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This may seem silly but should I indicate somewhere on my resume that I'm a US citizen? I was born/raised here but I have a foreign sounding name and have gotten asked in many interviews where I am from. A few times I got a look when I said the name of the state I was born in and then had to tell them that that my parents are from x country. Is it just curiosity or could people be concerned about hiring a non-citizen? I figure if they want to know they'll just ask in the interview but I don't want to get dinged just b/c someone has doubts.

No, you don't need to put your citizenship in your resume unless it's explicitly called for in a job posting. But people have biases against foreign sounding names for sure and this issue has been debated on this forum before. All things being equal, if it's a toss between John smith and you, it's going to be John smith. It's unfortunate but that's how the game works.

Anonymous User wrote:No, you don't need to put your citizenship in your resume unless it's explicitly called for in a job posting. But people have biases against foreign sounding names for sure and this issue has been debated on this forum before. All things being equal, if it's a toss between John smith and you, it's going to be John smith. It's unfortunate but that's how the game works.

I disagree. I'm Asian, and some OCI interviewers explicitly asked me if I am a foreigner and need work visa sponsorship.

I'm Asian American and I have been asked about visa sponsorship at an interview. I think this came up because somewhere during the interview I had mentioned living in Asia before, so the interviewer assumed I might be a foreigner (I speak perfect English).

Another time, with the above experience still fresh in my mind, I tried to preempt the issue of visa sponsorship but mentioning I was a US citizen in the interview, and quickly mentioning that I was bringing it up because it was raised as a question at a previous interview. My interviewer looked slightly horrified and commented that people shouldn't ask that question. Got an offer, though, despite what might have been a faux pas (?).

Several years into my career (and a lateral move later), I still don't know how to approach this issue the correct way, but I wouldn't put it on my resume that's for sure. Try to mention it in the interview in a savvy way.

If your education and work history is all in the US that should signal to anyone that you're a citizen.