Head to Head: Should You Dress Formal or Casual on Campus?

The commute to class can either be a catwalk or a desperate crawl out of bed. MSU classes are populated with students wearing everything from full suits to pajamas. But does the way you dress on campus matter? I went toe-to-toe with the Exponent’s Opinion Editor Marquart Doty to decide whether students should center their on-campus wardrobe around formal wear or athleisure.

A Case for Formal Wear

By Joelle Scarrow

Dressing well has become a lost art in American society and this lack of attention regarding presentation is visible on MSU’s campus. Just as your actions and character should reflect the energy you would like to attract, so should your appearance. The mental and societal benefits of dressing well far outweigh the instantaneous comfort of sweatpants.

A 2016 article published in the Journal of Positive Psychology suggests there is a strong link between practicing creativity daily and a positive mindset. Fashion is one of the quickest outlets of creativity we have at our fingertips. Opening every day with a dedication to one minor creative pursuit — like fashion — has the potential to inspire your day.

I have found throughout my college experience that the better I dress, the more confident I feel. I was raised by a highly fashionable and artistic mother and some of my earliest memories are of shopping and painting beside her. I had a strong resistance to dressing up for a large part of my teenage angst stage. Over time, I found that the self-expression that others demonstrated in their clothing no longer seemed to be an insult to my own lack of style, but rather my greatest source of inspiration.

As you will read in the next section, Marquart has a point: style has changed over time, but that also means the standard for formal wear has too. I’m not going to tell you to dress to the nines for your eight a.m. class, but how you present yourself matters. Employers, prospective boyfriends, girlfriends and strangers alike will make judgments about who you are based on your appearance.

A 2024 study published in the National Library of Medicine suggests that business casual attire — a decently low bar — could be the way to make a good impression without being too preppy. So, is it really that hard to swap leggings for jeans and put on a nice shirt, or do we just lack the drive to aspire to more?

A Case for Casual Wear

By Marquart Doty

Joelle is right: dressing creatively heightens your life satisfaction and the way you dress matters. However, a 2024 study published in the “International Journal for Multidisciplinary Research” asserts that a strict adherence to fashion standards can worsen mental health. If you feel better about yourself when you dress up, then you should dress to the nines every day. If you hate how you look in professional clothing, then wear what makes you feel confident.

K-12 students need a nurturing, home-like school environment that allows for authentic self-expression, according to Maslow’s hierarchy of needs in education. The same logic naturally applies to college students. In school environments, comfort genuinely matters. I don’t like wearing jeans, and my sweat suits make me feel like the coolest, coziest girl on campus. I’d rather have future boyfriends and strangers judge my outfit than spend my over 10 hour days on campus in clothes I’d typically only wear to a job interview.

Besides, both professional settings and the fashion industry are changing. A 2023 Gallup poll reported that 41 percent of American workers wear business casual attire and 31 percent wear street clothes. Casual clothing already reigns supreme outside of the office. Many luxury brands have shifted to streetwear and athleisure, according to the Fashion Law Journal. Shifts in luxury fashion represent overarching cultural shifts. Pretty soon, you’ll have to live under a rock to not know that some of the most put-together outfits are also the most casual.

When you see me on campus in a graphic T-shirt, sweatpants and sneakers, you can trust that my outfit is as well thought out as a suit. In fact, I probably ironed it and laid it out the night before. Dress how you like, but casual doesn’t mean careless. This isn’t to say you should throw just anything on — approach fashion as an intentional daily routine. Just don’t fool yourself into thinking you’re any better off wearing a tweed two-piece when you really want to wear sweatpants.