Is it unprofessional for a woman to go to work without makeup? Does it depend on the industry? 

As a young girl, you’re taught that it’s totally inappropriate to wear makeup. The slightest use of mascara is the greatest sin you can commit, because you’re trying to seem more grown-up than you are. A couple of years later, you’re treated like a social pariah for not wearing makeup and acting as if your looks are not the most important thing that you need to value. You’re getting a lot of different messages about makeup as a young person, and you have no idea who you should listen to. Should you listen to your mom, who says that makeup is inappropriate for someone under 16, even though she started wearing makeup when she was 12 in the 90s? Should you listen to the boys in your class, who like girls with the «natural look,» even though the «natural look» takes about an hour to accomplish because it involves more makeup than they could ever conceive? Do you listen to your teacher, who doesn’t wear makeup and doesn’t treat students any differently, whether or not they wear makeup? 

The teaching assistant in this story doesn’t wear makeup because she wants to tell her students they don’t need it, but her friend has a very different perspective.