Edits* I reread my rant and decided it’s better to remove it. The point of my story was three fold, but it got lost in the message: 1) diversity hires are still highly in demand, 2) firms that cannot fill a position for several months if not a diversity hire are leaving money on the table by not considering non diversity candidates, and 3) don’t be stupid, wear a conservative suit to the interview-you can wear the fancy/loud /whatever the hell you want after you get the job.
Millenials.
Maybe, you’re making a broad generalization on what you term “diversity hires” based on one dude’s loud choice of clothing. And MAYBE your firm is having a hard time attracting anyone who is not a stuffy white dude because people like you care so much about this that you’re willing to make a TLS post about it.
I get that this is a dumb move, but that one guy who is poorly dressed /=/ all urm candidates are entitled and feel they can do whatever they want.
You keep your stuffy weirdly-veiled-racist-or-homophobic outrage. I’ll keep stylin on y’all.
If your firm is struggling to hire someone, maybe the firm is the problem.
not sure why u had to throw in “diversity hire.”
Wow, wonder why you guys are having trouble.
so everyone’s not a boring WASP. isn’t that why you are trying to bring in diverse talent in the first place. also your anger seems erroneous and misplaced, since the diversity hires are actually getting the jobs, not being rejected for risky fashion choices.
Diversity issues aside, interview attire should always be traditional. That doesn’t mean you can’t push the daily dress code to the max if you so desire and can get away with it.
Law firms are hired by their clients because they exercise sound judgement and provide conservative (not in the political sense), well reasoned and objective advice. Showing up to an interview in something extravagant or that seriously deviates from the norm is a great example of not exercising sound judgement. Nobody is saying you need to wear a bespoke j press suit, Alden cap toes, a rep tie and a perfect side part. Go to Filene’s basement buy a cheap grey suit, black oxfords, a white shirt and a subdued tie. Spend a couple bucks on tailoring - this should not break the bank. Put it on a credit card if you have to. It’s something that will pay off many times over. A diversity hire who truly can’t afford it should reach out to career services - there are plenty of charities that would put you in interview attire.
If I was interviewing law students and one showed up wearing something that significantly deviated from the norm I would absolutely notice it. Not to say it would sink your chances with me but it would definitely stick out in my mind - and not in a good way. A black or Spanish law student might get a little bit more slack because it’s more likely they did not grow up knowing how to dress for a professional job (I realize this sounds horribly racist but it’s not how I mean it).
That being said I wore jeans and a t shirt to the office yesterday so I’m not some clothing snob.
Just my pathetic two cents.
this is wonderful in so many ways. the stories are truly captivating
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Even though this was incredibly offensive, at least you have the balls to not hide behind anonymous unlike OP.
I’d be happy to. I’m sitting in a conference at the moment posting from a cracked iPhone give me a bit to get home and hopefully I can more accurately describe my meaning from a keyboard.
I’m curious to hear the justification, because most of the minority students at my school were middle class or above. Very few people grew up in poverty, regardless of ethnicity. Curious to see how that translates to not knowing how to dress up for an interview ffs.
Maybe Spanish law students are more chill because that’s how they do it in Spain.
how do you find out which firms are hiring diversity candidates?
Give him a break man. He’s just doing his part in making America great again. This is unfortunately the world we live in now.