Business Casual and Business Professional: What Does That Even Mean?!

By Judy Lee ‘17

Let’s be real here: no one actually knows what it means to dress “business casual”.Now, “business professional”—that’s a bit more straightforward. So, let’s start with that! 

Don’t they look like they’re fun at parties???

Business Professional usually entails (for all genders) a suit in black, gray, navy, and other dark tones. This generally includes:

-      A blazer

-       A white button-down shirt

-       A tie

-       Dress pants or a below-the-knee skirt

-       Dress shoes (can be closed toe flats/3-inch-and-under heels)

Notes: the shirt should be long enough to be tucked in, and the pants should be long enough to touch the tops of your shoes. Blazer sleeves should cover your wrists and the blazer itself should end around where your hipbones are.

If you’re going to wear a belt: IT MUST MATCH YOUR SHOE COLOR.

Business casual enters some murky waters. Some say it involves a blazer, others don’t. Some say it’s a chance to show your personal flair, others say professional, business-like image. Some say open toe, and others say NOPE. Some say khakis are a great staple, others say to avoid khakis like the plague. 

I imagine the argument over khakis looking something like this:

Okay, so we’re all still a bit confused. Well, it’s worth noting that in work situations (not mixers and gatherings, etc), it’s usually the boss that decides what specific business casual protocol is. Otherwise, at mixers and meetings at school, you have more freedom. 

The moral is that business casual can be a lot of different things that you want it to be. The general guidelines are pretty loose; though try to stick to these:

-       It should cover you up fairly well (cleavage, arms, upper legs, feet)

-       It should be something you wouldn’t mind meeting a CEO in

-       You should feel confident in it!

That said, here is a list of some things you can use for inspiration (with PICTURES!!):

-      Statement blazers

-      Sweaters

-       Collared statement button-downs

-       Blouses with three-quarter sleeves

-       Belts

-      Pressed dress pants

-       Colorful socks

-       Watches

-       Statement flats

 Note: Jeans are a very up-in-the-air subject. I’d say use your best judgment, but usually it turns out that you should lean more on the side of fabrics that aren’t jeans (wool, corduroy, chinos, etc).

 And what do you know? The USC Spring 2015 Career Fair is today! Here are some bonus tips for all you job-seeking Trojans:

$$$   Go with business PROFESSIONAL for these kinds of recruiting events.

$$$   Print 10-15 copies of your resume and/or business cards. You never know who you’ll run into! Better having too many than too few.

$$$   BRING A PEN!

$$$   Give yourself ample time to walk/bike/skateboard to campus so you aren’t sweating in your suit.

$$$   If you can, DON’T walk around with your skateboard/scooter/bike in arm. If you can, leave them at home or in a safe place!

$$$   Dusting some baby powder or flour onto your hands will soak up all that hand sweat so you can rock the handshakes! Just make sure you’ve rubbed it in enough so you don’t look and smell like you just changed a diaper.

$$$   Count to 5 while breathing in, hold for 6 seconds, breathe out for 5. Repeat as necessary. Works wonders for calming yourself down. 

$$$   Remember to make eye contact and smile with your FIRM handshake!

Got it?! Now GO OUT THERE AND SLAY THOSE RECRUITERS TODAY AT THE CAREER FAIR. WORK IT (as in get employed. Employment, people).

(Mad props to Business Insider, Forbes, GQ, Lifestyle, EHow, Art of Manliness, and University of Toronto for descriptions and photo references.)