Need some honest advice! Should I dress my age?

NJIT? Wut wut?

If you don't like standing out, don't dress in a way that draws unnecessary attention. Maybe you could keep it casual and have a nice pair of shoes or wear a jacket over a sweater or something. Go one notch above, but not 10 notches.

Originally Posted by DerekS

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My general thought for myself is that if someone at work doesn't make fun of my outfit, then I need to step up my game.
I recently found out that I am the only teacher in my school's 70-year history to have their staff photo taken with a bow-tie on.

for campus imo : pants should be chinos no dress pants, no dress shirt but sport shirts, you can wear with or without v-neck or crew neck. no top coat but a parka for winter, a good quilted jacket for autumn. i like vests, you can wear them easily, it's a good look. you can alternate them with some blazers (a navy or tweed)... no tie.

edit : for shoes, a shoes of type rl darlton wil be nice, no elongated last.

I am also in school, similar age.

Someone mentioned dark-colored chinos: this is a great, well-dressed (not up-dressed) alternative to wool slacks. J.crew makes an "urban slim fit" which is quite youthful, and Brooks Brothers is another option in their "Milano" fit (I think there may be a sale on currently).

As a general rule, a tie will be the thing that will tip the balance out of your favor. One way I like to get around this is by wearing sillier ties, with car or animal motifs for instance. Liberty of London is a good occasional maker of emblematic ties that are classy, playful, and handsome, but not dorky. Dorky can work in your favor, though. It all depends on your attitude.

Vests are tricky. I generally go with a nice shirt, a plain cotton or cashmere v-neck, chinos, and occasionally a blazer. I am not sure what the SF consensus about buttoning the top button of a shirt without a tie, but I have lately come to appreciate this as a put-together, fashion-forward option for keeping things neat and young.

An important possibility to consider is that you may be attempting to stand out, at some level. Make sure you aren't asking for what you are getting, and that you are really dressing for yourself. At least try to be cognizant of what it is you are setting out to do by "dressing up."

One last tip: let your hair do more or less its own thing. If you want to fit in you will need to be slightly unkempt in some respect. In the larger world, this will likely just get you labeled eccentric.

Good luck!

Originally Posted by its299792458mps

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Does this help?

This is just a lot of elements not blending together well. The combination of the casual fully buttoned shirt, formal tie, dorky hair, and the vest makes you look like you're trying to be a New York fashionista minus the flair who forgot his jacket. That in itself wouldn't be terrible except for the fact that you're a TA. College kids don't hate the fact that you're dressed up, it just doesn't work.

I started wearing beige chinos and black loafers without socks at the age of 16, by 18 I was never out of my v-necks. By the time I hit Uni, people were still after orange colored abercrombie tracksuits. People claimed that I also flaunted my money with my style (I laughed and call them pathetic) anyway show people your true character and they´ll realise your true image. I´m coming to 22 now, yes I do have an interest for the finer things and my dress sense is causal but smart (sport coats, pocket squares,v-necks,chinos,loafers) . But i´ve made my social circle and others around me see beyond that and now those orange abercrombie tracksuit lovers are starting to follow my style. Only problem is, now I have trouble trying to persuade girls that I´m still young , but hey its all good -Btw, ditch the dress pants and stay a bit more casual. (chinos,non-washed slim/straight leg jeans) -Be more confident and sociable. Try never to look down on anyone even if they are a social outcast or marsupial, otherwise you´ll easily get labelled with the style you have. -Be bold, add brighter colors, dark gloomy colors (i.e grey,dark brown,black) are just bland. Bright colors make you the cool kid and voila monsieur, you will thank us for being successful in life

The OP dresses up alright.
However, if he can't handle attention, he should not do anything to draw it.
Still, I think he dress up too young.
He should dress up more mature, but not old man-ish.


Honestly as student, I hate teachers that couldn't dress up well.Especially in University Business programs.

It's not that hard.

Blue denim
White shirt
Black blazer



However all I see, are ill-fitted outdated suits from 90's. maybe it is different in States...

Originally Posted by its299792458mps

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Does this help?

The personality behind the clothes is always important. Having the right smile/facial gestures really can make a person look more attractive and appealing.
Students will poke fun at you if you are ultra serious while wearing those clothes which are not 100% ultra serious. Match personality with clothes and occasion.

