This year most events for the college of business have been moved online. While it will be different than previous years, we believe students can still get all of the benefits from the Career Fair, Meet the Firms and Etiquette Dinner events by attending them safely online. Attending the Career Fair or Meet the Firms, is vital to making connections with company recruiters. Many students have found both full and part-time positions by attending these events and talking to recruiters. The Etiquette Dinner is another great event that helps students learn how to connect and make a positive impression with business associates over dinner. Talking business over dinner or just going out to lunch with your boss is a very common practice in the business world and it is important for you to be prepared.

For these online events, we are using a website called Handshake. Handshake traditionally was focused on connecting employers with job seekers, but now they also offer helpful tools that will allow the College of Business to host most of its events online. We wrote this helpful article to walk you through how to join events on Handshake and prepare for a virtual career fair!

Sign Up for Handshake

• First, click the link to Handshake which can be found on the College of Business social media pages or from an email from the College of Business.
• If you do not have a Handshake account you will be prompted to create one. Be sure to fill in as much information as possible to help potential employers get to know you. If you already have a Handshake account simply sign in to your account.
• Next, make sure you upload your current resume to your Handshake profile by clicking on your profile and clicking the upload resume or documents button at the top of the page.

Register for an Event

• Once that is done, you are ready to register for an event! Click the “Events” tab at the top of the handshake home page next to the search bar. Find the event you want to participate in and click on it.
• Then at the top right of the event page click register. A pop up will then appear, simply click the “View employer sessions” button. From this section, you can schedule one on one sessions with any employers that have times available. If you would like to hear more about a company and what they have to offer, you can join a group session by clicking on the group session link under the employer you wish to hear from. (Make sure you schedule one on one appointments and group sessions well before the event takes place so you can secure your spot!)
• Set a reminder on your phone or opt into Handshake’s reminder email system so you don’t miss your scheduled time!

Preparing the Day of the Event

• On the day of the event make sure you are dressed professionally and have cleaned up your background area that will appear in the video.
• Log into Handshake 10 - 15 minutes before your scheduled time so you can make a great first impression and enter the video session promptly.
• Once you are logged into Handshake click the Events tab. Click the event you wish to join and click the “Your sessions” tab below the title of the event. Once your scheduled time comes click the “Join video” button next to your scheduled session.
• Once clicked in the middle of the page a video conference link will appear when your scheduled time comes. Click the link and you will be put into a video conference with the employer. If you scheduled a one on one session with the employer you will be able to engage with the employer directly and ask questions like a normal interview. If you scheduled a group session you will be put into a video conference with up to 50 other students and will hear from a representative from the company about who they are and what they have to offer.

The College of Business events are a bit different this year but you will still greatly benefit from attending them! With this guide and a little bit of preparation, you can succeed and land your dream job.