Should You Use a Fake Name When Applying for Work?

nsm on 28/02/2018 - 19:57
Last edited 28/02/2018 - 20:03

Do you think it is a good idea to use a more "Aussie-sounding" name (if you don't have one) instead of your real name when applying for work?

It probably depends on the industry, but I've heard that HR can be quite biased during initial selection rounds just based on the impression of your name. If this is true, it might be beneficial to use a name different from your real one in your application.

On the other hand, if you're successful to score an interview, how would they react when you disclose intentionally deceiving them? It might be discouraging enough to drop you from consideration anyway - I doubt they'd buy an excuse like "It's my nickname".

Interested to hear your thoughts on this. I've always been under the impression that your experience and education were the more dominating factors, but now that I've been rejected from more than a few roles where I thought I was a strong candidate, I can't help but feel like there might be other influences at play.

About me: finance and engineering background, targeting entry-level/graduate roles.

Education & Work

Comments

  • poboy on 28/02/2018 - 19:59

    Yes. Aussie first name. Have heard that this approach works well.

    • nsm on 28/02/2018 - 20:17

      So you think just the first name? I feel like it would look strange though, for example 'James Rahman'.

      • poboy on 01/03/2018 - 09:28

        Yes, just the first name. Keep your last name.

  • [Deactivated] on 28/02/2018 - 20:13
    +1

    what is your name and what is the fake name you use?

    eg, my name is manmeat singh, and i use graham jones.

    wont your accent give it away anyway?

    • nsm on 28/02/2018 - 20:20

      Did you find it made a difference when you changed it? I was born and raised here so my accent is Aussie, but my name is of Arabic origins.

      • [Deactivated] on 28/02/2018 - 20:29
        +4

        i dunno, my name isnt Manmeat.

        • Oz8argain on 01/03/2018 - 10:24

          don't have to be embarrassed, it's a good strong name

        • John Kimble on 01/03/2018 - 10:31

          @Oz8argain: Better than Womanvegetable

  • Nutrino on 28/02/2018 - 20:21

    So how do you explain the name difference to hr and your new employer, if you get the job?

    • nsm on 28/02/2018 - 20:27

      I am not sure how I'd explain it in such a scenario. However you try to frame it, I don't see it making a great impression. But it's still better than not getting an opportunity at all.

  • QW3RTY on 28/02/2018 - 20:38
    +4

    Organisations tend to accept a "preferred name" in addition to your legal name. Just lead with your preferred name and if you end up needing to fill in forms upon successfully obtaining a job offer, you can have this conversation with HR.

  • altomic on 28/02/2018 - 21:20
    +6

    Unless your real name is Max Powers then very other name sucks.

  • WreckTangle on 28/02/2018 - 21:20
    +2

    What happens when your new employer calls your references, and they say “who”?

  • original15 on 28/02/2018 - 22:19
    +3

    What if they’ve got a strong diversity and inclusion policy and they discount your amended resume because they’ve got enough Waynes and Barrys?

  • Pharos5 on 28/02/2018 - 23:36
    +2

    From a psychological perspective, this makes sense. Ignoring any subconscious or overt racial bias, there is a strong subconscious preference known as cognitive ease. If it's easier to say, you strongly prefer it even if you try to account for it.

    If your given name is difficult to say, I'd say go for it and call it a preferred name. If it's quite easily pronounced with anglo/english rules, I'd say keep trying with it.

  • 88mph on 01/03/2018 - 03:47

    Op, I'm with you… Moved here as a skilled migrant many many moons ago, have a rather 'ethic' name but western education and outlook, hence fitting in was never an issue but finding work/scoring interviews was.

    I took a rather different but similar approach, took away a few letters from my first name, which resulted in the rest shortening to an Anglo name. Example, Joedaman > Joe.

    Once I did that, interview percentiles increased significantly. Also, an agent I used for several gigs after I settled into contracting privately confided that some recruiters tend to avoid people with hard to pronounce names as their client might have the same challenge. Almost every employer I have worked for since had systems which state a preferred name for email/daily use and a legal name purely for payroll/tax.

    If you've got time up your sleeve, interesting research done on this topic by the ANU…

  • holdenmg on 01/03/2018 - 08:22

    Use your first pet's name with the name of the street you grew up on…

  • TheBilly on 01/03/2018 - 09:34
    +1

    If I had to do it which personally I don't believe helps in anyway, I would typically present it on the resume like this James (Jagdeep) Singh I.e. Preferred name, Real First Name, Real Last Name. I feel that if there was a person that would throw out an application just based off the difficulty of a name, there will be many other things they will throw your application out on, similarly having to work with people with those ideas for 8 hours day, no thank you.

    Have you been applying to a whole bunch of roles and not had much luck or response for an extended period of time? Or are you just preemptively assuming things that you think will benefit you?

    Me personally I would go straight to the (qualification, results from said qualification and personal interests) section on a resume. Why, because I don't want to work with a dumb ass and I also don't want to work with what I think is a weirdo.

  • whooah1979 on 01/03/2018 - 09:39
    +1

    It's my nickname

    Aliases are ok to use in many western countries including Australia. One isn’t required to use one’s full name as stated on a birth certificate or passport unless dealing with legal matters.

  • whooah1979 on 01/03/2018 - 09:52
    +1

    I've always been under the impression that your experience and education were the more dominating factors

    Ethnic minority owned businesses are more likely to employ ethnic minority employees. Mnc and government tend to be a bit more diverse in their employment practices. We can thank anti discrimination legislations for that.

  • [Deactivated] on 01/03/2018 - 14:41
    +1

    Huddle around for story time OzB! When looking for my first ever job, I used my real name. Submitted job applications every where and got no calls back. Except this one workplace, I submitted my resume and got no call backs, the usual. So I decided that I would change my first name and handed in my resume again to the same person a few days later and what would you know. The next day I got a call back with an interview and offered the job on the spot. Now I'm considering legally changing my name to sound more western.

  • pennypincher98 on 01/03/2018 - 20:18

    Change your name to Barnaby Joyce. I'm sure you'll get loads of interviews then.

  • xiabonan on 02/03/2018 - 21:00

    As a Chinese international student I've always considered myself lucky in this regard. My Chinese name spelled out in alphabets is "Bonan" which is rather short and quite easy to say I think. I've gotten several part time jobs at University and some other places including a boutique law firm in the city, so I guess it isn't a big problem for me personally. But I do see why some might want to do this, and many of my peers who had difficult names usually just change to a more westernized name when they arrive here and go by that name consistently except for maybe certain scenarios where their original names are required.

    On a side note, the firm I'm working at recently had a client of a certain ethnicity origin (not disclosed for confidentiality reasons), and the client had a rather unique name. I put in some effort to learn to say the name but whenever the solicitor refers to this client he simply says "that [insert race, e.g. Chinese, Korean, Indian, Jewish, etc.] client" even though I'm pretty sure the client is born in Oz and grew up here.

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