Just like Prince changed his name to an unpronounceable symbol (and then back to Prince), many students around the country are changing their names on Facebook. They are doing so to avoid future employers looking at their profiles before hiring them.
To hide pictures and other content that might affect the employers’ decision, some students replace their last name with their middle name or use a nickname that would be recognized only by friends.
“People add two crazy middle names or something so it’s hard to search for them,” said Christopher Medeiros, a Nova Southeastern U. freshman.
Regardless of what is on the Web, employers may look online before hiring to see a potential job candidate’s social life or behavior.
Diane Klein, assistant director of internships in the NSU Office of Career Development, said, “Employers want to say ‘no’ before they want to say ‘yes’. When they do these searches, they are looking for a reason to cut you out.”
Some students believe employers have the right to look at the profiles of the people who will work for their companies and get to know them before deciding whether to hire them.
Medeiros said, “Employers should be able to see the kind of person they are employing. It’s like a background check but not as intense.”
On the opposite side, Charmi Patel, NSU sophomore, said that what students do on Facebook should not be used by employers’ to judge the students.
“It’s a matter of privacy. These are their personal lives. It’s not like they’re doing it at work,” said Patel.
Another downside students find in companies doing these searches is that the information is not always reliable.
O’Neal said, “People create a different persona on these sites. For example, I had this friend who put up a bunch of pictures to make himself look a certain way. These sites don’t give you an accurate depiction of the way people are 100 percent of the time.”
While students have different opinions on whether employers should use the content of these sites to make their decisions, they seem to agree that they would not change their names to hide information from employers.
Medeiros said, “I don’t have anything out there that would cause employers to judge me or anything.”
NSU sophomore Master O’Neal said, “Facebook is a public way of communication. If you have something to hide, Facebook is not the right place.”
However, Klein recommends students are careful with the information they put online even after they have been hired, not only pictures and status updates but also comments and wall postings.
“You have to be very cautious and make sure your personal and professional lives are kept separate,” she said.