Preferred Name and Pronoun Policy

A legal name is one that appears on an individual's driver’s license, passport, social security card, birth certificate and immigration documents. The university must always maintain a record of students’ and employees’ legal names. SVSU students and university employees can implement a change of their legal name and this form is located on the Office of the Registrar’s website under Forms. Legal documentation must be attached for the form to be processed. This completed form with documentation must be submitted to the Office of the Registrar. A legal name change will result in a comprehensive change in the university’s records.

A preferred name is one that the student or employee wishes to be known by within the university community that appears in selected locations in which a legal name is not required. To assure accurate identification, the legal last name will appear along with the preferred name whenever possible.

Preferred name and pronoun can be added/changed through MySVSU:

Self-Service --> Click on your Username (top right)--> User Profile --> Edit Personal Identity 

The university’s computer system will only recognize letters within a name, both preferred and legal. Therefore, a name that includes symbols like $, ____, %, etc. will not be recognizable in the system. In addition, students should not include any numbers in the name. All preferred names must include both first name and last names comprised of letters only.

International students may also implement a preferred name change, but the legal name will still appear on all legal and immigration documents, such the passport, F1 visa, I-20, etc.    

Preferred names are currently on class and grade rosters, email, USPS mailings, online directory, Canvas, the ID card (by request), Handshake, and Self-Service.

When a student or employee initiates a preferred name change, certain campus offices will still maintain the legal name on record. Such offices include the Registrar, Financial Services and Financial Aid. The legal name will still be listed or used in admissions correspondence, transcripts, federal and state agency reports, enrollment verification reports, Solomon enrollment reports for the military, degree verifications, financial documents and/or where required by law.  

Dean's and President's lists are derived from official enrollment data. However, if a student has a preferred name in our SIS system and wants it reflected on their certificate, she/he/they can email registrar@svsu.edu to make such request. 

Dean's and President's lists are ran after the incomplete deadline for Fall and Winter respectfully. Please contact us at least a week after the posting of finale grades if you wish to use your preferred name on the certificate. 

University transcripts are legal documents and will always list the student’s legal name, regardless of whether the student has implemented a preferred name change. Preferred names will not be listed on transcripts.

Students nearing graduation must complete an Application to Graduate, and the Office of the Registrar will honor the chosen name listed on the application for purposes of the Commencement ceremony and the diploma. The Office of the Registrar, however, is not involved in producing the Commencement ceremony invitations that some families of graduates arrange to have printed through the SVSU Bookstore. In such cases, the way in which the student’s name is listed is strictly between the Bookstore staff and the student or his/her family.