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Can I overdress for an interview?
LewieP
Registered User regular
Registered User regular
I have an interview tomorrow to work in GAME (uk's biggest video game retailer) and although I have done tonnes of interviews, and am happy with my technique, I have no idea what to wear.
I will just be a till monkey, nothing like manager or even supervisor.
For interviews I would normally wear smart suit, polished black shoes, white shirt and tie. This is what I have worn for any past interviews (but they havent been for jobs, they have been for university, or VSO)
I have no idea if the manager who is conducting my interview might be less inclined to give me the job if I was overdressed. I am more comfortable in a suit because it feels more professional to me, and I like how I look in a suit, so if being overdressed wasn't important I would wear a suit and tie.
So, suggestions?
I will just be a till monkey, nothing like manager or even supervisor.
For interviews I would normally wear smart suit, polished black shoes, white shirt and tie. This is what I have worn for any past interviews (but they havent been for jobs, they have been for university, or VSO)
I have no idea if the manager who is conducting my interview might be less inclined to give me the job if I was overdressed. I am more comfortable in a suit because it feels more professional to me, and I like how I look in a suit, so if being overdressed wasn't important I would wear a suit and tie.
So, suggestions?
LewieP on
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At my last job everyone wore jeans and generally dressed scruffily. So during the interview I was sat there in my expensive suit, polished shoes whilst the MD and technical manager sat there in shorts and scratty tshirts. The only comment I got was "we appreciate the effort you've gone to."
It's better to stand out for being the one person that cares than stand out for turning up in jeans when everyone else they've interviewed has made some sort of effort..
Good luck!
I would reccomend a button down shirt and tie with khakis and a decent pair of shoes, but that's just me.
-Robert E. Howard
Tower of the Elephant
Thoughts of a Part-Time Hobbyist - A Wargaming and RPG Blog
I used to work in recruitment.
It will just make them realise that you put some effort in. Take off the Jacket when you arrive if you like. The worst case scenario is that they tell you not to wear the tie to work ;-)
For an interview at GAME, the Suit w/o a tie would be a good fit, as it shows you made the effort, and also sets a relaxed tone as well.
Like everyone says, plain shirt (white or blue), suit trousers or similar smart trousers, shoes and a tie would be perfect fit for retail IMO. Think about what people wear when they work in shops. For somewhere like GAME, they wear smart trousers, shoes and a GAME tshirt. For somewhere like Next or a department store they'd probably wear the same only with a white shirt and tie.
MONOCLE.
If you're expecting it to be really hot (you can't really tell these days WHAT is going to happen with the weather) going with open collar is probably better than sweating it out with a tie. That'll just make you feel more uncomfortable / embarrassed and make you sweat more. Trust me on this one.
More important is probably just going over what types of questions they're likely to ask you and responding to them out loud to yourself. I know this has helped me a lot in interviews to feel relaxed and give a good answer, even if it's something I hadn't practised for.
If you have to wear a normal suit to work, wear this to the interview:
It looks like you haven't researched what type of job you're applying for. Which makes you seem either desperate or clueless, so unless they have management positions open, I'd go with a pressed button--up shirt and nice tie, or cravet, if that's what you guys on the the other side of the pond are in to.
Make sure your shoes are well-polished, as that says more about you then being stuffed in a suit.
It's stupid, but they may get the feeling that you think you're better than them. They may also think you don't know anything about their business/location or that you have no idea what the job is you are applying for. They may think that you're going to have trouble fitting in. They may think you're going to be a high maintenance pain in the ass.
If you know who the manager/interviewer is, try to dress in a similar manner to them, but slightly nicer. Being personable and knowledgeable will get you a lot farther in that type of interview than a nice suit.
Now, if you were applying at their corporate office for a salaried position the outfit you described would be perfect.
You don't have to go in a suit, ideally wear a pair of smart trousers and a nice shirt, open at the neck (no tie necessary). About 80% of applicants will be scruffy, you can keep above of the curve by dressing the step above that, but don't overdo it as you'll be uncomfortable and so might the guy interviewing you, who will probably be wearing only shirt/ trouser combo.
The most important thing in a game interview is to a) let them see you know your area, whether it be PC, nintendo, whatever.
b) Make it clear that you will be an approachable employee for non- gamers who come into the store (eg: parents buying their kids games, you could also say women, but the feminist in me objects to that. However, I did pull that one at my interview). This is important because they will already be thinking about hiring for Xmas, and you need to emody the skills they need for that - mainly approachability, salesmanship and non elitism/ scorn for the non-gaming public.
Though actually I think you should go in full regency dress, as pictured above.
If they tell you business casual, its business casual dammit.
If they didn't specify, then the other advice in this thread is already spot on.
with black pants and black shoes.
Truth.
For this, I'd either go for the tie/shirt combo, or suit without a tie deal. I usually choose the latter because I really hate ties.
I ended up doing this. A striped blue shirt, with a jacket and matching trousers, top button undone, no tie. I took off the jacket soon after I arrived, and it felt spot on. Interview went really well.
Thanks for all the advice guys. ;-)
He said he would phone me by next wednesday at the latest, even if I hadn't got the job
Good luck dude.
I phones to speak to the manager to get feedback, but he isn't in today, so I will phone again tomorrow.
Ah well, the search for employment goes on...Thanks anyway.
Good luck getting a job!
Retail is hotly contested, and you may have been too good a candidate. It pays better to hire less educated people (at least, in the UK) because the expectations for their work are low, and they're not going to move away to uni or anything.
I wouldn't worry about it.
I would say that it's important to look good in whatever you wear to the interview, so play to your strengths.