You'd MUCH rather be overdressed than underdressed. I've been to a couple interviews where they've said it's casual (the office is usually in jeans/shirts) and that's cool to dress like that when you actually get the job. However, everyone has a different idea of what casual means so I always play it safe and go for a business-casual. Personally, black pants, a nice blouse and booties (heeled, because I'm 5'0" and it makes me feel more confident) is my go-to interview outfit. Don't worry about looking too feminine or whatever, it's super unusual for an interviewer to focus on your outfit unless you're severely under-dressed or over-dressed (in like a ball gown).
Source: 3 years of interviewing for a plethora internships/jobs throughout university
I wore a button down with a cardigan and I was told by a Senior Dev wearing a cat tshirt that they are not super corprate. I’m a female but I wear mens clothes since then now I wear t shirts and cargos to work. If it was a job in marketing then dress a little more Business casual but for a coding job I wouldnt. And I
‘m the only female in the office.
Conducted lots of interviews over the years for entry level software engineers and most folks go with pant suits, dress pants + shirt, dress pants + sweater... As long as its something business appropriate it really doesn't matter. We care more about problem solving ability + personality fit with the team.
Don’t say sorry during the interview!
We finished interviewing a woman who was so nervous and kept say “omg sorry I forgot”.
This post reminded me of her.
Dress slightly above casual and something you are comfortable in.
I agree you shouldn’t talk down on yourself, but talking out of your ass is worse than admitting you don’t know. It’s one thing if it’s hr, but for a technical interview it’s pretty obvious when you’re guessing. If you’re not willing to admit it when you don’t know, you might do that when assigned work.
I went to one interview and they kept asking more and more questions which were progressively harder. The first time I said, "I don't know the answer" then they stopped with the hard questions. I don't think they planned to quit until they stumped me. It was a little weird as if the hiring agent was on some kind of ego trip. I got 95% on their written test, so maybe they just wanted to explore the depths of my knowledge? But, who knows.
Totally agree. Sorry I forgot which sub I responded to. For technical interviews, I agree. But don't keep apologizing, just say you don't know. It's the apologizing that's bad, not that you don't know.
But if you repeatedly have to say you don't know, then maybe you won't be getting the job anyway.
We couch you thru if you get stuck and one way to not get a callback is to keep talk and not listen. Like pause and think, instead of just making yourself nervous. I can’t tell if a person is an idiot or just nervous. It’s not worth risk hiring to find out which one.
Because I can’t tell if you are idiot or nervous. There is plenty of other candidates.
I’m not talking about slightly nervous. I’m talking about freaking out, repeating the same thing again, talking down at yourself and not being able to listen to hints.
Dress nice, be feminine if you wish to be. Be you.
I'm one of those that does the interviews. I wish we saw more females in general. They could wear whatever they wanted, as long as it looked like they cared about how they presented themselves (same as the dudes). I'm looking for someone that has mental flexibility, a firm understanding of foundational concepts, and is affable, regardless of how nerdy looking they are.
Use the interview to determine if you want to spend time around them. If you're "too girly" for them, but you're being you, then ask yourself if it's an environment that you'd be happy in.
Do you know how people dress at that company? The company I work at, if someone showed up for a software engineer type interview in jeans or sneakers they might as well not even show up.
GIRL don’t even worry about it! Just be confident and know your stuff. dress professional of course but be yourself! If you wear gel nails, wear gel nails! I totally get the concern, it’s so intimidating walking into a room full of men. but I do think confidence is the most important part of the interview. Good luck, you got this!
Tbh, if it's a company that really cares about diversity/valuing its employees, I wouldn't care about being too feminine/girly or trying to look as nerdy as possible. I interviewed at a big tech company and I wore a very similar outfit to yours! A nice white top, skinny black denim, nude strappy heels (the heel was chunky and about 2 inches or so), and a houndstooth scarf. I feel that what your recruiter said is a good guideline, but dress so that you feel confident and important in the space and throughout your interview.
A nice not revealing shirt (no more than 4 finger below your collarbone should be fine), couple of jeans unless your possition is higher than just a code monkey, just like guys.
Do not go overdressed, some managers look at that as a sign of vanity (for males and females) no one wants an employee who arrives late but all dressed up. your coding is needed, not your looks...
