyone's aware of it and everyone knows why you do it. You will be interviewed from time to time by people who show up in their scruffs and either a) sneer, or b) take the piss, but then design's full of people who think that working in a creative field basically makes them a rock star.
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Think? Think? I am :icon_thumbup: :icon_tongue_smilie:
 
I've always gone to design interviews in casuals. My interviewers have always been in casuals too. My last interview ended up in a drinking session. You guys are losing out!

Don't get me wrong, I love wearing a suit, and if I wore one to an interview and my interviewer didn't, I wouldn't be the least bit offended. I've always loved the fact that those meaningless corporate traditions don't exist in the creative industry. Save the suits for those ritzy nights out!
 
Cvs not addressed to me personally, with spelling mistakes and/or lack of imagination went straight into the bin.

If they didn't know what my company did, they'd pretty much had it after the first question.

When I interviewed people I'd look at two things - shoes and watch.

Lots of people would be smart but not polish their shoes, shows they don't pay attention to detail and a digital watch - well say no more!
 
PS For my first interview, I turned up in three piece tweed suit on boiling hot day and walked in to find my interviewer to be, dancing the hornpipe on his desk, wearing tee shirt, rolled up jeans and bare footed - It just made me decide that it was probably somewhere I didn't want to work.
 
I always turn up in something that reflects my personality and the style of my CV and cover letters, they're quiet quirky.
So I figure that anyone who is interested in interviewing me will not expect me to turn up looking 'corporate'.
Attention to detail is a must, good shoes and nice nails things like that.
I always wear something weird or bright at the moment this is electric blue shoes, patterned pencil skirts and day of the dead jewelry and in the summer it was the brightest orange trousers I could find.
I have never arrived at a creative industry interview to find the interviewer in a corporate stlye suit, even when I went to a interview with the met police, the marketing woman was dressed really smart but creative and the art director was wearing casuals.

I dont think I will ever dress in something that isnt me and I wouldn't want to keep up a pretence about being something I'm not. :)
 
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