That's gotta be the most berkeleyed up thing I've read all day. I've never really thought of Desmond as a "black" name, makes me think of Australia for some reason. D. Lee Jones does sound classy.
That's gotta be the most berkeleyed up thing I've read all day. I've never really thought of Desmond as a "black" name, makes me think of Australia for some reason. D. Lee Jones does sound classy.
Yeah, look at F. Lee Bailey.
How does D L Jones sound to you?
Kenny_McCormic wrote: That's gotta be the most berkeleyed up thing I've read all day.
QFT
What is your degree field?
As soon as you posted your name, I knew what the rest of the story would be. You have a more acute understanding of racism now...
I'd figure a way of subtly including your picture- maybe under hobbies, you standing beside your race car...
Yep, it's true.
By definition, you're name isn't unique because it is shared with other people. Unique LITERALLY (another word people misuse all the time) means "One of a kind." There is no such thing as more or less unique.
Rebrand yourself, change your legal name, who cares it's just a name? I use my legal name on my resume, but only use my nickname in real life. Not a big deal.
I hate to say it, but in corporate america, it's rampant. I know of a game that used to be played within the insurance game, where a name would be pulled, and without looking, a guess would be made as to ethnicity, as well as to whether or not that person was on medical assistance. More often than not, correct guesses were made. Racist as all hell, but sometimes if the shoe fits... people not normally prone to such behavior make the same mistakes. My wife has fallen into that category due to the work she does a lot.... it's an odd thing. At this point, I'd advise rebranding. I can tell you that seeing a D. Lee vs a Desmond would be liable to get your name across more desks, though as a former HRish type person, I'd be inclined to think of you as somewhat snobbish. I'd almost do the DL (though initials can be sketchy) or just drop the D altogether and use Lee to get your face in front of people.
Drive out to River Hills or Waukesha and open up a P.O. Box. Put that address on your resume.
Desmond? If I were to make an assumption, just from the name, it'd be that you were British.
I think you might be 'reaching' a bit.
Want a job? berkeley "linkedin" Show up in a suit and fill out a berkeleying application.
Have you seen the film, "Freakenomics"
^That's also very true.
2 of my 4 jobs since college have come from knowing someone. The other 2 have come from recruiters who have contacted me.
In my experience in the IT world, it's all about networking. If you don't have a contact within the company, the next best is a recruiter as they have a more direct connection to the managers that are actually looking for the applicants.
The HR folks, are looking for buzz words and qualifications, unless they are instructed to look at a specific candidate by the manager who needs the position filled.
That is the moral equivalent of the "foot in the door" these days.
My wife is going through a similar situation. When she graduated from her Surgical Tech program with top honors it still took 6 months to get hired and that was due to one of her classmates getting hired and putting in a good word. Since then, she's gotten her second job the same way and now she's looking to hired into Kaiser to be closer to home. She's been trying for a couple of years to get in and until she spoke to a recruiter she finally managed an interview.
The issue seems to be the sheer volume of applicants these days makes it nearly impossible to find the real good candidates. Ways to stand out tend to be being military or former military or public services like EMS, etc.
mtn wrote: Drive out to River Hills or Waukesha and open up a P.O. Box. Put that address on your resume.
That's probably a good idea.
I know you said you don't like it, but maybe put your picture on your cover letter.
All's fair in love, war ...and getting a job.
Just put down Slick D. Jones on your resume. Someone with the name Slick would get my attention in a pile of resumes. 
Do you have your picture on Linkedin? If not, put it up there.
How does your resume read? Is it buzzword bingo, or does it read like you are telling someone about your experience?
Have you tried Google Images and your name? Could be you are getting mistaken for this fellow:
Or this Desmond Jones:
Or worse:
Datsun1500 wrote: In reply to turboswede: Does your wife have a black sounding name?
Worse, Philippino :). At least until we got married, now she has an Irish last name ;)
Yeah I dont want to be a wet blanket... And I dont like that what I've experienced exists... But it does. Simple fact of the matter is when you're in a hot ticket environment.... People take 10 seconds to read your resume. If something looks berkeleyed up or abnormal its going in The bin. Desmond is a rad name... But it has a few connotations. One- you're east African. A lot of people dont like dealing with them because of cultural clashes and so on. Same goes for Somalians in mn. But I can fill a whole page with that E36 M3show.... Were not here for that. Two- you're some other form of ESL foreigner. I hated dealing with those on some occasions because I'd have to call and so and so was using an American name with us and they had no clue who you were, or you were the only one in the house that spoke English at all and I'd be better off giving myself a face lift with a cheese grater. 3..... You already know what 3 is. Simple fact of the matter is certain groups have caused ill will amongst other groups and with the job situation being what it is... It is a lot easier for an employer to cull the herd as it were before they even get to the table. Hell I can't even get a call back and I'm the whitest guy I know... My name is tom for berkeleys sake.
The other part of it could be your resume. Its badass. You've got good ish all up and down. That means you're a hot ticket. People are scared of hot ticket employees if they can't support rapid promotion. They're afraid they'll lose you to someone with a bigger checkbook so they won't even try. Kind of a bitch really... The whole way.
In reply to Ian F:
Instead of that, how about having some business cards(With your face) made up to either scan into your cover letter as an ending or included in paper résumés. I know it might be seen as tacky, but it might be a good idea and a bit different. Also, the PO box is definitely a good idea as well.....even just one on the good side of town.
Also, if there is name profiling going on, it probably has more to do with the common last name of "Jones" or a combination of the two together. "Lee Jones" would be no better if this were the case. The whole "include a business card photo" would definitely help if this was the case. It could also be an overqualification issue. 
Either way, best of luck to you.