What I would Wear?
Navy/Black sport coat, Jeans, T-shirt, Sneakers <- the laid back sorta look.
Jeans/Chino, Bright Polo
Dress Shirt / Plaid dress Shirt , Jeans (Dark), (no tie, no vest), Fold sleeves, Belt Buckle

Alternatively you can conform to this:

Originally Posted by Yorsch

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The OP dresses up alright.
However, if he can't handle attention, he should not do anything to draw it.
Still, I think he dress up too young.
He should dress up more mature, but not old man-ish.


Honestly as student, I hate teachers that couldn't dress up well.Especially in University Business programs.

It's not that hard.

Blue denim
White shirt
Black blazer



However all I see, are ill-fitted outdated suits from 90's. maybe it is different in States...

Its the same. Most professors never wore a suit.
However I did have one teacher who was not really a Professor but more of an experienced professional teaching the class, and boy was he classy. Was always sartorial in his nature of clothing: Sport Coat and contrasting pants, Brown Lace Ups, Matching Socks, Cartier Watch...

Class directly afterwards was a skinny frail old guy who wore turtle necks everyday with sneakers and baggy jeans.

Originally Posted by HalfCanvas

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Regarding your statement that "dress pants are more comfortable." I don't think that necessarily has to be the case. For example, I have some RRL straight leg jeans which have a nice slim line but a longer rise; I don't find them uncomfortable in the least. And even dark denim can take a pretty good beating, and so they are "more comfortable" than dress pants in the sense that you'll never have to worry about whether someone is spilling some beer on you, etc.
I think a pair of well fitted chinos/pants would surpass jeans in terms of comfort. Higher rise(you can't wear jeans as high as dress pants), deeper pockets, sans belt loops, pleats and etc(Of course, most features are hardly found unless one goes for bespoke). Plus, you get different kinds of material and weights for different weathers, whereas with jeans, there is only denim and denim.

Originally Posted by Yorsch

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The OP dresses up alright.
However, if he can't handle attention, he should not do anything to draw it.
Still, I think he dress up too young.
He should dress up more mature, but not old man-ish.


Honestly as student, I hate teachers that couldn't dress up well.Especially in University Business programs.

It's not that hard.

Blue denim
White shirt
Black blazer



However all I see, are ill-fitted outdated suits from 90's. maybe it is different in States...

I agree.

Here in Italy, wearing a blazer at university it's not a kind of overdressing. Yes, at Uni there are all kind of people, most of them wearing abercrombie and similar, but nobody takes care if you are wearing a jacket, a dress shirt or chinos.
But..please forget vests without jacket or, better, forget wearing vests at university (especially with casual shirts ).
IMHO you have to choose lighter colours for everyday wearing at our age (i'm 22)

Carlo.

Originally Posted by Saturdays

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Its the same. Most professors never wore a suit. However I did have one teacher who was not really a Professor but more of an experienced professional teaching the class, and boy was he classy. Was always sartorial in his nature of clothing: Sport Coat and contrasting pants, Brown Lace Ups, Matching Socks, Cartier Watch... Class directly afterwards was a skinny frail old guy who wore turtle necks everyday with sneakers and baggy jeans.
I've heard about one professor at my UNI dressed very well. (whispering: he even wears a pocket square) However never had chance to meet him myself. Still the most disappointment comes from science/It/engineering.

Originally Posted by carlogamba

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I agree. Here in Italy, wearing a blazer at university it's not a kind of overdressing. Yes, at Uni there are all kind of people, most of them wearing abercrombie and similar, but nobody takes care if you are wearing a jacket, a dress shirt or chinos. But..please forget vests without jacket or, better, forget wearing vests at university (especially with casual shirts

). IMHO you have to choose lighter colours for everyday wearing at our age (i'm 22) Carlo.
That's not me on the picture. But I totally understand and agree with you.

Originally Posted by Yorsch

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That's not me on the picture.

But I totally understand and agree with you.
I agreed with you! I was talking to its299792458mps

Originally Posted by Last Year's Man

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I recently found out that I am the only teacher in my school's 70-year history to have their staff photo taken with a bow-tie on.

I was told in a company meeting that I was the only person anyone in my building had seen in a bow tie in real life. I told them they needed to get out more.