Sexism or Pack of Professionalism?

[FL_grad_student]

I can't see the sexism.

Before my first professional job interview after college, I spent hours googling acceptable interview clothing for my industry. I went shopping specifically for a new blazer. I wore a pencil skirt, nylons (despite that probably being unnecessary in Florida) and heels. My current position is incredibly casual despite being in corporate finance, and I still wore a suit to the interview. You don't need a counselor or an advisor to do research on your own.

And if you're offered a last minute interview you can't make it to, offer to meet at a different time to ensure you're not late. If it's a new area, leave early - way early. Better to sit in your car waiting for 20 minutes than be late.

Unless you grew up under a rock, do not have web access, learned everything you know via osmosis, and have literally never been outside around other humans ever, there is no excuse for blaming legitimately poor presentation on anyone but yourself.

[Nanners52674]

Originally Posted by FL_grad_student

And if you're offered a last minute interview you can't make it to, offer to meet at a different time to ensure you're not late. If it's a new area, leave early - way early. Better to sit in your car waiting for 20 minutes than be late.

My daddy always said the "if you're early you're on time, if you're on time you're late, if you're late don't bother showing up." It's served me well. Plus with something stressful like an interview it's always nice to have time to collect yourself once you get to your destination. Bathroom, check your clothes etc...

[sugar and spice]

Programming is a weird field because the typical interview dress code is assumed to be business casual or even casual. Suits aren't really done in most parts of the field, even for interviews. It isn't uncommon to find places who'll cut a candidate for dressing too formally because they assume it means she'll be too straight-laced to work for them. (Which is hella stupid, but whatever.) So yeah, for a normal job interview, this outfit would have been far too casual—in tech . . . eh. It depends on the company. I know of plenty of companies where that would have been fine as an interview outfit (and others where it wouldn't). She gambled and lost. It happens.

Cutting an otherwise stellar candidate because they had a run in their stockings is idiotic—I guess maybe if it was a male interviewer/an all-male office, they might not know that if you put them on in the morning you've got a 50/50 chance of having a run in them by the end of the day? But I suspect that her lateness was the biggest issue—either she didn't actually warn them that she was going to be late, that message was not noted/passed on from whomever she did tell, or when she told them that she was going to be “a few minutes” late, they assumed 5, not 20.

[tcsparky]

Originally Posted by sugar and spice

Or when she told them that she was going to be “a few minutes” late, they assumed 5, not 20.

This.

If they had allotted an hour for her interview, and lined up another one for five, then she missed half of the interview time. This could have made them feel that they had wasted the hour, because if they had it down to a routine that took an hour, they had to cut parts of it due to her lateness, and therefore would not have been able to consider her due to lack of information from the interview.

I work with teachers, and our beginning teachers, fresh out of university, often have the same issues with clothing and timelines. I try to gently make "suggestions" but not criticize their clothing, because it's such as personal issue. The wild wigs, strange hair colors and odd-fitting clothing can make them look less than professional, but they see it as " showing their personality." By the end of year three, they tend to be blending more with the rest of the staff.

[Munchkin03]

Originally Posted by sugar and spice

Programming is a weird field because the typical interview dress code is assumed to be business casual or even casual. Suits aren't really done in most parts of the field, even for interviews. It isn't uncommon to find places who'll cut a candidate for dressing too formally because they assume it means she'll be too straight-laced to work for them. (Which is hella stupid, but whatever.) So yeah, for a normal job interview, this outfit would have been far too casual—in tech . . . eh. It depends on the company. I know of plenty of companies where that would have been fine as an interview outfit (and others where it wouldn't). She gambled and lost. It happens.

Cutting an otherwise stellar candidate because they had a run in their stockings is idiotic—I guess maybe if it was a male interviewer/an all-male office, they might not know that if you put them on in the morning you've got a 50/50 chance of having a run in them by the end of the day? But I suspect that her lateness was the biggest issue—either she didn't actually warn them that she was going to be late, that message was not noted/passed on from whomever she did tell, or when she told them that she was going to be “a few minutes” late, they assumed 5, not 20.

Yeah, she totally gambled. When my partner interviewed at the company he's at now, which is in the tech field, the recruiter was very clear NOT TO WEAR A SUIT AND TIE to this interview (that was one of the companies where someone wearing that would be considered a "bad fit"). If this was one of those jobs, then the recruiter may have told her. That said, her outfit was kind of eh for architecture and design, too. If someone came dressed like how she was, I wouldn't count it against her.

What I WOULD hold against her, however, was being late. And that's what the issue more than likely was. She learned a painful lesson--made more painful by the fact that when you Google her, this is what will come up.

[PSKsilver]

You would hope she would learn from this, but....

http://oberlinreview.org/8024/opinio...onal/#comments

Nope.

Listen here miss entitled, t-shirts aren't interview appropriate. Bright colors aren't interview appropriate. Heavy makeup isn't interview appropriate.Being late...oh, you best believe that isn't appropriate.

"They would have hired me based on my personality" bull. Her Facebook rant and ability to just ignore people who disagree tell me otherwise. I hope that these "potential employers" hire her for her ability and not because of this fantasy fight against sexism.

[honeychile]

Agreed.

Baby Girl, save the sexy clothes & makeup for clubbing. This is NOT a "woman issue", this is a presentation issue - and you are not presenting yourself appropriately for the corporate world. A man wearing the male equivalent would not be hired, either. Get over yourself!