Big Ben, London, originally uploaded by 13bobby.We recently received this email from a reader who is embarking on a graduate year abroad in London:
While I’m familiar with London and workwear there, I’m having a hard time bridging my Washington DC work outfits (read: boring, governmental) with London style and the casualness of being a student again. I’ve read your posts about international conferences and school/research abroad — I was wondering if you’d be willing to take a stab at this topic? I am starting to wonder about what to choose for that crucial orientation / first day of school outfit. Classes start in October, so I think I have to fast forward to fall. England + October = not very warm. :)
First of, how exciting! A year in London! While we know what we’d recommend for a first day back outfit here on our home turf, we’re not certain we can answer that for the UK. So, dear readers (especially those of the British variety), would you be so kind as to chime in with your advice and tips on academic fashion in your corner of the world? In particular, what would you recommend for a stylish orientation outfit in the fall? Thank you!
When I was a postgrad (in human geography) in Edinburgh, everything was way more casual and less restrictive than it appears to be in the US (from what I gather reading this blog). Among the postgrads, most of the guys and many girls would wear jeans, tshirt and trainers. Some people would be more dressy (along the lines of the outfits showcased on academichic), but this was more personal preference than any sort of dress code. Many of the middle aged women academics would wear quite hippy-ish outfits, with crumpled organic linen skirts and statement jewellery, and wavy, slightly messy hair. The older male generation of lecturers would wear shirts, but no ties and rarely jackets. Anything properly businesslike would have stood out.
I wore my multicoloured slightly mad outfits throughout my MSc and it was never remarked upon. There were also goths, and fake tanned trendy girls with straightened hair and lots of make up. I never felt that people were judged by their oufits.
Also, my boyfriend (a developmental biologist) spent his entire PhD and now post doc in jeans and tshirts, including conferences. The only time he ever wore a suit was for his post doc interview.
It depends a little on the subject area I suppose. For my current work (in government research) I interact a lot with acadmics, and it seems to me that the social sciences as a whole are all fairly casual, but economists do appear to be more dressy, with suits not being unusual.
Hope this helps!
oh, sorry about length! I do like to go on a bit!
i agree with franca. i’m a postgrad student at a university in london, & anything goes. i will sometimes wear jeans & a hoodie, & sometimes killer heels & a dress, depending on mood.
what i will say though is not to do what visiting americans on my undergrad appeared to do, which was come to class in their pajamas. very odd. as a general rule, we don’t wear “sweatpants” anywhere other than the sofa, the gym & to the corner shop.
I agree with the previous commenters that postgraduates in the UK are generally a lot more casual than US grad students. I suspect the difference is that it’s quite rare for UK postgrads to take on much in the way of teaching, so there’s not the same need to look professional or to distinguish your look from undergraduates.
I’m not a student myself – I work in administration – but the graduate students I come into contact with tend to be fairly casually dressed (although I do get the sense that UK casual is a little different from US casual!). Jeans and Converse are pretty popular, or skinny jeans and boots, or skirts/dresses with opaque tights and boots. If your reader wants to pick a ‘nice’ outfit for her first day I’d suggest a skirt and nice top with knee-high boots – aim for smart casual rather than smart, and try to make sure the look conveys your personality.
Oh, and definitely make sure you have a waterproof coat and an umbrella!
I think the key starting point for a “back to school: UK” wardrobe is a good pair of boots, I’m thinking like some low-heeled brown Frye boots (lots of adorable – and a little expensive, but really worth it good quality – options at their website which is http://www.thefryecompany.com/ and often urban outfitters also stocks some of their boots). Boots, jeans, and a cute top is appropriately casual while still looking like you thought about your outfit. Boots might also be a helpful transition item if you’re used to working business-y environments because you can do boots/thick tights/sweaterdress or skirt and top or whatever and still have the feeling of being dressed up while looking casual and, even better, like you belong.
I’m approaching the end of my PhD at Swansea University. In my dept (English) postgrads wear whatever we like – from v casual to v smart. I have a friend who has lectured while wearing a shirt, tie and fabulous corset, another who teaches tutorials in jeans, cons and t-shirts.
