Handshake is VCU’s career platform where you can build a profile and find full and part-time jobs, internships, co-ops -- and your future career. You can also stay up-to-date on career events.

Just like LinkedIn, the system gets smarter the more you use it and will connect you with the most relevant employers, events and opportunities.

Yes! Every student at VCU has already been set up with a Handshake account. All you have to do is log-in. Here are the steps you take to set up your profile:

• Go to: https://vcu.joinhandshake.com
• Click on the blue button titled “VCU Sign On”
• Sign in with your VCUeID and password
  • Note: Handshake uses Single Sign-On, meaning if you are logged in to VCU on another site such as your email, MyVCU, and etc., you will not need to fill out your student log-in again.
• Complete your profile by filling out “Work Experience”, “Organizations”, and “Skills”
• Search for jobs, internships, and co-ops, stay up-to-date on events, and schedule an appointment with your career advisor

1. Add a profile picture. If you don’t want to post a picture, post logo of your major or school.
2. Ensure your education section is correct and complete. Add your expected graduation date, since many employers use graduation date as one of their recruitment criteria.
3. Add work experience. If you don’t have any work experience, post an academic project in this area that displays your skills.
4. Add one organization or extracurricular activity. If you don’t have any, you need to get involved! Even one activity will help you be more competitive.
5. Add at least one skill, though more would be better. If you don’t see the skill you need in the drop-down options, just type it in to create it.
6. You can also add courses, projects, and a quick bio about yourself in the “Get to know me” box. You can also upload documents for a more complete profile.

Yes! You have the option to change the visibility for each document you add to your Handshake profile. The default setting is invisible/private.

Helpful hints:

• Only one resume can be visible on your profile at a time.
• You may keep multiple documents stored on your profile and private, and you can use them to apply to jobs. The employer and Career Services can see the documents that you submit when applying for a job, but the documents remain invisible on your profile.

How to Manage Documents in Handshake
You can see which documents are currently visible on your profile by clicking “Manage Documents” on the right side of your profile page:

You can toggle between visible and not visible (private) for each of you documents.

There are three levels of privacy options on Handshake.

To manage your privacy, select “Settings & Privacy” from the drop-down menu under your name.

Here are your options:

Our Recommendation: Allow employers to view your profile. If your profile is invisible to employers, they will only receive partial information about your qualifications when you apply to a job through the Handshake system. This would land your application in the “Unqualified” pile.

You can have your profile be visible to employers, but invisible to fellow students. You also have control over who can see your GPA.

Your GPA is never visible to other students. You can choose if your GPA is visible to employers. Please see below about how to do so.

In the Education section, click on the edit crayon:

Choose to Hide from employers for your Cumulative GPA and Department GPA.