<p>I notice that Asian peers have to have absolutely stellar accomplishments to get the same internships / opportunities as a not-so-stellar white applicant.</p>
<p>The racism is going to multiply even further if I apply to French or European jobs overseas. What are some ways to mask my ethnicity? (My last name is Soong. How bad is it? Does having a German middle name help?) Should I legally change my name? The thing is, I really like my last name. I just don’t want to use it for entry-level professional life, at least until I become really accomplished, in which case I can bring it back out. Could I just “Westernise” my last name? (What could I Westernise it to?) Is the name racism worse/better with (natural/physical) scientific research jobs compared with finance, medicine or law?</p>
<p>I would like some real advice. People often that “well if the company is racist, you probably don’t want to work for them anyway” nonsense (usually said by people who enjoy being a member of the majority race). In my experience, institutional racism is unavoidable, no matter which company you choose. I would bet that if my last name were something else I would get at least significantly more callbacks or interviews.</p>
<p>Rather than trying to hide your race, which is impossible to do once they get as look at you and may make you look dishonest, I think a better approach would be to highlight in your resume your qualifications and achievements that distinguish you from stereotypes associated with your race, especially any negative stereotypes.</p>
<p>In my group, we have 2 White, 3 Chinese, and 3 Indian. In a group that we work closely with, we have 4 Chinese, 4 Indian, 1 White, and 1 Black. This is in the US, not Canada but I’d be surprised if Canada were that much different.</p>
<p>If you feel that there is name-discrimination in Canadian companies, then you could try using your networks where friends know how good you are and may be able to get you in the front door. My son had no problems getting interviews and he certainly doesn’t have a European last name.</p>
<p>How does Westernising my last name make me look dishonest? A lot of Jewish people did it coming into this country at Ellis Island (the family of my high school friends for example were “Perla” before Ellis Island, and “Pearlman” after).</p>
<p>Yes, it is certainly true that highlighting one’s achievements and qualifications is essential, but if one’s resume is not going to be read as thoroughly in the first place, it is an issue. What to do about it is another matter. I find the idea of changing one’s name because of prejudiced people repugnant.</p>
<p>This makes me wonder if I should have taken my husband’s last name after all. Mine is very unusual, and most people find it difficult to pronounce (even though it is actually pronounced exactly the way it is spelled). His is simple and Anglo Saxon. (Well, actually it is an anglicized spelling of a German name, but who’s to know? According to my FIL, they changed the spelling in the 19th century because “they didn’t want people to think they were Jewish.” The fact that he told me this approvingly tells you something about his mindset, but that’s another matter.)</p>
<p>I think you are correct that institutional racism exists everywhere, but it does vary from institution to institution. I worked for one large software company where it <em>definitely</em> helped to be Jewish. (I’m not.) Eventually, there are going to be firms where it helps to be Asian. If they don’t exist already.</p>
<p>These studies used identities where both the first and last names were ethnic. If your first name is a familiar, non-Asian name, you probably won’t face the same degree of discrimination. Although the researchers didn’t discuss it, I wonder if employers’ inability to distinguish gender from an Asian name is playing some role. In other words, you may have much better odds applying as Elizabeth Soong than Xia Soong.</p>
<p>“Is the name racism worse/better with (natural/physical) scientific research jobs compared with finance, medicine or law?”</p>
<p>I think you’d find a lot less discrimination in the sciences, for a number of reasons.</p>
<p>Is there a way to use a different last name on a resume without having to legally change your name? (It would be a pain for credit history and SSNs and such.) I have a dull plain English first name, but it’s not as big of a problem.</p>
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<p>Why? Isn’t it more like following the unspoken rules of society? After all, the majority race does rule that society, and it would do one good to emulate them. (“When in Rome…”)</p>
<p>If you do use a different last name on your resume, your practical problem is going to be that the name on the resume will not match the name on your transcript, or your credit report (lots of companies will check that now), or your letters of reference . . . </p>
<p>Names are an interesting topic in many ways. I have a very “girly” first name and especially when I was starting my career, I signed things with my initials. I don’t think about it so much any more, but my two cents is that you would be opening a big can of worms by using a different name. It would raise a red flag for me if the name on your resume didn’t match the name on your other materials.</p>
<p>I work in the recruiting industry and I understand what you are saying. Do you go by a “western” first name? If so, I would definitely put that on your resume instead of an Asian name.</p>
<p>I think the “discrimination” is not so much in the ethnicity but the possible communication barrier. It is a common assumption that if a person goes by a “western” first name than they are more “westernized”.</p>
<p>Just being honest. Of course, different industries and disciplines look at this differently.</p>
