Stubble in interviews

Smashius_Clay

I have an interview tomorrow for a job in a rural radio station. I wouldn't be dealing with the public or anything, it'd be behind the scenes. The thing is, I rarely clean-shave. I dislike it, and it leaves me with red marks on my neck. I tend to trim my stubble down as much as I can with an electronic shaver.

I haven't saved in a couple of days, so have what might be called "designer stubble." I'd much rather keep this look.

In general, if you go into an interview with "designer stubble", have you lost the job before you sit down? Should you always clean-shave?

magnumbud

i always prefer to have facial hair but if i have an interview i always shave. like you might never have to deal with the public etc but the interviewer particularly HR types can look down on people seen as not making the effort for an interview and facial hair any at all can be seen as this

Volvic12

I am the same. I never clean shave for any interviews I go to.
As long as you are dressed well for the interview and not looking messy etc. then I think it's fine to have some stubble.

Irish_Elect_Eng

No, it is not ok.

Unless you can really carry of the designer stubble look, which few can unless they are very good looking to begin with, shave clean for the same reason you wear a suit.

MistyCheese

I would definately recommend being clean-shaven for the interview - even if you generally prefer not to be. At the interview is where to ask questions regarding their expectations of your professional appearance. They may require you to be clean-shaven for whatever reason, or they may say "Oh, your facial hair is your own business."

Good luck.

Jimmyhologram

Out of interest, what are people's opinions on neatly-trimmed beards?

Lockstep

Personally I wouldn't see beards as a problem as long as its conventional or neat looking: full beard, goatee etc would be no problem and I doubt there'd be trouble with a chinstrap or even a muttonstache if you can pull it off.
If you have an unkempt bush it'd probably go against you and I'd personally avoid stubble.

fasttalkerchat

I tend to get dry skin after shaving so I scissor cut it the night before then shave the morning of the interview so my skin isn't in bad condition until after the interview.

You could always go in as you are and mention that you have a skin condition that is irritated by shaving.

Mr. Loverman

Volvic12 wrote: »

I never clean shave for any interviews I go to.

Just curious, what percentage of your interviews are successful/unsuccessful?

Volvic12

Mr. Loverman wrote: »

Just curious, what percentage of your interviews are successful/unsuccessful?

Have had 4 interviews in my life. Have been successful with the 4 of them.
Don't get me wrong. I'm not going into the interview looking messy. Just I don't like being clean shaving - don't think it suits me.

allibastor

I don't thinks it a massive problem as long as its clean looking, not a grizzly adams thing going on.

some big office places don't like beards, or sales jobs, but most places think its fine if you are clean

Procrastastudy

I personally cant stand it. Some HR people I know hate it some dont care - I suppose the question you want to ask yourself is - is it worth placing another potential issue in the way of getting hired? Honest question as I personally admire your honesty in going as you normally are.

Jumbo156

Smashius_Clay wrote: »

I have an interview tomorrow for a job in a rural radio station. I wouldn't be dealing with the public or anything, it'd be behind the scenes. The thing is, I rarely clean-shave. I dislike it, and it leaves me with red marks on my neck. I tend to trim my stubble down as much as I can with an electronic shaver.

I haven't saved in a couple of days, so have what might be called "designer stubble." I'd much rather keep this look.

In general, if you go into an interview with "designer stubble", have you lost the job before you sit down? Should you always clean-shave?

To me , this is just lazy and I wouldn't hire you.
If you really want a job, you should put yourself in the interviewers shoes and do what needs to be done to impress them.
Going unshaven is just pure lazy. and puts you at a disadvantage straight away.

FloatingVoter

Compensate with very smart clothes. Make it clear that you've made the effort in every other department. Maybe even crack a joke about Movember if things are going well.

mikemac1

If you are Sean Bean or have the looks to pull it off then go for it

If you are average like the rest of us, it's not going to work, get out that razor

Martyn1989

FloatingVoter wrote: »

Compensate with very smart clothes. Make it clear that you've made the effort in every other department. Maybe even crack a joke about Movember if things are going well.