As I look younger than 27 and am v petite, I dress up for teaching so that I at least look a little different to the ugrads – jersey dresses, opaque tights, boots, pencil skirts, smart tops and pumps.
For general day-to day office studying, I just wear whatever I feel like that day. Last week’s outfits for example, ranged from an abstract leopard print dress and leggings to a slouchy t-shirt, boyfriend cardigan, cons and skinny jeans. There’s definitely no expectations (in this department at least) with regard to what we should or shouldn’t wear.
We seem to have quite a stylish dept (it was recently noted that the male academics need to raise their game to keep up!…)
I concur with all the other commenters. Idid some field research in London during my graduate studies. I spent a lot of time with a friend of a friend and his wife, who were both doing his post grad at SOAS. He tended towards jeans, some kind of causal jacket and knit shirt, with smarter looking trainers. She wore knit tops, knit black pants or smarter jeans, and chunky, lower heeled black shoes. I went to a conference in something about as dress as the Academichic girls’ everyday clothes (as I would for an American conference). I was by far the most overdressed, and the fancy people I was excited to meet were dressed like suburban American parents on a vacation.
And Brit grad students seem to have no problem with wearing the same outfit several days in a row with no change. Needless to say, it was a minor culture shock, so slightly underdressed without being sloppy seems the norm.
London is a great (but uber expensive- I think English love to say “uber”) city. Check out Uniqlo and Top shop for more affordable options. Bus instead of tube, bike if possible. Buy your umbrella there (i swear they’re better). Enjoy!
Glamorous Grad student (see blogroll on this site) is UK based, but she seems to be more smartly dressed than average.
I’m a big believer that it depends on your department. I’m in the Archaeology department at Durham, and even the professors are pretty casual (jeans, polo, sweater seem to be the uniform). My friends who are in the English department dress a little more creatively, friends in the science department definitely have some sort of jeans-polo-college sweatshirt dress code, but overall I’d say it’s all very easy going.
My advice would be to dress for how you want to be introduced– if you want to blend in but still look nice, grab some neat-looking dark jeans, and wear a nice blouse underneath a bright sweater. If you’re in a more serious-dressing department (like law, politics, or econ) you might want to switch out the sweater with a nice blazer with a broach like they’ve been showing off on the site. If it’s not matchy-matchy, it stays casual while still looking sharp.
As a postgraduate student at Bangor, I tend to agree with all the things being said here. My group of friends and I have something of a policy about dressing nicer than hoodies and torn jeans, because we feel that we are older now and ought not to dress like teenagers. I’ll still wear those clothes to buy food or to clean my flat. But for lectures and informal meetings with advisers, we’ll go for nice/dark denim with no rips or scuffs, a jumper or nice blouse, or a cardigan or something for the top. I often wear knee-high flat boots (Bangor is in the mountains, making heels of any kind quite impossible) or a nice pair of leather ballet flats (must think about your textiles because of frequent rain- perhaps buy some water-proofing spray for your shoes)
I agree with everyone here that UK postgrad style is generally fairly casual. At my PhD orientation last year, most people (including the lecturers) were wearing some variation of jeans and a t-shirt with a jumper/sweater/cardigan/hoodie over top. But it’s not like you’ll be gawked at if you decide to step up your style game a little. If I had to do over my orientation, I’d probably go with something like this (but with shoes instead of sandals, clearly) or this (again with temperature-appropriate leg- and foot-wear) because I think either of those, casual as they are, would still have been stylish enough for me to stand out a little without feeling grossly over-dressed.
But, really, I think whatever makes you feel comfortable and confident will be just fine. Comfortable and confident are the most important things in my book.
Thanks so much for the comments and advice! I am moving from the US to the UK this week and I’ve been doing much soul searching with regard to my wardrobe! I’ll be on a limited supply as i wait for boxes to arrive but these comments have already helped me choose my orientation day and first few days in the department outfits. (Reminded me to wear my antique cameo brooch for the blazer over dark jeans looks i often sported on my most casual days in the US!) You’ve also added a couple of items to my must-buy for winter list! Love love love those Frye boots!