<p>No, you can’t use a different last name on your resume unless you change it legally (and/or get married – some married folks use different names professionally and socially).</p>
<p>It bothers me that there is ethnic discrimination, but it doesn’t bother me that people would change their names to adapt. We’ve been doing it in the American colonies for many centuries, including in my family. It has just gone out of style to do it. If someone named Srinivasaragavan shortens it for business purposes, I’m not going to question that.</p>
<p>I agree with Coureur, IMHO the concern you’re trying to alleviate would be a communication issue. Some Asian people truly are so hard to understand that it could hamper their ability to contribute, however, that’s the case with only one of my many Asian co-workers. I would highlight your “excellent communication skills” somewhere visible to allay that concern and forget about changing your name.</p>
<p>I’ve also read there’s tremendous bias against those who have a distinctly black-sounding first name. I’ve had students with legal first names like Destiny, Jafari, Treasure, Jubu, Diamond, and Satin (and many more) and I always worried about them.</p>
<p>And me? Sounds like I should never have taken my husband’s Italian last name, but my own maiden name was always so botched, I thought this would be easier.</p>
<p>It’s not dishonest. It’s just pointless in your case.</p>
<p>Many Jewish people are not readily identifiable as Jewish by their physical appearance. So for them, Americanizing their names might have helped make their ethnicity less obvious. The same concept would have applied to Irish, Italians, and other white ethnic groups. For those who don’t have the classic features (or accents) of people of their heritage, changing a name could obscure their origins.</p>
<p>But your situation is different. Once you come in for an interview, your ethnicity will be obvious. </p>
<p>And the other reasons for Americanizing your last name – making it easier to spell and pronounce – don’t apply to you, either. Soong is a simple name to begin with.</p>
<p>I like the idea of using an American first name. Many Asian-Americans do this anyway. I think part of the problem in hiring is that some Asian-Americans are newcomers, and their English may not be very good. By using an American first name – and by making sure that the English in your cover letter and resume is perfect – you’re signalling that you’re not a newcomer who might struggle to communicate well in English.</p>
<p>Whenever we run ads for accountants, we always get a high percentage of Asian or Asian-sounding names, and several of them do what you’re suggesting – they put their “Americanized” name (Billy Chung for example) at the top of the resume then beneath that they have their Chinese name (either in Chinese characters or in Western letters) which may be more difficult for someone like me to read or pronounce. </p>
<p>It’s as if they have already decided they want to “fit in” by offering an easy to pronounce name. I have also seen this in sales people’s resumes.</p>
<p>That’s not exactly the same goal as yours – you want to avoid bias. </p>
<p>And I’ve never seen or known anyone to change their name completely. That would be a real turn off to me as an employer, because it seems deceptive and would probably backfire.</p>
<p>This whole thing sounds somewhat bizarre to me. But I want to note that there are tons of people who are Han Chinese or Korean by birth who are going through life with completely Western names, largely because they were adopted as infants by people with Western names. There isn’t a synagogue in the country that doesn’t have a bunch of obviously Chinese girls with perfectly legitimate Jewish names. (Like Glee’s Jenna Ushkowitz.)</p>
<p>Assimilation into “American” culture is a positive, in my eyes, but part of American culture is tremendous ethnic and racial diversity because we are a nation of immigrants. People can and do learn to pronounce all kinds of names here. There is no unspoken rule that says everyone has to have a certain kind of name. Even though they may mangle them horribly half the time, it’s the effort that counts. Eventually some kind of compromise of spelling and pronunciation seems to be worked out. Part of the process.</p>
<p>There was an episode of ‘Seinfeld’ that covered some of this - where Seinfeld was looking forward to dating an Asian but the person with the Asian name turned out not to be Asian. </p>
<p>I didn’t read the article and don’t know how it works in Canada but keep in mind that there may be more to it than simply the ethnicity implication in the name. A ‘lot’ of the new college grad (and perhaps other) applicants with Asian surnames are citizens of foreign countries and can’t legally work in the USA without a company sponsoring them and some companies don’t want to go through the hassles/cost of sponsorship for an entry-level position. I wonder if the ‘study’ controlled for this.</p>
<p>One study was in Australia and one was in Canada.</p>
<p>With respect to work visas, it may be as simple as having the first question on the phone call be “do you have the legal ability to work here?”. It should not be a reason to assume work visa hassles simply because of someone’s name on the resume.</p>
That’s the way it typically is and should be, i.e. the explicit question of legal status as opposed to an assumption based on the name, but there’s a correlation and as such a study based simply on the names can be misleading therefore the study should be controlled for this aspect. I don’t know if this study was or not and how applicable this point is to Canada/Oz versus the USA.</p>
<p>I know I’ve seen suggestions for some of my non-American grad student friends to put their visa/work status on their resume, so it might be worth it to put down you’re a citizen.</p>