Whatever you do, do not crack a joke about Movember, it probably won't be funny.

Dave!

I would think that what's important is that the whole ensemble looks pretty neat and professional, and that you'd not look out of place in a meeting with clients, etc. If you can pull that off without being clean shaven, or without having your shirt buttoned to the very top, then okay.

Having said that, you never know what emphasis HR people will place on things, and how conservative or traditional they are, so it's probably best to err on the side of caution and shave.

Manzoor14

Jumbo156 wrote: »

To me , this is just lazy and I wouldn't hire you.
If you really want a job, you should put yourself in the interviewers shoes and do what needs to be done to impress them.
Going unshaven is just pure lazy. and puts you at a disadvantage straight away.

I'm not sure its lazy really. I have stubble/a beard most of the time, and generally it takes me twice as long to trim it and keep it neat as it would to just shave it all off in a few mins. In my case it would be lazier and less hardship to shave it all off!
In my case, 3 interviews, 3 jobs.

As for the OP, it depends how much they wants the job. Some people are very narrow minded I feel and will somewhat look down upon you, or frown at you if you have a beard. Personally I wouldn't have interest working for someone like that so the hair stays on!

Eoin

The thing is we're not talking about a long mane of hair that you've been growing for the last 5 years that's a big part of you. Even if you really like the stubbly look, you'll get it back within a few days if you do decide to shave.

Manzoor14 wrote:

Some people are very narrow minded I feel and will somewhat look down upon you, or frown at you if you have a beard. Personally I wouldn't have interest working for someone like that so the hair stays on!

That's the funny thing about interviews though. There are these slightly odd conventions (e.g. don't ask about pay - one of the most important factors about a job).

In most cases you have to dress smarter than you'd have to if you actually worked there. The chances are that any job I applied for in IT would probably mean I can wear jeans to work. But I'd still wear a suit to the interview, unless I was specifically instructed not to.

I don't think it's a case of consciously looking down upon someone with stubble in a day to day setting - it's more about the effort you go to in order to make an impression for the interview. It's human nature to form impressions from appearances, so by the time you get a chance to demonstrate how good you are, the interviewer will most likely have formed an opinion of you. It might not make sense, but it's human nature.

Wishbone Ash

FloatingVoter wrote: »

Maybe even crack a joke about Movember

Whatever you do, don't ever attempt to crack a joke at an interview. Nobody likes a smart alec. I interview regularly and in my experience, very few younger candidates can pull it off. It may just result in an embarrassing silence and the panel may feel that they are not being taken seriously. To prove my point, I had to Google Movember.

Personally, I dislike stubble and it would put me off a potential candidate. Ordinary beards are fine. Grizzly Adams type beards and cardigans send out the signal that you have given up on life. An interview is all about communication. It's irrelevant whether you deal with the public in the job or whether stubble is permitted at work. I also dislike visible tatoos, excessive jewellery and facial piercings.

If you are wearing a shirt and tie, button the top button of the shirt and do up the tie properly. Make sure you have a shirt that fits. The number of men that wear shirts that are too large is mind boggling. Avoid white shirts if possible as they tend to be worn by those who don't own one and have to rush out to Tesco to buy one.

Polish you shoes and don't change into your shirt and tie at the venue. It's a little off putting seeing lads changing out of a hoodie and runners at their car.

I realise that my views may not be popular with some but at the end of the day, it may be my call which decides whether you are successful or not particularly if you are neck and neck with another candidate on other non-communication issues.

somefeen

^^ I don't understand why these things are important. I know we can't all be the fecking care bears not judging a book by its cover etc. but most of this just seems a bit draconian to me.

Pauvre Con

I stopped using a normal electric razor years ago as I realised it was making me come out in a rash/spots. I've since moved to clippers instead and done many interviews and got offers. A smart suit, polished shoes, ironed shirt and a neatly done tie is sufficient...oh yeah, and giving a good interview. Quite frankly if someone after all that is going to go against you for having a few hairs on your chin and neck then f#ck 'em and their job.

