PhD/PsyD Professional issues: Hyphenate name or not?

[BengalLove89]

Hey everyone. I am currently a postdoctoral fellow. I have two publications in my name and plan to work in private practice once I complete my postdoc. I am getting married this October, and am facing the dilemma of do I change my name completely to my fiance's last name or do I hyphenate? I am leaning toward hyphenating because I do not want to give up my last name entirely; I'm proud of the accomplishments that I have made with this last name (I won't keep my maiden name as my legal name because I want to share a last name with my children). Here's the thing. If I hyphenate my legal name, I still fully intend on identifying myself with only my maiden name when introducing myself professionally and corresponding via email/professional talks. Has anyone else done this and ran into any problems with this? Any issues I may not be considering?

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[Justanothergrad]

use your current name professionally and change it however you like?

 

[WisNeuro]

If you don't have a significant publication history, and especially if you don't plan on going into academia with publishing, it really doesn't matter. If you're going private practice, I'd just make sure that the name that I have all of my business paperwork in, is the same one that I use professionally.

 

[Doctor Eliza]

I had a similar situation: a few publications that I was proud of under my maiden name and plans to work in PP. I opted to not hyphenate (with the names in question it would have been really cumbersome.). Instead, I changed my middle name to my maiden name and took my husband’s last name. This solution has worked very well for me. I used to have business cards with all three names, but in the most recent rendition I just use a middle initial.

Congrats on your upcoming nuptials!

 

[RespectTheChemistry]

I had a similar situation: a few publications that I was proud of under my maiden name and plans to work in PP. I opted to not hyphenate (with the names in question it would have been really cumbersome.). Instead, I changed my middle name to my maiden name and took my husband’s last name. This solution has worked very well for me. I used to have business cards with all three names, but in the most recent rendition I just use a middle initial.

Congrats on your upcoming nuptials!

May I ask about the logistics of this? Were you able to do it in one transaction (for lack of a better word) or were there any extra steps?

 

[Doctor Eliza]

May I ask about the logistics of this? Were you able to do it in one transaction (for lack of a better word) or were there any extra steps?

It was super easy. I did all at once when I got my new social security card.

 

[foreverbull]

I added a last name on the end (two last names, no hyphen). Hasn’t changed much of anything except people find it really confusing to have two unhyphenated last names and can’t pronounce either. Was a bit of a pain to do all the paperwork initially and update everything in every account.

Professionally I use my pre-marriage name now that my spouse and I share the two identical last names.

 

[AlmostaPhD]

I changed my name completely legally (not hyphenated, not as middle name) but just kept using my maiden name professionally. This occasionally causes extra work or confusion on paperwork- e.g., I'm hired for a consulting gig and have to explain that I need my 1099 in a name they've never heard of, staff who have only seen my HR or budget paperwork call me by my legal name with regularity. It's really not that big of a deal, though. My work email is in my professional name, as is my psychology license and my online bio on the official website. All of these were created/received post-wedding. I'm an academic, but I don't see why it would be that different across different kinds of positions.

8/10 would recommend going by an alias. I liked my name and it's only a mild inconvenience when things come up.

 

[cara susanna]

use your current name professionally and change it however you like?

I know a psychologist who did this and it sounded like it was a complete pain.

I changed my entire last name and just bold my name on my CV as needed (publications etc). But I also wanted to change my maiden name for reasons I will not disclose on this board, lol.

 

[Indiana_Jane]

I know a psychologist who did this and it sounded like it was a complete pain.

I changed my entire last name and just bold my name on my CV as needed (publications etc). But I also wanted to change my maiden name for reasons I will not disclose on this board, lol.

I did this, too. Bolded on CV as needed, changed my maiden name.

 

[borne_before]

Separate personal from private. Practice under current name (maiden name). Use other name on things like drivers license and what not. Makes it easier to keep creepers from finding where you live.

 

[cara susanna]

Separate personal from private. Practice under current name (maiden name). Use other name on things like drivers license and what not. Makes it easier to keep creepers from finding where you live.

Like I said, I'd been planning on doing that myself but talked to someone who had and it sounded really, really annoying. Like this person basically had to keep a copy of their marriage certificate on them at all times.

 

[Justanothergrad]

I know a psychologist who did this and it sounded like it was a complete pain.

I changed my entire last name and just bold my name on my CV as needed (publications etc). But I also wanted to change my maiden name for reasons I will not disclose on this board, lol.

I've known some that did it without issue. I've known others that just changed it and did what you did/added a note about name change

 

[borne_before]

One time during my masters I wrote a scathing review of a paper. Turns out, it was my professor before the name change.

 

[PsyDuck90]

I changed my entire last name and just bold my name on my CV as needed (publications etc). But I also wanted to change my maiden name for reasons I will not disclose on this board, lol.

While I'm still a grad student, I did the same. I had a publication and a few conference presentations on there, but I just bolded my name on those few things and have used my married name on research products I've submitted since then.

 

[hopefulclinicalpsych]

I’m in a similar dilemma, but would like to go into research more. I’m about to finish internship and have over 10 publications under my maiden name. I was planning on changing it completely and then just having my maiden name on my CV somewhere. I figured my future research will outweigh my current research.

 

[szymk1sm]

I’m in a similar dilemma, but would like to go into research more. I’m about to finish internship and have over 10 publications under my maiden name. I was planning on changing it completely and then just having my maiden name on my CV somewhere. I figured my future research will outweigh my current research.

My grad school mentor had some prior research experience under her maiden name. In her CV, under each relevant section, she has a note that says "Please note name change from XXX to XXX" before listing the works and then her name is bolded in the various author lists.

 

[CheetahGirl]

The VA requires you use your formal name. I have four names (three of which are 'foreign'), and I use all four of them on publications. My last name is my maiden name hyphenated with my married name. At first, I wanted to use only my maiden name (because my Dad was a doctor also, so it was fun to be called the same as him)...but makes no difference...publications want your legal name, and patients call you whatever they want...if my name is Dr. X-Y, some call me Dr. X, some call me Dr. Y, some just use my middle name (my preferred name), others just identify me by my ethnicity (as in that "foreign-looking doctor," lol). Oh, yes, and I bold my name on CV listed publications or presentations (as some will not list my first name AND middle name).

No problem, except the song & dance routine whenever I introduce myself.