A Quick Overview to the UPSC interview dress code
Interview for UPSC exams will be the final stage and is considered the most crucial stage of the Civil Service examination. This interview process will be the deciding stage to say if the candidate is capable of being selected or not.
There is no particular syllabus in the interview process; it is all about your appearance, awareness, and knowledge. The interview process is also known as a personality test wherein your personality will be judged by the panel members.
The interview process lasts for a minimum of 30 minutes; marks allotted for this stage are 275 marks out of 2025. You can say that these 30 minutes can change the life of the candidate.
However, the marks scored by the candidate in the Mains and Prelims will not play any part in deciding the result of the interview but these marks will add up to the final total and may affect the ranking. As mentioned above, the interview process is not a test for judging your knowledge but rather your innate personality and behavior.
Dress code for UPSC interview:
- Your clothes must be neat and well-washed. Make sure to iron them one day before to avoid a last-minute rush while getting ready.
- You must avoid wearing too light or too tight clothes, choose the correct size to appear decent in front of the panel members.
- Women should prefer Indian formal dresses, you can opt for a regular suit in case you are not comfortable with a saree.
- The color of your suit must be light and sober preferably cotton made.
- Both men and women should be dressed appropriately in simple clothes for the UPSC interview.
- Women should wear very little make-up, if possible no make-up. Even if you wish to, make sure to look professional in appearance.
- One must avoid wearing high heels for footwear as it might cause unnecessary noise while walking.
- Wear comfortable footwear such as flats or low heel sandals.
- Women must tie their hair properly, avoid keeping their hair loose, they might cause a distraction for both you and the interviewer.
- Avoid wearing chappals, flip-flops, or sneakers. Go for formal shoes or decent sandals.
- Men should opt for formal shirts with formal pants; the color must be light and without any fancy prints.
- You can wear a necktie to look more professional for the interview.
- Footwear for men should be only formals that are well polished with dark color socks.
- Hair must be neatly combed and short in length as long hair might give out an unpleasant gesture in front of the interviewer.
- Women must avoid wearing heavy and flashy jewelry, just a simple chain and one-finger ring would be sufficient.
- Don’t use hairpins that are catchy in color and texture.
- Men must not wear jeans and a t-shirt as it will look unprofessional.
- A formal watch is well appreciated by both men and women.
- You must avoid bright-colored clothes.
- One must avoid wearing strong perfumes and deodorants. You can wear mild perfume instead.
- Women must not carry expensive and catchy handbags, a simple purse and documents will be enough.
- Do not wear anything that can relate your thoughts to any particular religion or political group.
- You must carry all the required documents for the interview process; make sure to keep the file ready one day before the interview.
- Candidates must be present 30 minutes before the given time; this will help them with small preparation and overcoming the fear of the interview.
- One thing that a candidate can consider is wearing clothes according to the weather conditions.
- Avoid wearing newly stitched clothes for the interview as they might make you uneasy.
There are a few myths about the UPSC interview like you have to be fluent in English to clear the UPSC interview, you need to know all the answers for the questions asked and the interview process is the actual test of knowledge, etc. but in reality, it is not like that, the interviewer will look for your personality, how well you can understand and answer the questions, your way of approach to the problems and most importantly your behavior.
Hence you must work on yourself before the interview, try to learn new skills to improve your personality. This will be very helpful not only for the UPSC interview but also for your career in the future.
Take time to answer the questions asked by the panel members, don’t be in a hurry to show your potential.
It is a well-known fact that the first impression is the best. Hence make efforts to look good, be positive, and create magic with your behavior in front of the panel members.
