There are many benefits to filling out your profile in Handshake, and driving your profile to completion!
For example, Handshake will provide you with personalized job recommendations based on the information you enter on your profile — This allows you to discover jobs and internships that are relevant to you! Employers are also more likely to proactively reach out to you with job opportunities and event invitations if your profile is complete.
Employers can only view your profile if you've set your profile settings to Community or Employers. Students and alumni can only view your profile if you've set your profile to Community. To learn more about your profile privacy options, refer to Profile Privacy Options in Handshake.
To fully complete your profile in Handshake, you'll want to add the following information:
- Looking for
- Summary
- Skills
- Work experience
- Education
- Courses
- Organizations
- Projects
- Languages
- Profile Picture
To add the information individually, click on your icon in the upper-right corner of the page, then click My Profile.
Looking for
The "Looking for" section on your profile is designed to help specify what types of opportunities you are seeking.
This can include job roles, industries, locations, and other preferences. By filling out this section, you can receive more personalized job recommendations and increase your visibility to employers who are looking for candidates with specific interests and qualifications.
💡Note: depending on your profile visibility, this section is displayed on your profile if at least one prompt is filled out.
Click the pencil icon, located to the right of Looking for — then fill in the desired information within the pop-up.
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What are you looking for right now? (Select one)
- Full-time job
- Part-time job
- Internship
- Campus job
- Roles (click in the search bar and begin typing to produce results in the dropdown)
- Industries (click in the search bar and begin typing to produce results in the dropdown)
- Locations (click in the search bar and begin typing to produce results in the dropdown)
Once everything is added, click the button Save to update!
Summary
This section offers you the opportunity to add a personal bio to your profile.
Click the pencil icon, located to the right of Summary — then type your bio in the pop-up that appears.
💡Note: there's a 300 character limit.
🚀Tip: if you're not sure what to include, we recommend topics such as what you're passionate about, what you're looking for on Handshake, and any experiences or skills you want to highlight!
Once the information is added, click the button Save to update or the button Cancel to cancel!
Skills
Add technical skills (like SQL) along with soft skills (like communication). The more skills you list, the better your chances are of showing up in an employer search!
Click the + icon, located to the right of Skills.
In the pop-up that appears, type in a skill you would like to add to your profile in the search box. The dropdown will produce results based on your search — click on the skill to add it.
💡Note: when you click in the search box, the results will display up to 25 available skills to add — These are listed in alphabetical order. To find a certain skill, continue typing in the search box to produce the desired result.
Once all of your skills are added, click the button Save to add or the button Cancel to cancel!
Work experience
Have you had a part-time job, internship, work study, research position, or volunteered? If so, employers like to know that you’ve taken on the responsibility, and value these experiences as they've helped you develop skills!
Click the + icon, located to the right of Work experience.
Within the pop-up, enter the following details:
- Employer name
- Job title
- Current working here (check box if you're still in the role)
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Time Period
- Start Date (Months and Year)
- End Date (Month and year)
- Location
- Description
Click the button Save to add the information to your profile or the button Cancel to cancel!
To add more work experiences, continue clicking the + icon and following the steps above!
Education
The Education section is intended to reflect the school you're currently affiliated with, along with other schools you may have attended in the past.
- If your school has pre-created a profile for you, your Education will already be added to your profile.
- If you created an account yourself, your Education will be pre-filled with the school you associated yourself with during the creation process.
To update your Primary Education, refer to Managing Primary Education.
Courses
Add courses you've taken to your profile to express the skills developed throughout your learnings.
Click on the + icon, located to the right of Courses.
In the pop-up that appears, enter the Course Name and Code (if applicable) - Check the box if you are/were a TA or Course reader, then click the button Save to add to your profile or the button Cancel to cancel.
To remove a course, click the trashcan icon, located to the right of the course.
To add more courses, continue clicking the + icon and following the steps above!
Organizations
These signal your specific interests, affinity groups, and participation and involvement on campus.
Click on the + icon, located to the right of Organizations.
Within the pop-up, enter the following details:
- Organization
- Position (check box if you're still in the role)
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Time Period
- Start Date (Month and Year)
- End Date (Month and Year)
- Location
- Description
Click the button Save to add the information to your profile, or the button Cancel to cancel!
To add more organizations, continue clicking the + icon and following the steps above!
Projects
Adding projects to your profile may include a wide variety of work, such as publications, photos, presentations, pitch decks, websites, and more!
Click on the + icon, located to the right of Projects.
Within the pop-up, enter the following details:
- Project title
- Role (check box if you're still working on the project)
-
Time Period
- Start Date (Month and Year)
- End Date (Month and Year)
- URL
- Description
Click the button Save to add the information to your profile, or the button Cancel to cancel!
To add more projects, continue clicking the + icon and following the steps above!
Languages
Let employers know the language/s you are fluent in!
1. Click the + icon, located to the right of Languages.
2. Within the pop-up, click on the search box Select Language and type the desired language you want to add — A list will populate based on what you type. Select the option from the dropdown to add.
Note: there is the option to include Sign Language in various languages across the globe.
3. Once a language is added, click on the search box Select proficiency and choose your expertise from the dropdown:
- Elementary proficiency
- Limited working proficiency
- Professional working proficiency
- Full professional proficiency
- Native or bilingual proficiency
4. Once added, click the button Save to update or Cancel to cancel!
To remove a language, click the trashcan icon, located to the right of the language.
To add more languages, continue clicking the + icon and following the steps above!
Profile Picture
Add a picture to connect with your school's career service center and other students — or add a picture to make your profile standout among employers!
At the top of the page, above the Summary section, click on the image avatar to add your photo.
Within the pop-up, click the button Upload photo, then choose an image from your computer to upload.
Note: If you can't upload your image, it may be because your picture is too big. The max image size is 20 megabytes. If larger than 20 megabytes, you'll need to crop the photo to a smaller size, and then re-upload it.
Once the image is uploaded, use the - sign to zoom out and the + sign to zoom in, then click the button Save to save!
Once everything is added, your profile will be completed in Handshake!
To update personal information on your profile, such as your name, pronouns, location, and any links you'd like to include, refer to Update Personal Information on Your Profile.