packing list – Page 2 – PhD in Clothes

Every job interview outfit I wore/a life announcement

I’m so excited to finally be able to tell you: I have a job! A professor job! I am so excited. But also a little emotionally exhausted. Before I got the job, I was 95% worry every waking hour (and most of the night…). After, I just have to keep reminding myself that the search is over. But the challenges of trying to graduate are not. I will be starting as an assistant professor in the fall.

I wouldn’t let myself hope for the best–the academic job market is tough (understatement)–so I hadn’t processed any of the exciting parts of having a professor job. And finally getting to talk with you all about the academic job hunting process is one of those things! So, let’s start today with the easy stuff: every outfit I wore to an academic interview.

Conference Packing List

I just got back from 6 DAYS of conferencing–definitely my longest conference to date. So, if you’re in need of business packing that can last you all week, here’s my packing list!

What I packed:

Surviving academic conferences

My yearly national conference is coming up this week and it has me Amazon prime-ing myself so many items that I need to keep it together at academic conferences. Germs, lack of food, nerves…academic conferences are a nightmare on my body. But, keeping a few items in my bag goes a long way. Here’s what I’ve needed in the past.

What I wore: Fall conference edition

I’m sitting in Newark (drinking rosé, eating fries!) after a successful 3 days of conferencing. It turns out that being on the job market DOES suck some of the fun out of conferences because it amps up all nerves I’ve been harboring as-is. This conference was specifically for doctoral candidates on the job market to be seen by established professors in the same field, so as you might imagine, the pressure felt real.

Anyway. On to clothes. This was a fall conference, which is the best time to dress for because business casual is no longer too warm! Here’s what I wore…

What do I wear to grad orientation?

Grad orientation may be the most stressful outfit choice you make all year–because you’ve never met your department before, so you have no idea what the norms are (unless you can rack your brain about visit weekend). Also, it’s realllly hot out right now, which led to me choosing shorts for day 1 of my MA orientation. And then we took a department picture. And I was front and center on the website. And my mom has never let me forget it.

There’s nothing wrong with shorts, I was just the only person in them. So here are some other outfit combos that can keep you cool while being a step above that, just to make sure the first day goes smoothly:

What I’m packing for a summer conference

Professionalism is hard enough without it being 90 degrees with 80% humidity, but that’s exactly what I’m facing next week at a Nashville conference I’m attending. Here’s what I’m packing and what’s on the agenda:

Cheaper business clothes: What I’ve thrifted

This week I’m talking about my search for affordable business clothes–today I’ll talk traditional thrifting, later this week I’ll move on to my current app-addiction, Poshmark. But today: thrifting.

The 8 pieces you need to start teaching

Hi friends! This post is all about what I bought to get started teaching as a grad student. This was my big question after I accepted my offer to start my MA (yeah I know, I should have been looking for apartments and registering for classes). I think with 8 pieces or so, you have a good start that can make lots of outfits, whether you are TA-ing once a week or teaching your own class several times a week.

I suggest a nice work bag, 2 work shirts, a dress, a blazer, a pencil skirt, dress pants, and one pair of extremely comfortable work shoes. Sources here.

To extend these pieces, I mix my casual wear in with a couple of dressier pieces. I think t shirts and jeans can look classy, especially with a blazer.

I also tend to add in my more casual shoes, like sandals and boots. Though if you’re in the market for several pairs of teaching shoes, I think oxfords are so geeky and perfect for grad school.

If you’re getting ready to make the move to start teaching, I hope this list helps you start to make a workable wardrobe ❤

Conference packing, Spring edition

This week I am headed to a conference that poses a packing challenge because I am wrapping in 2 days of conference with 12 days of visiting my parents in Phoenix. This called for some extreme minimalism: 2 shirts, dress pants, 2 pairs of shoes, and a sweater.

I blogged recently about my hatred of dress pants, and the good news is I’ve found a pair I like a lot at Loft. I actually managed to make a conference outfit that feels like “me” this time around, also, which is progress because I really don’t enjoy business casual clothes.

I’ve started to think more seriously about building a business casual capsule wardrobe as well. I won’t be on the job market for another year, but I’m a slow shopper so I would like to get a start on this now. As part of a capsule wardrobe, I like to pick 4-5 colors and focus on buying clothes in those colors so everything matches (this makes packing for anything AMAZING!).

However, I’m not really sure what colors to go with on this. I would love to do black/camel as my neutral bases and blush (pictured here) and burgundy as accents. However, I can’t deny that I tend to gravitate toward navy and grays also. But, because I’m going to start with a small business wardrobe I think I should start with more limited colors. (PS: I just got these Sam Edelman flats and they are the most comfortable flats I’ve ever owned. Conference MVPs for sure).

What do you think? What colors would you go with? If you’ve built a business capsule, do you have any advice about what items to start with?

How to avoid looking like an undergrad in grad school

Is this a common grad school anxiety? I think it is. If you’ve come straight out of your undergrad, you probably want to look older so that you don’t get hit on by some guy in the dining hall line who asks, “so, are you a freshman?” (#truestory). Some ideas:

-Messenger bag or tote>backpack. Some suggestions.

-Mix one business casual piece in with your casual wear (in this case, oxfords).

-Sweat pants/workout clothes are awesome and you have every right to wear them but they may increase the risk of the aforementioned junior-guy-hits-on-you scenario.

-Glasses have been shown to boost your perceived credibility.

You could also just decide you don’t care if someone mistakes you for an undergrad! But on days when you do care, the above can be helpful.