INTERVIEW SERIES: NAVIGATING THE PRE-INTERVIEW DINNER

One part of interview season that doesn't get talked about as much are the pre-interview dinners. These are so much fun and a great way to see if you mesh well with the program you're interviewing at and to also see how the residents get along with each other. It's almost always just residents, no faculty. The dinners are meant to be stress free and for the most part they are.

My first stressor though was how should I be? What level of casual vs formal do I need to aim for? The best rule of thumb is to not be the life of the party. You obviously want to be friendly and approachable {awkwardness will be your death} but it's better to err on the quiet side rather than being too lively. And it's important to read the room as well and adjust to the resident{s} and other interviewees that you're speaking to.

The second thing that was stressful was deciding on what to wear since there's almost never a dress code! If there is one, it's usually "business casual" which to me is pretty vague.

I ended up choosing 2-3 pre-interview outfits and rotating between them. I recommend sticking with looks that are classic - you don't want to be so flashy that the entire room notices you when you walk in. The goal is effortlessly polished {which is of course never effortless after your delayed flight or 6 hour drive and rushing to find your Airbnb in time to fit a shower in ::sigh::}. Here are a few ideas to inspire you all:

These looks are my idea of effortless. Black is forever king of course but I've always liked adding an interesting twist to my outfits. I throw in a pop of color or print but in a way that's not too gauche. I almost always stuck with a pair of well-tailored ankle pants or dark-wash jeans and flats. These J Crew flats {1} are my holy grail of flats; they're super comfortable and I love the touch of glam with the gold heel. I actually just bought another pair after wearing my old ones to death for almost 5 years {they're currently on sale for half price too, just follow the link}! For my top, I chose a light sweater in cooler weather and a sleeveless or short sleeve top in warmer temperatures. I also occasionally wore a basic dress that I could easily dress up or down. My favorite places to shop for interview clothes were Express, J Crew and H&M. Express has always had the best selection of dress pants that fit me well without tailoring and the others have great options for affordable tops and shoes!

As far as accessories go, I stuck to one fun piece of jewelry {either earrings or a necklace usually} and my Cluse watch, which I love to this day. For a bag, some people like to carry around a lot and bring along their interview purse but I like to carry very little at all times {less to lose lol} so I usually just carried a wristlet with my phone, cards, MAC studio fix for touchups, chapstick and gum {no stank breath please!}.

I didn't forget about you, boys! For the dinners most guys don't wear suits {in fact, I don't recommend it}. Dress pants/dark wash jeans and a button up shirt/henley is totally fine. Wearing a tie or bowtie is entirely up to you, though I personally feel it's a bit too formal. At our program, we as a resident group are super casual {and all the places I remember interviewing at were similarly casual} but that might not be the case everywhere. Our residents show up in scrubs half the time because we're coming straight from the hospital {or so we say...lol}. Here's some ideas to inspire you for both warmer and cooler temps. Again, H&M, Express and J Crew are great options for any of these pieces. Even Amazon now has some great shoes and clothes to choose from.

At the end of the day, don't sweat it too much. Socialize and have fun! The most important part of these dinners is seeing how well you mesh with the residents because you could potentially be working with them for the next several years {believe me, you wanna like your colleagues}.

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