You’ve got the qualifications and education. You’ve turned in the perfect job application, cover letter, and resume. You have your references all lined up, and you know they’ll all say great things about you. The only thing you have left to nail is the interview and that new job is yours! Of course, one of the most important things you have to decide when preparing for your interview is what you’re going to wear. You may have a nice suit or dress all picked out, and you may have a few different accessories you plan on wearing. But you probably never thought about your glasses. Did you know that wearing eyeglasses to your next job interview could actually help secure you that job? Here are a few reasons why glasses can make or break your interview.

Some Interesting Facts and Figures

Let’s start by discussing some interesting facts and figures reported by the Daily Mail, a UK newspaper. They did an interview of a number of different recruiters, hiring professionals, and HR personnel that focused on glasses and their impression of people who wear glasses. Here are the findings:

•       43% believe people with glasses look more intelligent
•       40% of people with perfect vision said they would think about wearing stylish, non-prescription glasses if it improved their chance of getting hired
•       6% of people said they wore glasses because they’re fashionable
•       9% think wearing glasses makes a person more attractive

This matches up with a study done by the College of Optometrists, which revealed that 43% of people believe those who wear glasses look smarter, while 33% said that those who wear glasses also have a more professional look about them than those who do not.

Why do Glasses make People Look Smarter?

While looking intelligent and actually being intelligent are certainly not the same, it is true that we associate glasses with smart people. Part of this comes from the stereotype perpetuated by television and movies. The scientists, engineers, computer programmers, hackers, and in general the nerds in movies and TV are the ones who wear glasses all the time. It’s a shortcut many writers and directors take to show that a character is smart. This isn’t always the case, of course, but you often know that a character is supposed to be intelligent by how they look, and glasses are usually a part of that (along with pocket protectors or wearing clothing that is not very stylish).

Glasses are also often associated with certain professions. Essilor of America, a company that creates eyeglass lenses, found that a large number of people in their survey think of librarians or teachers when asked what profession wears eyeglasses. Because of this connection, we often think of people who wear glasses as being very intelligent.

Feel Confident, Be Confident

Because most people believe that there’s a connection between wearing designer glasses and being smart (and a study in the 1980s may have even found al ink between intelligence and nearsightedness!), many people think they look smarter when they’re wearing glasses. To that end, wearing designer optical glasses to your next job interview may actually make you more confident. Will it make you smarter or more qualified for the job? No, but that extra boost of confidence may make an impression on the interviewers, and that could land you the position over someone who comes across as more timid or less prepared. That means you’ll need to find a pair of glasses to wear. Fortunately, these tips to choose eyewear can help you find the ones that perfectly fit your face.

An Outdated Stereotype, but One Still in Effect

What many find very interesting is that this idea that you need to wear fashionable glasses to look professional is such an outdated stereotype. With laser eye surgery and contacts, many people who need glasses, no longer wear them. So why would you wear fashionable glasses to an interview if you don’t need them? The truth, as you can see from the survey results presented earlier, is that the idea that glasses are a sign of intelligence is still very much alive. Part of this is thanks to movies and TV, but part of it is a cultural stereotype that’s still with us. As more and more people get laser eye surgery, this stereotype may die off, but until it does, the fact is that many still think that those who wear glasses are smarter than everyone else.

So should you wear glasses to your next job interview? It certainly can’t hurt, especially if you feel like you need an edge to beat out all of the other well-qualified candidates. Even if you don’t wear prescription optical glasses, you can always find a pair of clear frames and then say you switched to contacts later. Just be sure those frames are fashionable and fit your face.