How to Request an Event

All employers can request to host events with the various schools that are on Handshake. Events may be hosted on the school's campus, off-site, or virtually. They can be used to meet students and alumni, discuss current career opportunities, and provide students with valuable resources.

Features available only to Premium partners are indicated by an asterisk(*). For more information, please check out this resource.

Request an Event 

1. Click on Events from the left navigation bar.
2. Click on the Request Event tab in the upper-right corner of the page.

3. Enter the required Event information into the following fields:

• Event Name
  • 85 character limit 
• Event Categories (select up to two)
  • Hiring and recruiting 
  • About your company 
  • Guidance
  • Networking
  • Career fairs
  • Conferences and more
• Start & End Dates
  
  • Click on the small calendar icon to select the desired start and end dates for your event.
    • Events cannot be set as recurring. However, events can last for more than 24 hours, *or occur at the same time as a 1-on-1 employer-hosted schedule. 
  • Time Zone 
• Contact 
  • The contact person should be the best point person for questions about the event.
    
    • The contact selected must have an active Handshake user account, and have the role to manage events. For additional details, refer to A Guide to Employer Role Types in Handshake.
    • Students can also message the contact. Check the box to the left of The contact person can accept messages from students to allow students to message the contact directly. 
• Where is your event being held? 
  • On-Campus: My company is hosting this event at a school.
    • Which school is hosting? (select a school)
    • Virtual event available: Students can choose to attend virtually or in person. 
      • If yes, enter the Virtual Attendance Link 
  • Off-Campus: My company is hosting this event (not at a school) and booking space ourselves.
    • Where is the location for your event (optional)
    • Virtual event available: Students can choose to attend virtually or in person. 
      • If yes, enter the Virtual Attendance Link 
  • Virtually: My company is hosting this event virtually. 
    • Where will the virtual event happen?
      • *Handshake video session: only available to Handshake Premium partners with Event Management. These sessions have a participant limit of 50 total attendees.
        • *Would you like to record this session? (select yes/no) 
        • *How many people from your team will host the event? (select or enter number) 
        • *Student check-in: Request that students check in for this event via Handshake.
          • For additional details, refer to Virtual Event Check-In Guide.
      • External Video Platform
        • Web Host URL: This is where students will go to attend your event (e.g. a link to Zoom, YouTube, Bluejeans, or WebEx).
        • External Registration Link (optional): Link to Eventbrite, CRM, or another tool. Students will be redirected here when they register for the event.
• Add a registration limit (optional): Limit the number of people who can register and attend this event.
• Invite schools to promote your event 
  • For Core Employers, only one school per event created can be requested. 
    • *Handshake Premium partners can select multiple schools or choose a School List if you’re hosting an event for a group of schools, like HBCUs. Refer to How to Use School Lists.
  • When you invite a school(s), their career center has the opportunity to review your event. Once approved, your event will appear on the event's school board and students will be able to discover your event on Handshake.
• Write an effective description: Describe your event to help attract the right attendees.
  • 1500 character limit
• *Highlight guests (optional): Handshake Premium partners may choose to add information (Name, Title, Short Bio, Photo) about speakers, hosts, and panelists to appear alongside the description.
• Update event thumbnail: 
  • The logo your company profile currently has on Handshake will automatically be added as the thumbnail. However, you may change the branding image by clicking on the small pencil icon towards the right corner of the image. For size and ratio recommendations, refer to our Employer Logo & Banner Guide.

4. Click Save in the lower-right corner to save and request your event.

Event overview

After your event is created, you will be redirected to the event Overview page. 

There are 2 main tabs located on this page. Premium partners will have an additional 2 tabs (indicated with an asterisk *). 

• Overview: shows general event information including date, time, location, description, activity, and comments. 
• RSVP: shows a list of all students that have RSVP'd to your event. Learn How to Access and Message Event RSVPs.
• *Schools Invited: shows a list of all schools invited to the event and their event approval status 
• *Check-in Kiosk Setup: Premium partners with Event Manager have the option of setting up a Check-in Kiosk for in-person and virtual events. For additional details, refer to Event Check-In Guide (for in-person events). 

Events are available to any student with the event URL or who received a message with the event attachment. 

To surface the event to students, however, the specific school(s) should be invited to promote your event. 

If your company has any active job postings and the requested event is less than 60 days away, the event will be promoted on all job postings at the schools that approve the event.