Interviews: what to wear

Lesson objectives
At the interview: making a good first
impression!
Communication focus Grammar focus
Describing clothes Adjectives
Giving advice about clothes Modals of advice
and job interviews
Pronunciation focus
Stress: Content vs. function words
Warm-up: clothing
What style of clothes are these people wearing?
•What clothes are they wearing?

Not only do different types of work require different styles of

clothing, but different lifestyles accept different types of
dress. What categories do you come under for work, casual,
etc.?

•What type of clothing do you wear at work?

•What do you wear on the weekend?
•What do you wear to the gym or for exercise?
 Read: what is business casual?
Chris: Are you nervous about the interview?
Sasha: Yes, a little. But I’m excited, too.
Chris: Why do you think we’re going to talk about what to wear for an interview today?
Sasha: I guess because I need to make a good first impression.
Chris: Exactly.
Sasha: So, do I have to wear a suit? Or can I just dress sharply?
Chris: For some job interviews, you ought to wear a suit, especially to interview for
senior positions. For other jobs, business casual is fine.
Sasha: What about this job as a marketing assistant?
Chris: I don’t think it’s necessary unless you’ll feel more comfortable.
Sasha: To be honest, I’m never comfortable in a suit. Dressy shoes hurt my feet, and I
don’t think I look like myself.
Chris: Ok. That’s fine. Let’s talk about what you ought to and ought not to wear, then.
Sasha: I know some of the don’ts. My friends have already told me. You shouldn’t wear
hiking boots or sneakers for a job interview.
Chris: That’s right. It depends on the field. Nice walking shoes are fine with khakis and a
shirt or a polo shirt.
Sasha: Right. What about make-up? I never wear make-up on a normal day. Should I wear
it for the interview?
Chris: These days, make-up is a choice. You should do what is comfortable for you.
Sasha: That’s a relief! Ok, what else should I think about?
Chris: Well...men shouldn’t wear sandals or flip-flops. If a woman wears a dress or skirt,
it shouldn’t be tight. What else do you know?
Sasha: I ought to wear a dress shirt with a collar instead of a pullover or t-shirt. I
shouldn’t look sloppy. Can I look casual?
Chris: You ought not to look too casual for this job interview. You want to look
professional. For example, you shouldn’t wear jeans. Slacks and a dress shirt are a good
choice for men and women interviewing for this job and a nice jacket.
 Fluency: clothing styles
Which style is more comfortable for you?
When do you consider the following styles of dress appropriate?
•Describe each style to your tutor and different scenarios - when
each style could be used.
•Tell your tutor what your opinion and preferences are with each
type of clothing listed below.
Describe to your tutor how you feel about people dressing
differently than you would consider appropriate.
•How do you feel about this type of thing?
•Which clothes do you wear when you dress in this style?
 Look at these different styles of dressing and describe them to your tutor.
Use the following Target Vocabulary words!
• sloppy • casual • business casual • professional • first impression (expr)
 Grammar: modals of advice
Which language is being used to make
strong suggestions?
•Your interview will be professional, so you
should wear nice clothes.
•You ought not to wear sloppy jeans.
•Instead, you ought to wear chinos or
slacks.
•You probably shouldn’t wear a dressy suit,
but you should think about wearing a nice
jacket.
Talk about the meaning of these
modals!
How are they different?
In most cases should and ought to are
used interchangeably today. They are
used to express advice and obligation.
Should is followed by the base-form verb
and ought is followed by the infinitive
verb.
Grammar: examples of modals
should + base-form verb
You should wear nice clothes.
shouldn’t + base-form verb
You probably shouldn’t wear a dressy suit.
ought + infinitive verb
You ought to wear chinos or slacks
ought not + infinitive verb
You ought not to wear sloppy jeans.

What advice would you give to a friend?

Grammar: Stress: content vs. function
Which words are content words, and which words
are function words?
Which do we stress most: content or function words?
Why?
was sneakers of jacket amazing nice shoes
at the and collar a dressy dress to
wear never suit an in friends assistant

We usually stress content words because they have

the most important information.
 Stress: content words
Identify the content and function words!

Practice speaking these sentences.

Be careful to stress the content words!
1.Your dressy shoes are beautiful!
2.I never wear make-up on weekends.
3.Tina shouldn’t wear jeans to the interview.

Now, make your own example!

Grammar: adjectives are awesome!
Which of these adjectives can describe styles or clothing?
Which describe feelings?

professional nervous
casual excited
dressy comfortable
sloppy

Rosa looks really professional at work. She wears quite

dressy clothes but always looks comfortable. She says
her smart clothes help her feel less nervous .
 Grammar: descriptive adjectives!
Use previous adjectives to describe the different people
and clothing styles.
Fluency: giving advice
Practice giving advice!
Your friend has an interview tomorrow. You are helping
them choose the right type of clothing.
What have you worn to a job interview? How did you feel
during the interview? Did you think you were too dressy or
were you reasonably comfortable?
•Suggest some of the clothing in the pictures.
•Describe the clothing.
•Tell your friend why they should wear this.
Think about other occasions - what would you
wear to:
1) A wedding
4) A tennis match
2) A funeral
5) a dinner party
3) A friend's birthday party
Fluency: personal style
What are you wearing today?
Why did you wear this?
Do you often wear the same style, or do you
wear many different styles of clothing?
Think about your different activities and
responsibilities. Give examples!
Use Target Vocabulary!
•should • make-up (n)
•shouldn't
• sloppy (adj)
•professional (adj)
Fluency: your clothing style
Review your previous responses!
Which style is more comfortable for you?
•sloppy
•casual
•business casual
•professional
Which clothes do you wear when you dress in this style?
Use Target Vocabulary!
•pullover (n)
•hiking boots (n)
•make-up (n)
•sandals (n)
•collar (n)
THANK YOU!