I love what Shannon said about coverage. That's basically my idea about sleeveless. Again, to me, it's not sleeves or not, per se -- it's an overall look. But from others' comments, it's obvious that this depends on the specific environment.
My friend who is a psychiatrist and who also has a teaching role has a very different style from yours, and lives in a different city. But, FWIW, she wears a mix between pants and skirts/ dresses. Her skirts tend to be pencil style and somewhere around knee length (just above or just below). She has silvery hair (although she is only in her 40s) and she dresses in a lot of neutrals (grey, silver or pewter, white, black) plus many blues, with the occasional hit of orange or red or aubergine. She does not shy away from fun shoes or jewellery or scarves. So "feminine" is fine, but her colour palette tends to lend a bit of gravitas. She often wears a jacket but doesn't always have it on.
In summer, she sometimes wears ankle pants. She goes without hose even with a skirt or dress. And she WILL wear a sleeveless top on occasion, although she would cover it with a jacket or cardigan for a meeting, I expect.
Her body type is very slim and petite. Small bust, very slight pear tendencies. I have been trying to come up with a style descriptor for her but it isn't easy...she is mainly modern classic but with some highly unusual arty or designer pieces thrown in. She owns basics from J. Crew and even BR and GAP, but supplements these with stuff she buys in London and Paris, including some Isabel Marant, Reiss, etc.
