Introduction

“Companies are more than twice as likely to call minority applicants for interviews if they submit whitened resumes than candidates who reveal their race.” –Harvard Business School 

The hiring process is presented as an unbiased system, where skills, experience, and qualifications determine an applicant’s success, not their race or cultural affiliations. However, for people of color, securing an interview comes with an additional burden: the pressure to “whitewash” their resumes. Resume whitewashing refers to the practice of altering one’s name, background, or experiences to appear less culturally identifiable in order to avoid discrimination. This practice is not hypothetical; it is an everyday reality for many POC job seekers. This forces job seekers into a difficult dilemma: present their authentic selves and risk discrimination, or conform to hiring biases in hopes of landing a job.

What Does Resume Whitewashing Entail?

Resume whitewashing takes different forms, depending on the job seeker’s background and industry. One common practice is adopting an “Americanized” version of one’s name in place of an ethnic one. Others may omit cultural affiliations from their resumes, such as membership in student organizations tied to their racial or ethnic background. For example, a Black applicant who was a leader in a historically Black student organization or a Latino job seeker who volunteered for a Spanish-speaking organization may decide to omit these experiences from their resume.

Some job seekers may even misrepresent their education to appear more in line with mainstream norms. For instance, an applicant who attended a historically Black college might simply list the school’s location without specifying a name. Other individuals put their language proficiencies near the top of their resumes so that recruiters can acknowledge that their native language is English, despite an ethnic-sounding name. These alterations show that many POC applicants feel that their qualifications alone are not enough. They are forced to look for jobs within a system in which characteristics of “whiteness” are viewed as the professional norm.

Does Whitewashing Resumes “Work”?

Numerous studies have shown that candidates who whitewash their resumes are more likely to receive callbacks. A girl named Aliyah Jones, who was told she wasn’t “corporate enough,” conducted a social experiment, posing as a white woman named Emily on LinkedIn to test racial biases in hiring. By comparing her applications with “Emily’s,” Jones discovered that her alter ego received interview invitations at a much higher rate — 57.9% compared to her own 8.9%. This experiment highlights the role race plays in the job application process.

One study from the National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER) found that resumes with white-sounding names like Emily or Greg were far more likely to get a response than those with names like Jamal or Lakisha, despite having identical qualifications. This disparity highlights the influence of racial bias in hiring, even when candidates possess the same skill set and experience. Another study sent 1,600 resumes for Black and Asian applicants to entry-level job postings across 16 U.S. metro areas. Some resumes included racial identifiers, while others were “whitened.” Researchers tracked interview callbacks and found that applicants with whitened resumes had significantly higher callback rates — 25% for Black candidates (compared to 10% with racial identifiers) and 21% for Asians (versus 11.5%). Despite identical qualifications, resumes without ethnic details fared better, highlighting a substantial racial bias in the hiring process.

Beyond statistics, many job seekers have shared personal experiences that highlight the effectiveness of resume whitewashing. On platforms like Reddit, applicants have recounted instances where they applied to the same company twice, once under their real name and once using an Anglicized version, only to find that the whitewashed resume received a callback while the original did not. 

Why Do People Feel Pressured to Whitewash Resumes?

Unconscious bias is a major factor. Even when hiring managers do not intend to discriminate, they may subconsciously favor candidates who fit their mental image of the “ideal” employee, which is often a white, Westernized individual. Name bias is particularly common; a hiring manager who struggles to pronounce, and in turn remember, an unfamiliar name might assume that the candidate will not fit into the company’s culture. Affinity bias can also play a role, as recruiters may lean towards applicants with backgrounds similar to their own.

Beyond individual biases, systemic discrimination pressures marginalized groups to conform. For example, the term “code-switching” refers to POC switching the way they speak, act, and interact with colleagues within the companies they work for. Educational disparities, employment barriers, and societal norms all contribute to an environment where job seekers from diverse backgrounds feel that assimilation is necessary for success. Rather than challenging bias, resume whitewashing allows discriminatory hiring practices to continue unchecked.

Consequences of Resume Whitewashing

While whitewashing a resume may help job seekers in the short term, it often leads to significant challenges down the road. Those who secure a job based on a whitewashed resume may struggle to maintain this “whitened” identity at work. They also may feel pressured to downplay aspects of their culture in order to fit in, leading to stress and burnout.

Cultural disconnection is another consequence. Employees who suppress their identities may experience alienation or face microaggressions from colleagues. A bilingual employee, for example, may feel uncomfortable speaking their native language at work for fear of being perceived as “unprofessional.” Others may encounter subtle forms of bias, such as coworkers expressing surprise at their proficiency in English or making inappropriate comments about their background.

If companies only hire candidates who conform to a narrow, Eurocentric idea of professionalism, they miss out on the diverse perspectives and talents that a truly inclusive workforce offers. A more diverse team can foster greater innovation, as individuals from different backgrounds bring unique ideas and niche approaches to solving a problem. It can also enhance productivity and collaboration by encouraging employees to learn from each other’s experiences, in turn reducing groupthink and stagnancy. Organizations may falsely believe they have a merit-based hiring process, when in reality, systemic bias still influences which applicants receive opportunities.

How Employers Can Address Resume Bias

Companies must take active steps to reduce hiring bias if they want to create truly inclusive workplaces. One solution is blind recruitment, where names, addresses, and other personal details are removed from resumes during the initial screening process. Companies like Deloitte and HSBC have adopted this approach, leading to a more diverse range of hires.

Training hiring managers on unconscious bias is another critical step. Many organizations have implemented structured hiring processes that include standardized interview questions and diverse hiring panels to minimize affinity bias. Additionally, expanding recruitment efforts to HBCUs and universities, Hispanic-serving institutions, and other minority-dominated education institutions can help attract diverse talent.

Call for Action

Resume whitewashing is not just an issue in hiring. It reflects greater societal inequities that disadvantage marginalized communities in education, employment, and beyond. If companies are truly committed to diversity, they must go beyond surface-level inclusion efforts and address the biases embedded in their hiring processes.

For job seekers, self-advocacy is crucial. Seeking employers that prioritize authenticity and inclusivity, leveraging mentorship programs, and networking with organizations that support minority professionals can help navigate biased hiring landscapes. However, the burden should not fall solely on applicants, employers must also take responsibility for creating fairer, more equitable hiring practices.