This year I celebrated 12 years with the Australian Public Service – with a start in a graduate position in 2009. There aren’t a lot of things in my life that I have committed to for this long, and no one is more surprised than I am that I am still here.
Over the years I have learned a lot from the APS – as a career and as an institution – and while I often complain about it (like most Canberrans) I am still grateful.

Not surprisingly, with 12 years of service under my belt I have had a number of job interviews in my APS career. Some I have nailed, a lot I haven’t. And after as many interviews as I have had, I can safely say that the single most important thing when presenting for an interview is feeling confident in yourself.

And what you choose to wear to the interview affects that.

Here’s three major rules in dressing for an interview that people should keep in mind to look and feel their best!

Number 1 – Dress to the type of Job it is.

If you are going for an interview for a corporate or office job, then it absolutely makes sense to wear a suit (for men and women) and depending on the nature of the job, you might want to throw on a tie as well.

However, if you’re not going to be required to wear a suit in your day to day work it can actually be detrimental to wear one to interview. If you’re applying for a retail position or a trade, you should wear smart casual clothes – pants and a collared shirt for men (could even be jeans), women have a bit more room to play here and can follow the same rules or substitute in a dress or skirt.

For men it is hard to go wrong with a collared button-down shirt and a nice fitting pair of chinos – this can be dressed up with a blazer and leather shoes, or dressed down with a sweater and sneakers.

Number 2 – Dress to keep the focus on your face.

In an interview you want the attention to be on you and specifically on your face, so the interviewer hears what you have to say about yourself. If you wear loud colours and clashing patterns it can really distract people from what you’re actually saying.

This goes for anything with a big logo or a graphic on it – leave those for when you have the job.

Likewise for older styles of clothing – anything that has fallen out of popular fashion like three-buttoned suits, low-waisted jeans, or distressed denim – are going to distract your interviewer.

Number 3 – Dress comfortably for the interview.

I’m not saying that you should wear a tracksuit and slippers to the interview, but it is really important for your performance at interview to be as comfortable as possible. You can do breathing exercises beforehand or memorise your notes – but if you are not dressed comfortably, it will probably translate into your interview performance.

I can’t tell you how many times I have gone to put on a suit for an interview only to realise that it has magically shrunk in my wardrobe and no longer fits me…

Always try on your chosen interview outfit before the interview, make sure your shoes are broken in, the slacks or skirt fit when you sit down, and there’s no tag itching you on your back.

The last thing you want is to be scratching at a tag or fidgeting in your seat afraid your pants are going to split.