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It is crucial to keep your personal and academic profile on Handshake up to date. The more details you provide about your academics and experience, the easier it is for Handshake to tailor jobs and internships for you. Employers can also contact you through Handshake, so having an updated profile allows them to see your accomplishments and skills that they may be looking for. In most cases, Handshake does not update your profile automatically.
Screenshot of Profile Menu in Handshake
Getting Started
Once logged in to Handshake, we recommend updating the following profile sections:
Basic Profile
Update your email address, physical address, and profile photo. If you would like to associate your account with an alternative email address to your campus email address, follow these instructions to update your account. We recommend this for graduating seniors and alumni.
My Journey
Add a specific and succinct professional summary to your profile. Try to include: Your area of study/career interests, relevant experiences and skills and what you are looking for on Handshake (internships, mentorship, networking, on-campus jobs at Sierra College).
Education
Provide your Sierra College major, degree level, year in school, GPA, and graduation date. You can include degrees obtained at a community college, but high school education information should be omitted.
Work Experience
Include all experiences where you gained transferable skills and knowledge. This includes non-paid positions, internships, volunteering, and leadership roles. Examples: faculty research, health-related experiences, leadership in clubs or local jobs. Check out the "College to Career Toolkit for Students" on the Prepare for a Career page.
Organizations and Extracurriculars
Provide a brief description of the organization, its goals, and your role. Mention any leadership positions you've held. Examples include Sierra College organizations, sports clubs, interest-based clubs, and volunteering. Include accomplishment statements to highlight your contributions.
Courses
Enter courses relevant to the jobs and/or careers you are pursuing. Include courses/labs taken at Sierra College and other colleges if applicable.
Projects
Include projects from courses, work, volunteering or organizations. Mention any conferences, publications or grants. Describe your role with accomplishment statements and link relevant materials.
Your Interests
This could include your hobbies, general career fields of interests and significant experiences.
Skills
Add your hard and soft skills, including those learned through training, coursework, or personal development. Remove any auto-filled skills that don't apply and try to include skills that require training for you to learn (computer software, certifications, etc.) or ones you may have gained in your Sierra College coursework (data analysis, lab techniques).
Documents
Use the "Manage Documents" function to add documents to your profile (resumes, cover letters, etc.) and set which ones you would like to be visible to employers.
Visibility
In some sections, you can customize what employers see. A crossed-out eye icon means information is hidden from employers. A lock icon indicates that information is locked by the school and can't be changed. To adjust visibility settings, go to your account icon > Settings & Privacy > Account Information.
Privacy Settings
Under Settings and Privacy, choose from three options: Community: Profile viewable by employers, students and alumni; Employers: Profile accessible to employers, students can't message you; and Private: Profile hidden from everyone, including employers.