Each semester, more students leave the world of academia and face tough competition trying to enter the work force.

With such a competitive job market, potential employers take everything into consideration, including professional appearance of applicants.  

This raises the question, can tattoos affect your employment opportunities?

“We’ve seen a rise in tattoos in students that are searching for jobs. We haven’t seen a lot of changes in policies among employers allowing them to be visible, so we see it as a challenge for students that are choosing to get more and more visible tattoos,” Career Services Director Nicole Brown said.

Many companies require their employees to cover their tattoos, and, according to Brown, the exception to this would be very artistic and creative-based companies where that type of artistic expression is more accepted.

“The reality is, we’re in the Midwest, we’re in a conservative area,” Brown said. “If you go on to some of the coasts and you’re working for Google or some really creative areas, then those are fully accepting of it, but the reality is you’re just not going to walk into a local bank and want to be vice president of the bank and have a tattoo on your neck that’s showing. They’re not going to be accepting of it because they have to have employees that can appeal to a wide base,” Brown added.

Students are advised to research the company with which they are seeking employment so they are aware of the company’s policies regarding tattoos, especially if they are considering getting a visible tattoo.

Certain career fields, such as health care, have very strict policies regarding tattoos. In some instances, students may not be accepted into an education program due to having tattoos that are visible.

“I figured if I ever had to wear a short-sleeve shirt or whatever, I didn’t want them on my arms, and I usually wear pants so that’s why I got [my tattoos] on my legs,” Caleb Ewing, senior chemistry major, said.

“I work in the hospital so we can’t show any tattoos and piercings are the same thing,” he said.

It is important to be respectful of employers when considering tattoos and possibly having to cover them up.  

“We see a lot of people who are upset with their employer for making them cover [their tattoos] up, but the reality is you’re putting yourself out as a representation of their company so they’re entrusting that with you,” Brown said.

“So be respectful of it and just know if you choose to take a professional position and you have those tattoos, you’re probably going to have to cover them up in the workplace.”

It seems that many students take future employment into consideration when selecting where to have their tattoos placed.

“It was a key factor when deciding if I wanted to get [my tattoos] on my forearms, but I decided that I can wear long sleeves,” Billy Henson, freshman CIS major, said.

“The job I work at now, I have to wear long sleeves and everyone else in the company gets to wear short sleeves.”

According to Brown, as a rule of thumb, tattoos on the arm should be kept above the elbow so they are easier to conceal. If it is a back tattoo, she said, ink fans should be sure the top of the tattoo falls below the neckline of an average shirt.

Travis Jarmin, senior health promotions and wellness major, agrees.

“I got it high up just in case some day I can wear long sleeves or short sleeves and still get away with it,” he said.

Tattoos, although a form of expression, also hold the possibility of preventing someone from being promoted within a professional company and can be a hassle to have to cover on a day-to-day basis.

“In a corporate culture, you have to fit into the corporate culture. Even if that’s not your personality right now, if you want to be able to advance and if you want to have a professional position, you have to be able to present a professional image to the public,” Brown said.  

Cassy Grover, senior general studies major, said she didn’t want to get a tattoo that couldn’t be covered up in a normal job setting.

Brown advises students to consider future job possibilities when deciding to get tattoos and to second-guess if considering a visible tattoo.

“I know when you’re 18, 20 years old, it seems like you’re never going to have to work and never have to worry about it and ‘if they don’t want me with my tattoos, then they don’t want me,’ Just think ahead. Tattoos are cool, just get them in places that you can easily cover in the workplace,” Brown said.