While academic evaluations may differ in graduate school, the same distinction doesn’t quite apply to style. You may be attending seminars instead of lectures, doing research instead of homework and taking up the role of teaching assistant in addition to student. But at the end of the day, you’ll realize you’re just an older student on campus. Postgraduate students are students who have some work responsibilities – it’s part-student, part-job. In style-speak, you’re looking for something between casual to business casual. Think about what you’ll be doing most of the time in your program and coordinate your outfit to follow. Here are some ideas.

From Student to … err, Student!
You’ll soon find that being an undergraduate and postgraduate are pretty much the same – still studying and checking out books at the library, still attending class and working on research papers or projects. As an older student, you might discover that your style won’t be changing very much, and it’s appropriate to wear what you’ve always been wearing to school (as long as it’s not a halter top and beach shorts). The real key has nothing to do with a ’serious’ style, but rather recognizing that you’ve graduated into an older age-group. I know the word “old” may probably scare you but it scares me, too!

What should be gone are the varsity sweatpants or loungewear that the 19 year-old you wore to class (perhaps straight out of bed) or the brightly colored henleys teamed with leggings. Instead, the older you now accepts that you’re here to learn and contribute to the field of philosophy (that means working for your professors). On class days, a casual outfit like your usual T-shirt and jeans combination is fine and can be easily topped off with a cardigan or blazer. A simple buttoned shirt is a little bit neater than a graphic-print tee. If you want to show off your feminine side, try pairing your top with A-line or cotton pencil skirts. Muted floral patterns can look very pretty and mature.

From Student to Speaker
A main part of academia involves presenting ideas and sharing your research. In addition to wanting to get published, you’ll most likely be doing a few presentations either at school or at conferences to talk about what you’ve been working on. For this role, a formal suit may be required depending on the size of the conference, although for many, a business casual (not smart casual) combination would be fine.  Most academics are not runway flashy, so a simple dress shirt paired with flat-front trousers or an A-line skirt is a good outfit. Skinny pants in black or charcoal are a great smart alternative to skinny jeans. If a fancy cocktail or dinner is part of the presentation, a straight pencil dress may be a dressier option.

You might think you have to dress up in a stiff suit to appear serious, but really, is that what you see your fellow PhD or MPhil students wearing around the department? Let your ideas and intelligence shine through, rather than what you’re wearing. And in my book, brainy women are beautiful!

Nikki

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