On Friday, September 1, 2017, the Student Chosen/Preferred Name option will become available to students. Please help to make students, faculty, and staff aware of this new service.
Student Chosen/Preferred Name
An option for students to choose a chosen/preferred first name and/or middle name or initial in the student information system.
Georgia Tech recognizes that many of its students use a first name, and possibly a middle name or initial, other than their legal name. As long as the use of a chosen/preferred name is not for the purpose of misrepresentation, the Institute acknowledges that a chosen/preferred name should be used whenever possible in the course of conducting daily business and in the educational process.
For this reason, the Institute will permit any student who wishes to do so to identify themselves within the student information system with a chosen/preferred first name and/or a middle name or initial in addition to their legal name. It is further understood that the student's chosen/preferred name should be used in Institute communications and reporting, except where the use of the legal name is necessitated by Institute business practices or legal requirements. For example, the official academic record, the transcript, as well as financial aid documents must carry the legal name.
It is important to note that this option may be modified, changed, altered, or rescinded at the discretion of the Georgia Institute of Technology.
What is a Chosen/Preferred Name?
Students may opt to go by a chosen/preferred first name and/or middle name or initial that is different from their legal first name. This name will appear instead of legal name in the GT Directory online and may propagate to other systems on campus. How each system will handle this information may vary, so until a universal application of the use of a chosen/preferred name is realized, students and users of the information simply need to be aware.
Some records, such as paychecks or financial aid, as well as the academic record (transcript) that require the use of a legal name, will not change to chosen/preferred first name. However, whenever possible, chosen/preferred first name will be used.
The Institute allows students to specify a chosen/preferred first name and/or middle name or initial by filing with the Registrar's Office a change of name form. Once the change of name form is processed and the change entered in the student information system (Banner/OSCAR), it will appear on forms in Banner/OSCAR, including the class roster and the grade roster. This will not happen automatically, but it should update within 24-48 hours.
At the same time that the Registrar's Office enters the chosen/preferred name in Banner, it will also update the Georgia Tech Enterprise Directory (GTED) system which will allow the change to propagate into other GT systems. The changes may not appear in all places at the same time. After the changes are made by the Registrar's Office, it may require a day or so for the information to appear in other systems.
Campus Use of Chosen/Preferred Name
In public or semi-public systems where names are visible to other students, instructors, faculty, campus officials, and the general public, chosen/preferred name will be displayed if that system has been updated to interact with Banner or extracts name information from GTED.
Campus departments are encouraged to utilize chosen/preferred first name and/or middle name or initial in their business practices.
Additional Information
See the request form and answers to frequently asked questions.
More information about the Student Chosen/Preferred Name option is available on the Registrar's Office web site.