Professional attire for D.C. internship

Marian
Mon, 19 May 2008 20:07:41 +0000

E-mail the organization and ask. It’s the only way you will find out what the dress expectations are.

My daughter is also interning at a DC nonprofit. She has never been to their office (she did multiple interviews with them over the telephone). So she e-mailed them to ask them about the dress code.

She was told that it’s on the casual side of business casual. Thus, she went to some mid-level mall stores (none of which were more expensive than Macy’s) and bought several pair of dress pants (mostly black or tan) and several non-sexy blouses and short-sleeved sweaters. Only one item in her newly acquired wardrobe requires dry cleaning. The only thing she still needs to buy is a pair of shoes – presumably plain, black, comfortable ones – probably flats.

However, there are plenty of other DC internships where the standards of dress are much higher. Certainly, in some places, a suit or other outfit with a jacket would be expected for women. My daughter did an in-person interview in one such place (also a nonprofit). But she ended up in a different environment.

Because you are unlikely to get much use out of your internship attire at college, and because you may do something entirely different next summer, which would require a different wardrobe, you want to be sure that you’re buying appropriate clothing for this summer.

As for quality fabrics, I’m not so sure they’re the best idea. Many of them require dry cleaning, which is expensive and takes items out of your wardrobe for several days. If you’re going to try to get through this internship with a limited supply of garments and if your stipend is stingy (which many are), you may not want to have to get things dry cleaned constantly.

By the way, asking about the dress code at a place of employment is perfectly OK even if you’re not an intern. I just started a new full-time job a month ago. After I received the job offer, I inquired about the dress code. Nobody thought this was unusual. In fact, I was given a handout that the company has prepared for the purpose. The question is very normal and expected.