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Comment by philangist | Hacker News Reader

> If you can't be bothered to dress up a little bit for your interview, the hiring manager knows that you're going to be a pain in the ass to manage.

I wonder how common this sentiment is in the UK. I know that most developers I've met/interviewed/been interviewed by in NYC don't care (at least outside of finance). Can anyone on the other side of the pond give me their thoughts or experiences?

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It's true everywhere. Always, ALWAYS wear a suit to your interview, even if the hiring manager says he doesn't care. It presents a crisp, professional appearance and shows the hiring manager that you care.

No. This is horrible advice for software professionals in the US. In a lot of places, it will show the hiring manager that you are an alien to their culture. You should simply wear what you would ordinarily wear to work when clients are expected that day in the office.

If the software professionals there actually wear suits, you can also wear one to interview, but be mindful that you probably won't enjoy working there much.

If on the job you are expected to wear casual or business casual clothing, by all means do so. But only once you have the job. During the application and interview process, making a good impression is paramount. A suit is clothing literally tailor made to make a good impression. I have yet to meet the hiring manager who would dock a candidate for overdressing to the interview, even if overdressing on the job would raise a few eyebrows.

Don't discount his advice about culture, finding people who culturally fit is important and if they are using dress as an indicator you don't want to fail it.

The advice I have heard is to ask the hiring manager. If they say they don't care feel free to wear a suit, however if they say something like "nothing too formal" listen to them.

I agree with this statement, and I'm in the US. My manager wears cargo shorts to the office, but I'd still raise an eyebrow if you wore them to an interview.

The key is to dress up "a little bit".

Wear what would you wear for a "big day" - presenting at a conference, demoing for a customer, or a one-on-one with your boss's boss. Some places, that's a clean t-shirt and your best pair of jeans. If you're fixing healthcare.gov, that might be a suit and tie.

As others have said — a suit is almost never a negative here (provided it's well fitted, clean, etc.). Nobody would be surprised at someone turning up for a interview for even a retail job in a suit. Is it nowadays often unnecessary? Yes. But it's a safe choice, because nobody will claim you're overdressed, and you're not going to be underdressed.

In the UK (based on my experience), a suit is considered to be just a safe choice and many people just stick to it.

Yes if in the UK always wear a suit. Even if you didn't have to no-one is going to think ill of you for it. It's just standard here.

Looks like if you're in the US, though, you're going to have to be careful to find out first what the code is.

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