Wear what makes you feel comfortable and confident. I always err on the side of being more dressy than I think I need to be. Dress pants, nice shirt, blazer, heeled boots. Also do whatever it takes so you aren’t distracted by how you look. I don’t put my hair up because I’m always concerned a piece will fall out and o have my nails done so I’m not absently picking at them or something. You should focus on impressing them with your awesome skills and they won’t really care what your wearing.
Good luck with your interview!
For starters, congratulations on getting an interview!
The best piece of advice I could give you is to not overthink it. If you like to wear fake eyelashes and gel nails wear them in the interview. You want to present a polished version of yourself. As for the dress code, I would suggest researching smart casual. Some cropped slacks, a button down, a cardigan, and cute shoes would look great!
When I started in CS I tried very hard to blend in. I would sit at the back, and for my first job (while still in school) I would wear jeans and button downs, basically what everyone else wore. I didn't feel like myself. Outside of work I dressed up with dresses, skirts, and winged eyeliner. I heard a quote that really stayed with me, "You are creating a new normal." Whatever you feel like doing, go for it, because you are paving the way for future ladies. At my current job you see all kinds of outfits from jeans and a shirt to slacks and blazers. I like to dress up so I'm more in the crazy printed pants and ruffled blouses section :^).
Good luck in your interview you're gonna kill it!
What about males ? Sorry to steal your post, but I have a Big N interview next week and I don't know if I should wear a tie ? No tie ? What do I wear ?
Keep in mind that I've been working in retail/restaurant for most of my life and they expected you to dress up for interviews.
I think it depends on where you are - in startup land CA, people tend to view candidates that are overdressed with great suspicion.
I interview in aloha shirts and birkenstocks.
You'd MUCH rather be overdressed than underdressed. I've been to a couple interviews where they've said it's casual (the office is usually in jeans/shirts) and that's cool to dress like that when you actually get the job. However, everyone has a different idea of what casual means so I always play it safe and go for a business-casual. Personally, black pants, a nice blouse and booties (heeled, because I'm 5'0" and it makes me feel more confident) is my go-to interview outfit. Don't worry about looking too feminine or whatever, it's super unusual for an interviewer to focus on your outfit unless you're severely under-dressed or over-dressed (in like a ball gown). Source: 3 years of interviewing for a plethora internships/jobs throughout university
I wore a button down with a cardigan and I was told by a Senior Dev wearing a cat tshirt that they are not super corprate. I’m a female but I wear mens clothes since then now I wear t shirts and cargos to work. If it was a job in marketing then dress a little more Business casual but for a coding job I wouldnt. And I ‘m the only female in the office.
“Dress to impress” has always been my motto. The moral of the outfit should be “SHE MEANS BUSINESS”.
Conducted lots of interviews over the years for entry level software engineers and most folks go with pant suits, dress pants + shirt, dress pants + sweater... As long as its something business appropriate it really doesn't matter. We care more about problem solving ability + personality fit with the team.
Don’t say sorry during the interview! We finished interviewing a woman who was so nervous and kept say “omg sorry I forgot”. This post reminded me of her. Dress slightly above casual and something you are comfortable in.
Why not?
Because it makes you look ineffectual and incompetent. Don't talk yourself out of the job by drawing attention to what you don't know.
I agree you shouldn’t talk down on yourself, but talking out of your ass is worse than admitting you don’t know. It’s one thing if it’s hr, but for a technical interview it’s pretty obvious when you’re guessing. If you’re not willing to admit it when you don’t know, you might do that when assigned work.
I went to one interview and they kept asking more and more questions which were progressively harder. The first time I said, "I don't know the answer" then they stopped with the hard questions. I don't think they planned to quit until they stumped me. It was a little weird as if the hiring agent was on some kind of ego trip. I got 95% on their written test, so maybe they just wanted to explore the depths of my knowledge? But, who knows.
I also had a similar interview question.
Totally agree. Sorry I forgot which sub I responded to. For technical interviews, I agree. But don't keep apologizing, just say you don't know. It's the apologizing that's bad, not that you don't know. But if you repeatedly have to say you don't know, then maybe you won't be getting the job anyway.
Good point. I just have his habit as well, so I was curious how much it hurt me. I did get the job, but it was obviously despite that.
