In my opinion, there are just a few rules you have to follow when dressing for the hospital or clinic during third or fourth year. So here is all I know about medical school fashion: DON’T: Nothing too trendy- don’t wear sequins or cut out shoulders or leather leggings. Don’t wear anything with big logos. It’s distracting to the patients and labels you as much as it labels the clothing item. Don’t wear anything revealing or sexy. It’s the worst when your shirt is a tiny bit too low cut or your skirt is a tiny bit too short- you will feel self conscious about it all day long and it will ruin your day. Just opt for high collars and skirts that leave plenty of room (especially when you sit down!!) Don’t be messy or sloppy (obviously). You want patients to trust you with their care, so you should look the part DO: Do wear fun clothes and fun fashion. You don’t have to be boring and you can still wear things you love and look professional. Wear clothes that fit. Find a tailer you like and have them hem pants, sleeves, take things in- whatever you need. Keep your clothes wrinkle free. For me, this means buying as much anti-wrinkle fabric as possible because I hate ironing. Check Also: Taking Your Clothes Off In Front Of Your Doctor How To Dress According To Your Body Shape And Type Okay, onto what I wore in med school: I would be remiss if I didn’t start out by talking about these pants. I have them in 4 colors and I wore them almost every day in medical school. They are a little bit stretchy, super comfortable, and flattering. My favorite part about them was that I didn’t have to hem them if I bought the petite size. The only downfall is that they are dry-clean only. I actually wash mine in the regular washer and they don’t last as long, but since I wear them ALL the time it was worth it to wash them at home and buy a new pair the next year instead of dry-cleaning them so often. In terms of tops, I tend to gravitate toward sleeveless tops in the summer (because Indiana is HOT and since you always have your white coat on over the shirt, sleeves are just not necessary I have a couple other pairs of pants from J Crew that aren’t the Minnie and I don’t like them as much. I also LOVE dresses. They are easy to throw on in a hurry and you don’t have to match anything! This dress is from BCBG. I bought it years ago and still wear it often. Wrap dresses are another favorite of mine- perfect for summer, or with tights in the winter: I often check out TJ Max or Marshall’s as well for some easy tops to wear with pants or skirts. These are both from TJs I think? SOME OF MY FAVORITE STORES: J. Crew- But it’s expensive, so J. Crew Outlet was a favorite of mine. I love their pencil skirts which are generally pretty inexpensive. This one is on sale now: This is a J Crew pencil skirt: These tops would be perfect for a hot summer. Banana Republic- I LOVE these dresses!!! So cute and comfortable looking!! I would wear all these tops. They look pretty wrinkle free, cool, and easy to pair with skirts or pants. Plus, they have a flattering neckline that isn’t too low cut Okay, I LOVE Hautelook. If you’ve never shopped there before, it’s an online shopping site with amazing discounts and deals on everything from designer handbags to regular clothes. I have purchased TONS of clothes, shoes, and jewelry from Hautelook and have never been disappointed. They also have a great return policy in case you don’t love what you bought. These dresses are on sale right now: Hautelook is also the PERFECT place for jewelry. I really love wearing big necklaces to work because I think it makes my look more unique and stylish but still professional. The only problem is, jewelry is crazy expensive!!!! Hautelook has tons of great jewelry for a much better price. Here are some necklaces I found yesterday: I think these would look great over the collar of a button down. MAYO CLINIC FASHION Once I started at Mayo, a few things changed in my wardrobe. Mayo’s dress code is for physicians to wear suits every day. Men must wear a suit and tie. Women are allowed to wear dresses and cardigans as well, but I have a real issue with women’s fashion compared with men’s fashion. Here is my little rant. I think it is INFINITELY easier for men to look sharp and professional in the workplace compared with women. Men just have to wear a suit and tie and as long as the suit is tailored well, they look awesome. Women on the other hand, have a much harder time getting that “sharp” look. I think it’s so much easier for women to look sloppy if they wear a dress or cardigan. Also, women’s suits are generally not even CLOSE to the quality of men’s suits. This makes me really mad. Men’s suits are almost always made of wool. If you go to Macy’s, basically all the men’s suits are wool. All the women’s suits?? THEY ARE POLYESTER AND RAYON. Yep. Macy’s doesn’t even sell ONE wool suit for women. Isn’t that ridiculous?? Also, women’s suits NEVER have pockets on the inside and the pants rarely have pockets. I think all that is just bogus. They make it so easy for men to carry things around and basically force women to carry around a purse because none of our clothes are made with pockets!! Grrrrrr…… When I started working at Mayo I knew I wanted to look JUST as good as the boys. So, I started hunting for women’s wool suits. Guess what? They are hard to find. The only 2 stores (besides Saks which is too expensive for me) I found that sells wool suits for ladies were J. Crew and Brooks Brothers. I immediately fell in love with Brooks Brother’s suits. They are unbelievably nice. I felt just as sharp as the boys when I tried them on. So, I waited for a great sale (50% off!!) and bought 2 Brooks Brother’s suits. I also fell in love with their no-iron dress shirts. I made the mistake of buying the ones that don’t button all the way up, and those are a little low cut for me… so I had my tailor sew on an extra button. These are the ones I buy now: (you can find them buy one get one free sometimes) (undershirt from Hautelook!) In my navy Brooks Bro suit I got the skirt and pants (although I like pants better because I like the pockets). And even at the end of the day, my hair might be a mess and I might be carrying a lunchbox and umbrella- but at least my suit looks good! And that’s it!! Everything I know about medical school fashion. I’d love to hear about what you wear to work!! Source
