Career & Professional Development Center

• Should I whiten my resume?

Lately, there has been a lot of talk about whether one should ‘whiten’ their resume or not. “Whitening” means intentionally minimizing or concealing racial cues on a resume that may identify a minority status, such as a name or affiliation with a minority club, professional organization, or association.  Unfortunately, recent studies have shown that ‘whitening’ a resume can increase an individual’s chances of getting an interview (Kang, Decelles, Tilcsik, & Jun 2016, Bertrand & Mullaninathan 2003). Although these findings are very upsetting and unjust, some individuals may wonder if they should engage in whitening their resume to increase their odds of acquiring a job. This is a very personal decision that comes with a thorough assessment of your own personal values and beliefs.  There are several factors in which you might want to carefully consider such as what is important in a work culture to make you feel comfortable, authentic, and safe, how urgently did you need to secure employment, and how will whitening/not whitening your resume affect your morale, identity, and self-confidence. For some people, this is a very clear and easy decision to make, while others really struggle to weigh their options. If you want to talk through this decision some more, come meet with a Career Coach!

• How do I share my participation in cultural events on my resume?

You may wonder whether to include awards, scholarships, advocacy work, or involvement in student organizations that pertain to your identities. Whether or not to use this information on a resume or cover letter depends on your own comfort level and interest in sharing who you are with others. It is a very personal decision, and as such, there is no right or wrong answer.

However, there are questions to ask yourself to gauge how safe you feel about your experiences.

Ask yourself: is it important for your colleagues to know who you are at work?  Be sure to research your work environment. Is it likely the organization you’re applying to is inclusive?  If you’re concerned they are not, you may choose to highlight the skills you developed but not the organizations you worked with. Is a particular activity, award or experience relevant to the job you are applying for? If the experience does not demonstrate relevant skills you may choose to leave it off at this point.

Sample Resume:

Leadership Experience

Black Student Union                                             Salt Lake City, UT

President                                                                May 2015-Present

• • Recruit, hire, and train 50 BSU members in collaboration with two co-advisors
  • Oversee the annual anti-racism Leadership Summit for 32 East High school students, conducting outreach through Facebook, New York City public schools, and youth organizations
• How do I know if a company is a good fit?

There are many ways to determine if a company is a good fit for you. To be a good fit, you should match what the company is looking for and the company should match what you are looking for. While you can’t always know 100% what a company looks for in a candidate, you can take steps to research the company and find out as much as you can about it to determine whether you could see yourself joining their team.

• References

Bertrand, M., & Mullainathan, S. (2003). Are Emily and Greg More Employable than Lakisha and Jamal? A Field Experiment on Labor Market Discrimination. The American Economic Review . doi:10.3386/w9873

Kang, S. K., Decelles, K. A., Tilcsik, A., & Jun, S. (2016). Whitened Résumés. Administrative

Science Quarterly,61(3), 469-502. doi:10.1177/0001839216639577

Campus Resources

The Career Center works in collaboration with other campus offices that provide academic support, help you to develop and expand your awareness of your racial/ethnic identity, and advocate for you while teaching you how to navigate the campus climate. The following campus offices can be supportive resources:

•  Center for Ethnic Student Affairs
• The Office for Equity and Diversity
• Student Success Advocates
• Black Student Union

Community Resources

• National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) Salt Lake City, Utah Branch: An online community fostering connections between minority professional talent and companies across the globe.
• DiversityInc:  A source for information on diversity and inclusion issues in the workplace.
• INROADS: An organization that recruits, prepares and places talented underrepresented students in internships with corporations, government agencies, and nonprofit organizations.
• Hispanic Association of Colleges & Universities (HACU): Targets Hispanic students for access to and preparation for high quality career opportunities. A key program is The HACU National Internship Program (HNIP) which offers extensive leadership training in conjunction with internship opportunities for college students with federal agencies or major corporations.
• National Association of Asian American Professionals (NAAAP) Career Center: An online community fostering connections between Asian and minority professional talent and companies across the globe.
• Native-American Village: Valuable information on career opportunities as well as the tools needed to succeed in America’s workplace as a Native American student.

