Syracuse University allows students, faculty and staff to officially notify the university of their preferred names and pronouns. This information will be used in several communication systems across the university, however, there are limits to where this information can be used.
This practice is consistent with state laws including GENDA, and our university’s non-discrimination policy, which protects campus community members against discrimination based on gender identity and expression. It is currently recognized as a best practice for supporting transgender and gender non-conforming members of university communities.
Students' preferred or chosen names are individual choices and are often deeply connected to students’ identities and sense of belonging. Preferred or chosen names may include a shortened version of a legal name, the use of a middle name, or a completely different name that reflects who they are. Per University policy, preferred or chosen names should be used where possible in the course of University education and communication. However, in many circumstances, it may be a name that the student wishes to exclusively use on campus. In an effort to ensure a safe and positive experience for the student, it is strongly recommended that for any communications sent to a student’s permanent addresses, their primary name be used as opposed to their preferred or chosen name.
Students that need to change your legal name with the University should instead refer to the Change of Student Information Form at https://registrar.syr.edu/students/student-forms/. Faculty and staff should use the Employee Demographic Change form at https://hr.syr.edu/forms/.
A preferred name is one that you choose to be called that is different from your legal/primary name.
If the cardholder already has a card, please log into the MySlice Portal (https://myslice.ps.syr.edu ) and click the View/Update Names link in the My Profile section and update your preferred name. Once this has been done, please email the ID Card office at idcard@syr.edu for a replacement card to be produced at no cost. If you want your preferred name to appear on your new card, you must specify that during your request, otherwise your legal name will be the default. The ID Card office located in 111 Waverly, Suite 111, is open Monday - Friday, 8:30 - 5:00 p.m.
Human Resources records related to salary, benefits, taxes, or other financial issues must contain an individual's legal name so that the records can be matched to files or information required, requested, or retained by the federal, state, or local government.
SU students, faculty and staff can log into the MySlice Portal (https://myslice.ps.syr.edu ) and click the View/Update Names link in the My Profile section. See next section for SUNY ESF.
ESF students will not see the option to update their Preferred Name in the Syracuse University (SU) MySlice Portal as there is a separate Preferred Name procedure already in place at ESF for these students. This process can be found at the ESF Registrar website for Chosen/Preferred Names. An SU student taking classes at ESF who wishes to use a Preferred Name in ESF systems must update the Preferred Name utilizing the ESF procedure.
Yes, after you add a Preferred Name, you have the option to delete it at any time (in reality it just gets deactivated, but you will not see your Preferred Name in MySlice or other systems until you add a new one). Please be aware that changes may take several hours to propagate to the various systems that utilize the Preferred Name, so you may still see a deactivated name for some time after you indicate that you would no longer like to use it.
You may change your Preferred Name as often as you choose. Please be aware that changes may take several hours to propagate to the various systems that utilize the Preferred Name. In addition, remember that it is your responsibility to alert faculty of this change if you wish them to use it as soon as possible.
No.
Not at this time.
You can send an email to help@syr.edu with your question. You can also find more details on the University's Preferred Name Policy webpage.
Please contact the Division of Enrollment and the Student Experience regarding student name usage and the Office of Human Resources regarding employee name usage. You can also send an email to help@syr.edu if you have questions or comments.
Your preferred name will not appear on your diploma by default. You may specify how you want your name to appear on your diploma. All information and a link to some FAQ’s on how to do this can be found on the Office of the Registrar diploma web page ( http://registrar.syr.edu/students/diplomas/)