I agree with turboswede that networking will always get you the best results but is is often difficult to find the right venue in which to find these contacts. My $0.02, your degree is "B.A in Journalism, focus on Advertising/Public Relations and Media Studies with a certificate in Digital Arts & Culture" so being a recent student you should have an ACTIVE web presence/blog with which to highlight your work as well as comment/link to similar work/research in your field of study. This would be a very natural and non-blatant place to have an "about me" page with a great photo of you with one of your projects.
If you want to network in Adv/PR, volunteer with a local non-profit for one of their fundraising events. Even if you just get your feet wet and do some stamp licking or photo editing you can meet some critical contacts that may lead somewhere.
Don't get caught up on what you see is a mark on your success. Use your Adv/PR skills to make those you are interested in want to get to know more about you, your work and what you can do for their organization.
the Beatles "o-bla di O-bla da" is the story of Desmond and Molly Jones
Desmond has his barrow in the market place... Molly is the singer in a band... Desmond says to Molly "Girl, I like your face" And Molly says this as she takes him by the hand... O-bla-di, o-bla-da, life goes on, brah!... Lala how the life goes on... O-bla-di, o-bla-da, life goes on, brah!... Lala how the life goes on. Desmond takes a trolley to the jewelry store... Buys a twenty carat golden ring... (ring!) Takes it back to Molly waiting at the door... And as he gives it to her she begins to sing...(sing!) O-bla-di, o-bla-da, life goes on, brah!... Lala how the life goes on... O-bla-di, o-bla-da, life goes on, brah!... Lala how the life goes on. In a couple of years they have built a home sweet home, With a couple of kids running in the yard, Of Desmond and Molly Jones... (Ha ha ha ha ha) Happy ever after in the market place... Desmond lets the children lend a hand... Molly stays at home and does her pretty face... And in the evening she still sings it with the band... O-bla-di, o-bla-da, life goes on, brah!... Lala how the life goes on... O-bla-di, o-bla-da, life goes on, brah!... Lala how the life goes on. In a couple of years they have built a home sweet home, With a couple of kids running in the yard, Of Desmond and Molly Jones... Happy ever after in the market place... Molly lets the children lend a hand... Desmond stays at home and does his pretty face... And in the evening she's a singer with the band... O-bla-di, o-bla-da, life goes on, brah!... Lala how the life goes on... O-bla-di, o-bla-da, life goes on, brah!... Lala how the life goes on. And if you want some fun, Sing O-bla-di-bla-da.
Easy validation. Re-brand as D. Lee temporarily and see if it gets better results. Adapt and overcome. Times are hard, I hope you are offered a good position soon; good luck! :)
Are you sure you have as awesome a resume as you think? I got help from my university career advisement center and they helped write my resume so I assumed it was pretty good but despite a massive list of major related extracurricular activities and a pretty decent GPA, I got no interviews or calls. I asked on here and posted my resume and got tips from a number of members most of which were opposite of what my university had said and after that I got interviewed for several jobs and got the job I currently have.
Change your name to Obladi Oblada?
That my result in a whole different set of stereotypes.
For what it's worth, many people seem to misunderstand how applying for a corporate/urban job works these days.
Apparently I'm an idiot, as I'm poor, jobless, and have never employed anyone. Oh wait.
Perhaps I should've spent countless hours and dollars on school so's I'd be all smart & empoyable like.
Who are all these black Desmond athletes you speak of? Did Desmond Tutu play for the Falcons? (Seriously. I don't know. Make me smarter.)
poopshovel wrote:For what it's worth, many people seem to misunderstand how applying for a corporate/urban job works these days.Apparently I'm an idiot, as I'm poor, jobless, and have never employed anyone. Oh wait. Perhaps I should've spent countless hours and dollars on school so's I'd be all smart & empoyable like. Who are all these black Desmond athletes you speak of? Did Desmond Tutu play for the Falcons? (Seriously. I don't know. Make me smarter.)
How many $1xx,xxx,xxx or multi-BILLION dollar companies have you applied for jobs with?
All of my jobs have been been with BIG companies, and sometimes big companies owned by even bigger multi-billion dollar corps. And that is exactly how it is.
I currently work for a $1xx,xxx,xxx size company and it's the smallest one I've worked for with around 500 employees. Others include Mercury Marine, L-3 Communications, and State Farm.
Walking up to security at the front desk with a suit and a resume, will have security take your resume and say, "Thanks. Have a nice day."
You will not speak to a hiring manager, HR person, etc.
z31maniac wrote:poopshovel wrote:How many $1xx,xxx,xxx or multi-BILLION dollar companies have you applied for jobs with? All of my jobs have been been with BIG companies, and sometimes big companies owned by even bigger multi-billion dollar corps. And that is exactly how it is. I currently work for a $1xx,xxx,xxx size company and it's the smallest one I've worked for with around 500 employees. Others include Mercury Marine, L-3 Communications, and State Farm. Walking up to security at the front desk with a suit and a resume, will have security take your resume and say, "Thanks. Have a nice day." You will not speak to a hiring manager, HR person, etc.For what it's worth, many people seem to misunderstand how applying for a corporate/urban job works these days.Apparently I'm an idiot, as I'm poor, jobless, and have never employed anyone. Oh wait. Perhaps I should've spent countless hours and dollars on school so's I'd be all smart & empoyable like. Who are all these black Desmond athletes you speak of? Did Desmond Tutu play for the Falcons? (Seriously. I don't know. Make me smarter.)
None. Then again, I'm not crying about how I'm poor and jobless, or all the LEGIT E36 M3 that could have 'held me back' in life. But my last name is "White" so I guess it's all sunshine and goddamned lollipops for me, right?
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