• Black Career Network: This network provides the African-American community with a trusted professional network, pairing members with employers who are serious about building a diverse workforce to meet the needs of an increasingly diverse customer base. It includes articles, job postings, interest groups, blogs, and event listings.
• National Professional Women of Color: Platform for networking, professional development and strategic connections for women of color.
• African American Professional Associations by Industry: Consider joining an identity-relevant professional association to help facilitate networking connections and job leads.
• Black Career Women’s Network: National network dedicated to supporting the professional success of African-American Women.
• Arab-American Business & Professional Association (AABPA): A business organization that promotes networking opportunities among the Arab American Community and promotes trade and investment between the U.S. and the Arab World.
• National Arab American Medical Association (NAAMA): A nonprofit, nonpolitical, educational and humanitarian organization of medical and dental professionals of Arab descent.
• Network of Arab-American Professionals (NAAP): An association of Arab-American Professionals that promotes networking and professional development.
• Asian Professional and Community Organizations: Extensive collection of general and Asian country-specific associations
• Gold Sea: Multi-faceted website aimed at Asian Americans.
• National Association of Asian American Professionals-(NAAAP): Promotes personal and professional development of the Asian American community.
• A Mighty River: A Black Professional Networking Community.
• National Society of Black Engineers: Professional organization committed to widening the pool of engineering talent from Black communities around the world.
• Hispanic Alliance for Career Enhancement: National non-profit organization dedicated to the employment, development, and advancement of current and aspiring Latinx professionals.
• Hispanic Associations: Links to various professional associations compiled by Latina Style magazine.
• National Society for Hispanic Professionals: Job board, events, networking and more for Hispanic professionals.
• Society for Advancement of Chicanos/Hispanics and Native Americans in Science : (SACNAS) is a group devoted to promoting the accomplishments of Chicano/Hispanic and Native American scientists, from students to professionals, in attaining advanced degrees, careers, and positions of leadership in STEM.
• Society for Advancement of Hispanics and Native Americans in Science: Dedicated to fostering the success of Hispanic/Chicano and Native American scientists—from college students to professionals—to attain advanced degrees, careers, and positions of leadership in science.
• American Indian Index of Organizations: Extensive list of Native American associations and organizations.

• Affirmative Action Register: Positions, both of an academic and non-academic nature, with colleges and universities from across the country. Directed to women, minorities, veterans, and disabled persons, as well as all employment candidates.
• Diversity.com: Employers recruiting job seekers from diverse ethnic cultures, lifestyles, life stages, creative persuasions, abilities, religious affiliations, and genders.
• Diversity Employers: Jobs and information on organizations.
• DiversityJobs: Job search database and links to articles related to diversity in the workplace.
• Diversity Working: Largest diversity job board online.
• Diversity Inc. Career Center: Features career advice and job listings from the publishers of Diversity Inc.
• IMDiversity Career Center: a job board focused on diverse job seekers.
• Multicultural Advantage: Wealth of articles, job opportunities, event listings, research, tools, downloads, links and other resources for professionals from diverse backgrounds. The site also addresses the needs of diversity recruiting and workplace diversity professionals who are seeking to reach & understand them.
• iMinorities.com: A portal for all minorities, providing information on employment, career and self-development information.
• NemNet Minority Network: Find opportunities in education and the public and private sectors and post your resume.
• SACNAS Job Board:  The SACNAS Career Center is dedicated to matching underrepresented minority scientists with advanced degrees, careers, and positions of leadership. Search for various STEM opportunities in industry, government, higher education and non-profit organizations.
• Urban League Employment Network: Online Job Board managed by the National Urban League.
• Asian Jobs.com: Opportunities for bilingual English and Asian language speakers.
• Asian Life: Job board, networking, events & other resources
• The Black Employment & Entrepreneur Journal: Online job board and other valuable resources.
• The Blackworld Career Center: Employment resources for professionals and entrepreneurs for African Americans and members of other ethnic groups.
• Black Career Women’s Network:  National network dedicated to supporting the professional success of African-American Women.
• The Black EOE Journal: Online job board and includes other valuable resources.
• HACU National Internship Program: Pays for students to participate in internships in government agencies and corporations.
• iHispano.com: The leading job posting source for Hispanic professionals.
• LatPro.com: Jobs for Spanish and Portuguese Speakers
• Saludos: For Hispanic job seekers. Post your resume and search for a job.
• Nativejobs: Provides nationwide job postings for Native American Indians and includes featured employers.
• National Congress of American Indians: NCAI Mission is to protect and enhance treaty and sovereign rights. Includes job board, resources, and conferences and events.