Dress for success

The first time business undergraduate Jeremiah Tay went to a grooming class held by his university, he showed up in what he thought was appropriate corporate wear - baggy trousers.

The 25-year-old was promptly taken to task by the instructor. He recalls with a laugh: "She said it looked like I was hiding a chicken in my pants."

The free course was conducted by the career services office of the business school at the National University of Singapore (NUS) to help students acquire skills useful for getting ahead, such as dressing for success.

Such grooming and etiquette classes, long a standard feature at many American Ivy League universities, have become increasingly common at tertiary institutions here that want their students to stand out in a crowded job market.

Take the course that Tay attended.

The six-week Career Planning and Management Programme, introduced in 2006, is mandatory for all first-year NUS business students and covers not just resume writing and networking skills but also dressing etiquette.

These days, Tay has a firm grasp of sartorial details - not to mention, a job in hand.

The fourth-year finance student graduates in May and already has a job offer in the banking industry.

Thanks to the grooming tips learnt during the course, his interview suits fit him impeccably - he gets them tailored. He says: "First impressions count a lot and I definitely feel more confident walking into an interview because I feel like one of them."

Other tertiary institutions helping to give students a style edge include Singapore Management University (SMU) with its Finishing Touch course launched in 2001, and the Nanyang Technological University Business School, which started The Winning Formula programme taught by image consultancy firm Imageworks Asia in 2007.

Singapore Polytechnic launched an etiquette and professional image module nine years ago for business students and started offering it to all its students five years ago.

The savvy schools often invite representatives from brands such as beauty and skincare chain The Body Shop and clothing label Crocodile to hold workshops on grooming and dressing for the workplace.

Small wardrobes of suits, shirts and shoes are available at the three universities for students who need to borrow clothes for formal events or interviews.

The NUS Business School career services office even has a tailor who comes twice a year to take bulk orders for suits.

Professional make-up and photography services are also offered to students who want to add a more professional touch to their resumes.

Unlike the free courses, students must pay for these services.

One style expert the institutions consult is Angeelia Phua, the principal trainer for Re Vamp Image Training, which conducts courses for the NUS Business School students.

"Many students have a very narrow concept of professional dress - they think it just means long sleeves," says Phua, who is in her 30s.

"A good professional wardrobe is an investment in yourself. It need not be expensive, but it must be presentable."

She adds: "There are many graduates in the market now and before interviewers see your resume, they see your attire. If they like the way you look, they become more receptive towards whatever you have to say."

Indeed, SMU's Career Services director Ruth Chiang, who is in her 50s, notes: "These difficult times are unprecedented and for this batch of graduating students, it will be a baptism of fire. How you present yourself is one way of showing how ready you are to join the workforce."

Still, students need not fear leaving their young, hip ways behind to become corporate clones.

Second-year SMU business student Cheryl Sim, 20, for example, wears shirts tailored with French cuffs - rather than standard ones - that she can personalise with cufflinks.

She says that attending her university's Finishing Touch course made her feel more confident about "winning the first battle of leaving a good impression".

Adds schoolmate Terence Tham, 23, another second-year business student: "I don't think it's important to have the perfect etiquette, but in order to break the rules you must first know them."

- The Straits Times