Comments on: What is “professional dress” in academia?

By: Professional Dress In Academia « Dress for Success

Professional Dress In Academia « Dress for Success — Wed, 07 Dec 2011 07:42:18 +0000

[...] Check Out This Website: http://www.historiann.com/2008/09/09/what-is-professional-dress-in-academia/ [...]

By: College vs. “the real world.” Who pushes this myth, and why? : Historiann : History and sexual politics, 1492 to the present

Fri, 23 Sep 2011 16:46:13 +0000

[...] saving for retirement) until we’re at least 30. (Of course–the not-shaving and the relaxed dress codes are mostly a dude thing–but I’ve been known to teach in jeans every once in a while, or to attend a faculty [...]

By: Historiann

Historiann — Thu, 11 Sep 2008 16:04:04 +0000

AiG–thanks for stopping by and commenting. Your story is terrible! Think of how that must have felt to the poor young woman–to be objectified (and with a dash of ethnic discrimination thrown into the pot.) Clearly, many of your colleagues are not comfortable with young women colleagues, but that’s their problem–they shouldn’t make it HER problem.

And, I agree with your ethic that “if you are going to be on public display or the representative of your institution, you have an obligation to look as good as possible.”

By: AmericanInGermany

AmericanInGermany — Thu, 11 Sep 2008 14:41:23 +0000

I’m a male professor spending time at a German research institute, and I cannot believe how sexist and stuffy and conservative it is here. A colleague of mine at the institute, who is female and single an young and attractive, and who is from the Ukraine, recently gave a major research presentation, which was quite excellent,and she wore a short skirt (though not a miniskirt). I thought she looked rather good in it, but frankly I thought the research was the main thing to focus on. Well the only comments she got afterward from the institute director were about the length of her skirt. And other male colleagues made reference to her dressing “Eastern European”

THis goes along with alot of the rest of the academic culture I’ve noticed in Germany, as well as other parts of Europe. It is even more sexist than the States, with the possible exception of some parts of the South. I think that if you are going to be on public display or the representative of your institution, you have an obligation to look as good as possible. If you look good in a skirt and heels, you should be allowed to wear them, wear make up, whatever, and still be given the courtesy of having questions or comments on your research, not your outfit.

By: Historiann

Historiann — Thu, 11 Sep 2008 14:07:31 +0000

Ha! Except that in defining stylish dressing as a gay thing, HA, don’t you think you’re not encouraging the straight men to up their fashion sense? Have some pity on the women faculty and grad student here who have documented the (presumably straight) male fashion atrocities!

By: Homostorian Americanist

Homostorian Americanist — Thu, 11 Sep 2008 03:53:32 +0000

A bit slow on the uptake, but I actually write from Historiann’s guest room! I second Squadratomagico’s observation that a university may have different codes for different departments. Here at Baa Ram U’s neighboring school, Moo Moo U, the men in English tend to be very casual, whereas in History (where Homostorian Americanist teaches) men wear ties. Until this year and the addition of a new male hire, HA was the only man who did not wear a tie.

I wear a shirt and/or sweater and pants (almost never jeans) but for me it’s much more about dressing “well” than it is about dressing formally. There’s not so much dressing well at Moo Moo U and as I am a homo from New York, I feel the need to represent up here in northern Colorado. My outfits are always identifiably gay (though in northern colorado that generally just means that everything fits instead of being baggy) and I have interesting shoes. While I suspect that some of my older colleagues look at me askance I have decided that they just need to get over it. They are good people, on the whole, however, and I also recognize that because I am out at work, my clothing choices get accorded to my homosexuality and they know they can’t actually object to that.

By: Historiann

Historiann — Wed, 10 Sep 2008 11:58:46 +0000

Prof. Z–rock star? I don’t want to hear what they were playing on the stereos of those expensive cars…

Ageing does have its advantages, as you say.

By: Professor Zero

Professor Zero — Wed, 10 Sep 2008 03:52:50 +0000

A graduate student brought this up today. He says he wears a tie to teach because it gets students to take him seriously and study.

I dressed to teach in graduate school for reasons of authority, too. Needed it then. Now I am twice the age of an undergraduate so I have natural authority.

In my first job, which I did not like and where I swear I was bullied, I dressed very nicely but did not dress like a banker, as the other women did. They really did, and they drove expensive cars. They said disapprovingly that I was dressing like a rock star [sic]. I couldn’t believe it. As in: skirt and sweater of the same color from Joan Vass, stockings and nice heels, my grandmother’s discreet earrings and necklace … rock star??? But that was what they thought.

I did not wear jeans in that job but I have worn them steadily (although not constantly) since.

By: Susan

Susan — Wed, 10 Sep 2008 03:24:17 +0000

NK, how fun to think like a lord. (Though one of my favorite articles ever is the Patricia Williams piece “On being the object of Property” in Signs, which asks us NOT to think like medieval lords.) And Historiann, a “fee tail” is an entail (see Pride & Prejudice), where property is held but you don’t have the right to determine who inherits — the path of inheritance is determined by the type of property.

By: Historiann

Historiann — Wed, 10 Sep 2008 02:55:08 +0000

Thanks, New Kid! I hope you’re enjoying your studies so far. (What is fee tail, anyway? So long as we’re also defining “wife beaters”…)