{"id":8625,"date":"2026-02-11T09:48:52","date_gmt":"2026-02-11T09:48:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/careers\/?p=8625"},"modified":"2026-04-15T11:29:23","modified_gmt":"2026-04-15T10:29:23","slug":"back-to-basics-2-the-unwritten-rules-of-interviews","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/careers\/?p=8625","title":{"rendered":"Back to basics 2: the unwritten rules of interviews"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/careers\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/B2B2-Lego.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignright wp-image-8628\" src=\"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/careers\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/B2B2-Lego.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"232\" height=\"173\" \/><\/a>Got an interview coming up? Here&#8217;s what you need to know about dress code, body language, and tone to help you feel prepared on the day.<\/p>\n<h4>Dress the part without losing yourself: clothes, confidence, and first impressions<\/h4>\n<p>If in doubt, the general rule of thumb is that it&#8217;s better to be too smart than too casual (employers often expect interviewees to be smarter than everyday wear). <a href=\"https:\/\/help.open.ac.uk\/do-your-research-when-applying-for-jobs\">Research the company&#8217;s values<\/a> and look at what employees typically wear to help gauge where to pitch your interview outfit. Some organisations are formal, whilst others are more relaxed.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Safe options:<\/strong> Smart trousers, shirts, blouses, skirts or dresses, smart shoes. A blazer if you have one.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Avoid:<\/strong> Denim jeans, slogan t-shirts, clothes that show your underwear, flip flops and trainers.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h4>Interviews: it&#8217;s how you say it, not just what you say<\/h4>\n<p>An interview is a two-way conversation to find out if the role is a good fit \u2013 for both you and the employer. <a href=\"https:\/\/openuniversity.careercentre.me\/interview360\">Practice giving interviews<\/a> using our Interview360 tool to build your confidence.<\/p>\n<p>Here are a few tips to help you feel confident:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Body language:<\/strong> Good posture helps convey engagement. If eye contact feels natural for you, that&#8217;s great, but looking at the interviewer&#8217;s face or towards them works just as well.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Tone:<\/strong> Speak clearly and try not to rush. If you need a moment to think, just say &#8220;That&#8217;s a good question, let me consider that&#8221; \u2013 it shows thoughtfulness, not uncertainty.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Preparation:<\/strong> Practice honest but professional answers to common questions like &#8220;Tell me about yourself&#8221; and &#8220;Why do you want this role?&#8221;<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h4>You&#8217;ve got this \u2013 and we&#8217;ve got you<\/h4>\n<p>We can support you in preparing for an interview or a new job role. <a href=\"https:\/\/help.open.ac.uk\/book-a-careers-appointment\">Book a careers consultation<\/a> with the OU Careers team to talk things over.<\/p>\n<div class=\"ou-box ou-box--info\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignleft wp-image-6664 \" src=\"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/careers\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/Penny-crop-150x150.jpg\" alt=\"OU Careers Consultant Penny\" width=\"93\" height=\"93\" \/><em>Penny Beecroft is an OU Careers and Employability Consultant specialising in supporting students in Wales. Penny helps students navigate their futures, figure out their goals and build their confidence through one-to-one careers consultations and by designing career learning events and resources for the OU. Explore the rest of the Careers Stories page for more articles from the Careers and Employability Services team.<\/em><\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>Read the other articles in our <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/careers\/?tag=back-to-basics-series\">Back to basics series &#8211; the unwritten rules of the job hunt and your first day<\/a><\/strong>.<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Got an interview coming up? Here&#8217;s what you need to know about dress code, body language, and tone to help you feel prepared on the day. Dress the part without losing yourself: clothes, confidence, and first impressions If in doubt, the general rule of thumb is that it&#8217;s better to be too smart than too [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":49,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1,69],"tags":[113,109],"class_list":["post-8625","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-career-planning","category-interviews","tag-back-to-basics-series","tag-interviews"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/careers\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8625","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/careers\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/careers\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/careers\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/49"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/careers\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=8625"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/careers\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8625\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":8771,"href":"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/careers\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8625\/revisions\/8771"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/careers\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=8625"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/careers\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=8625"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/careers\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=8625"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}