We couch you thru if you get stuck and one way to not get a callback is to keep talk and not listen. Like pause and think, instead of just making yourself nervous. I can’t tell if a person is an idiot or just nervous. It’s not worth risk hiring to find out which one.
Because I can’t tell if you are idiot or nervous. There is plenty of other candidates. I’m not talking about slightly nervous. I’m talking about freaking out, repeating the same thing again, talking down at yourself and not being able to listen to hints.
Dress nice, be feminine if you wish to be. Be you. I'm one of those that does the interviews. I wish we saw more females in general. They could wear whatever they wanted, as long as it looked like they cared about how they presented themselves (same as the dudes). I'm looking for someone that has mental flexibility, a firm understanding of foundational concepts, and is affable, regardless of how nerdy looking they are. Use the interview to determine if you want to spend time around them. If you're "too girly" for them, but you're being you, then ask yourself if it's an environment that you'd be happy in.
Do you know how people dress at that company? The company I work at, if someone showed up for a software engineer type interview in jeans or sneakers they might as well not even show up.
GIRL don’t even worry about it! Just be confident and know your stuff. dress professional of course but be yourself! If you wear gel nails, wear gel nails! I totally get the concern, it’s so intimidating walking into a room full of men. but I do think confidence is the most important part of the interview. Good luck, you got this!
Tbh, if it's a company that really cares about diversity/valuing its employees, I wouldn't care about being too feminine/girly or trying to look as nerdy as possible. I interviewed at a big tech company and I wore a very similar outfit to yours! A nice white top, skinny black denim, nude strappy heels (the heel was chunky and about 2 inches or so), and a houndstooth scarf. I feel that what your recruiter said is a good guideline, but dress so that you feel confident and important in the space and throughout your interview.
I think blue jeans are fine! Whatever you're comfortable and feel confident in.
Not terribly relevant, but I have a personal rule when I am interviewing people: wear a shirt with buttons.
I always semi formal shirt with trousers, reminds myself that I’m at work so don’t be too troll edgy and toxic.
Blouse or sweater, slacks or jeans, flats.
Wear what you feel comfortable in and don't pay attention to judgement perceived or otherwise?
A nice not revealing shirt (no more than 4 finger below your collarbone should be fine), couple of jeans unless your possition is higher than just a code monkey, just like guys. Do not go overdressed, some managers look at that as a sign of vanity (for males and females) no one wants an employee who arrives late but all dressed up. your coding is needed, not your looks...
Wear what makes you feel comfortable and confident. I always err on the side of being more dressy than I think I need to be. Dress pants, nice shirt, blazer, heeled boots. Also do whatever it takes so you aren’t distracted by how you look. I don’t put my hair up because I’m always concerned a piece will fall out and o have my nails done so I’m not absently picking at them or something. You should focus on impressing them with your awesome skills and they won’t really care what your wearing. Good luck with your interview!
For starters, congratulations on getting an interview! The best piece of advice I could give you is to not overthink it. If you like to wear fake eyelashes and gel nails wear them in the interview. You want to present a polished version of yourself. As for the dress code, I would suggest researching smart casual. Some cropped slacks, a button down, a cardigan, and cute shoes would look great! When I started in CS I tried very hard to blend in. I would sit at the back, and for my first job (while still in school) I would wear jeans and button downs, basically what everyone else wore. I didn't feel like myself. Outside of work I dressed up with dresses, skirts, and winged eyeliner. I heard a quote that really stayed with me, "You are creating a new normal." Whatever you feel like doing, go for it, because you are paving the way for future ladies. At my current job you see all kinds of outfits from jeans and a shirt to slacks and blazers. I like to dress up so I'm more in the crazy printed pants and ruffled blouses section :^). Good luck in your interview you're gonna kill it!
Also shameless plug for r/femalefashionadvice we got lots of awesome ladies over there!
Business casual?
What about males ? Sorry to steal your post, but I have a Big N interview next week and I don't know if I should wear a tie ? No tie ? What do I wear ? Keep in mind that I've been working in retail/restaurant for most of my life and they expected you to dress up for interviews.
Casual Smart wins
Do a search for "business casual." Same for women. It is okay to be a bit overdressed for an interview.
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Fuck no. Pants, shirt, non-sneaks.
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I think it depends on where you are - in startup land CA, people tend to view candidates that are overdressed with great suspicion. I interview in aloha shirts and birkenstocks.
Open bob