As for "pulling off stubble" being the preserve of movie stars I disagree. Facial growth can give a better definition to features and help the ugly just as well...

hmmm

If you've to ask the question you probably already know the answer - it depends on the interviewers. Some will care, some won't and if you run into one who does care you're already at a disadvantage to other candidates. Plus you're going in worrying about something you could deal with in advance, instead of worrying about what you're going to say in the interview itself which is where you should be concentrating.

Wearing a suit/good clothes and being shaven and presentable means you're not going to be marked down on presentation, so you're already ahead of a lot of your competitors (and interviews are a competition).

who_me

Until recently I've always been clean shaven, but for the last year or so I have a (short) beard.

Funnily enough I was actually wondering the other day if I'd shave it off if going for another job, and I decided definitely not. If someone is going to deem me lazy or unprofessional because of facial hair, I'd like to know about it before I accept a job so I can avoid that company. It would be my way of weeding out people who are anal about unimportant details. I guess I'm lucky working in IT, where the jobs situation is still quite good, in that regard.

Eoin

who_me wrote: »

If someone is going to deem me lazy or unprofessional because of facial hair, I'd like to know about it before I accept a job so I can avoid that company

As I said earlier, I don't think that's really the case.

It's more about the effort you make for the interview, rather than it being a reflection on your day to day habits. I'm not saying I agree with it, but it's not exactly as black and white as saying it's a company to avoid.

I'm rarely clean shaven and I wear jeans to work, but I'll be damn sure to be well turned out for an interview.

Would you not wear a suit even if you knew that the dress code was going to be casual if you got the job?

kiffer

Wishbone Ash wrote: »

I had to Google Movember.

And now you've learned something. I surprised that anyone in the country doesn't know about it it's been running a few years now and I guess it goes to show how poorly informed we are as a country about men's health issues.

If you are wearing a shirt and tie, button the top button of the shirt and do up the tie properly. Make sure you have a shirt that fits. The number of men that wear shirts that are too large is mind boggling. Avoid white shirts if possible as they tend to be worn by those who don't own one and have to rush out to Tesco to buy one.

I can't for the life of me get shirts that fit. Either they are tents but I can close them at the neck and as such wear them with a tie, or they fit nicely around the chest but are physically impossible to close.
While preping for an interview earlier in the year I got a little worried about this, and a female friend insisted that I should go with the smaller unclosable shirt, and try use the tie to hide the fact that the top button wouldn't close rather than wear the larger shirt and close the button and have the tie and collar look neat.
Also I like white shirts...

hmmm

kiffer wrote: »

a female friend insisted that I should go with the smaller unclosable shirt, and try use the tie to hide the fact that the top button wouldn't close rather than wear the larger shirt and close the button and have the tie and collar look neat.
Also I like white shirts...

You'll look very casual with a tie and an open top button, it never looks professional. It depends what you're trying to do, if you're going to impress the interviewer by wearing a tie in the first place it's not really a problem, if you're going for a client facing position which requires you wear a suit when facing a client it is a problem.

You could try slim fit shirts with a collar that fits. If you have the money, go to a proper mens tailor and get a shirt fitted.

kiffer

hmmm wrote: »

kiffer wrote: »

a female friend insisted that I should go with the smaller unclosable shirt, and try use the tie to hide the fact that the top button wouldn't close rather than wear the larger shirt and close the button and have the tie and collar look neat.
Also I like white shirts...

You'll look very casual with a tie and an open top button, it never looks professional. It depends what you're trying to do, if you're going to impress the interviewer by wearing a tie in the first place it's not really a problem, if you're going for a client facing position which requires you wear a suit when facing a client it is a problem.

You could try slim fit shirts with a collar that fits. If you have the money, go to a proper mens tailor and get a shirt fitted.

That's pretty much what I said to her... and at the time I certainly didn't have the cash for anything fancy.