Rabbi Ari Shvat
Question
Hi, I am starting nursing school in a non-Jewish university in a few weeks and I am required to wear scrubs with a lab coat that reaches my knees as a uniform for my clinical rotations in the hospital. Wearing a scrub skirt would make it much harder for me to do my job at the hospital and it the lab setting. Is it permissible for me to wear scrubs for clinical if I ensure that they are loose fitting on me, not tight, and I wear the lab coat over them that reaches my knees? Thank you in advance
Answer
If the lab coat is closed then it’s just like a dress, and if it covers your knees than it’s no problem whatsoever. Wearing pants under the lab coat which covers your knees is also no different than wearing hosiery, especially if they are not tight, so it’s fine. It would only be problematic if the pants are men’s pants, but if they are part of a uniform which are worn by women as well, then it’s no problem. May Hashem grant you much success in your studies and in building a good Jewish home, especially through the merit of your careful observance of modesty, and may you speedily join Am Yisrael in our Jewish Land! All the best!
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