Job Seeker Blog - Spark Hire

Beauty is as Good as a Degree

Last week, Spark News discussed how attractive people have a leg-up in the workplace. When you think about it though, how much of an advantage do they really get? The infographic showed that both men and women that are attractive have a better chance of getting a promotion and also getting hired.

The Local broke the data down even more stating that being one point more attractive on an 11 point scale was worth a three percent wage hike, while being five points more attractive was equivalent to having a degree. Somewhat unexpected was finding in the study that being attractive is more important to men than it is for women. All in all, the study found that a point on the beauty scale was worth three percentage points in both wages and getting hired. The results may seem like common sense to many because beauty has always been thought to be a qualifier to a certain degree. While certainly not everyone would agree, attractive people have an advantage in many different aspects of life.

However, the study and any other study on attractiveness and beauty should be looked at with a skeptical eye. How do you gauge a person’s beauty when beauty is innately subjective and, as they say, is in the eye of the beholder? What one man or woman finds attractive, likely the next won’t. And who would want it any other way? There are mathematical methods to judging beauty by symmetry, but how many employers are you going to find measuring the symmetry of a job seekers facial features? Zero. Therefore, no matter how many studies there are that say being attractive leads to an advantage, other factors are always at play. Confidence, competence, awareness and communication skills likely matter 10 times more than if someone is attractive or not. On the other hand, if you do happen to find that you didn’t snag a job simply because of your physical attractiveness, you should ask yourself: is this really where I want to work anyways? The answer is likely, no.

SOURCE: The Local
IMAGE: Psychology Today

Nicole Nicholson

Nicole is the Content Editor for Spark Hire and mainly writes for and edits the work for the Spark News blog. She graduated in 2010 with a BA in Journalism from DePaul University in Chicago, Illinois. She has a passion for writing, editing, and pretty much anything to do with content. In her free time she frequents the Chicago music scene and writes reviews on shows for her own personal blog. Connect with Nicole and Spark Hire on Facebook and Twitter

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