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Yes, You Should Be on Handshake

Posted on by kwilcox

If you’ve been reading emails from the Humanities Professional Resource Center, you’ve probably seen links that take you to a Handshake login page. Handshake is the U of Illinois’s career services platform. which is just technical speak for “all things career.”

Handshake is free and easy to use.  Pull up https://handshake.illinois.edu/ and type in your netid and password. That’s it.

Once on Handshake, you can find jobs, internships, workshops, appointment schedules, career fairs, various recourses, and info sessions.  Handshake is designed to be simple to use:  Netflix meets LinkedIn.  Like Netflix, the more you use the site, the better it will be able to offer you suggestions tailored to your situation. Like LinkedIn, the platform gives you the ability to complete your profile and upload a resume to make applying for jobs easier. Bonus: once you’re on Handshake, employers will start to come to you.

Handshake is not just for job postings. You can find campus events there, including events relating to grad school, info sessions with employers, information about career fairs, and networking opportunities. Under the “Career Center” tab you have access to a wealth of informational resources, and you can  schedule your own appointments with career services staff at the Humanities Professional Resource Center or the Career Center.

A few tips:

  • Don’t be afraid to click “public” for your resume. Only employers approved by our campus staff can see your resume–not the whole world.
  • You can search for part-time jobs and internships here on campus by setting appropriate search filters.
  • Your dream job may not get posted to Handshake, so we encourage you to look at other sites in your post-graduation job search. However, it’s a good place to start exploring. It connects you to 400,000+ employers, including every Fortune 500 Company, as well as local organizations hiring part-time workers.
  • Need help? Drop in to the Humanities Professional Resource Center or make an appointment with Julie Higgs (you can email humanitiesprc@illinois.edu or call 217-244-1840 if scheduling on Handshake isn’t working for you).