Handshake for Students & Alumni

New students: If enrolled at Tufts to begin your studies in the Fall, you will have access beginning 7/1. If enrolled at Tufts beginning in January– you will have access to Handshake on the first day of classes.

• Go to Handshake (tufts.joinhandshake.com) 

• Log in using your Tufts email (e.g., firstname.lastname@tufts.edu) and Single Sign-On (SSO) credentials. 

Alumni: Log in with any email address on the sign in page. Your account will be verified and approved by a Career Center admin.

NOTE: Do not use your short-form email address (ex. jbrown01@tufts.edu) to sign in, as this can cause issues with having full access to the Tufts platform 

Fill out your profile with information about you, your interests, your studies and what you’re looking for in a job. Students with a completed profile are five times more likely to be messaged by a recruiter, so take the time to complete your profile in full. A completed profile also helps you connect to relevant opportunities.  

• Education: College/School, Major, and graduation year. 
• Work Experience & Skills: Add internships, jobs, and relevant skills. 
• Documents: Upload your resume and any other supporting materials. 
• Photo: Use a professional headshot like what you use in LinkedIn.  
• Make sure you update Your Interests with: 
  • Job Type: Share whether you’re looking for an internship, part-time job, or full-time job. 
  • Location: Select the cities where you’d like to work, and Handshake will show you jobs in that area
  • Job Role: Choose jobs you would like to explore (marketing associate, software engineer, etc.) 

The Student Onboarding Experience: How to Easily Get Set Up for Success in Handshake.

You control who sees your profile. All profiles are set to “Private” from the outset, but can be adjusted to any of the following options: 

• Private: Only you and Tufts Career Center can access your profile. Apply for jobs and attend in-person events only; no employer messages, profile visibility, or virtual fairs/events. 

• Employers: Visible to employers approved by Tufts University for recruitment. Tufts approves employers from a wide variety of industries, but some rejections include third-party jobs posted by staffing/recruiting agencies, multi-level marketing roles, roles that require an upfront cost, and roles that are designed to proselytize. 

• Community: Visible to other Tufts students and alumni on Handshake, as well as employers. 

• Change settings anytime under Profile → Settings & Privacy. The change to privacy settings is applied and live instantly after the settings are changed. 

Profile Privacy Options in Handshake (explains privacy settings; includes notes on events/fairs and GPA visibility).  

Tufts University Employer policies can be found here:  Employer Policies – Career Center | Tufts University 

Employers can view your profile if you select Visible to Employers (as mentioned above). They can:  

• Invite you to apply for jobs, internships, etc.  

• Message you directly. 

• Employers cannot see your GPA unless you choose to share it. 

• For F-1 International Students: Handshake allows students to answer questions about their work authorization status to help employers filter applicants and ensure time is spent on qualified candidates. This is optional, and students can choose whether to answer these questions. 

Viewing Student Profiles (employer view: where employers access profiles and which fields they see — e.g., GPA or work authorization only if disclosed by the student).  

• Jobs & Internships: Get updates on roles matching your interests. Make sure to follow employers that you are interested in and save job searches (by role, location, or industry) so you can most easily find opportunities that match well with your goals. 

• Events & Fairs: Receive reminders for career fairs and workshops. 

• Messages: Be notified when employers contact you. 

• Manage notifications under Notification Preferences. 

Handshake recommends turning on email or mobile notifications for at least new messages from employers and upcoming events/fairs, so you don’t miss time‑sensitive opportunities. 

Managing Your Notification Preferences (how students set email, in-app, and push preferences).  

Student Emails: Optional Notifications (what gets emailed, from which domains, and when).  

Profile Insights shows you the number of employer views of your Handshake profile). It is a great way to understand your visibility and improve your chances of connecting with employers.  This is helpful so that students know which employers are viewing your profile and to follow up on opportunities that might be of interest to you.  

How to Access Profile Insights:  

On Web: 

1. Log into Handshake. 

2. Click your profile icon (top right). 

3. Select My Profile. 

4. Click the Profile Viewers tab (next to Posts). 

On iOS App: 

1. Open Handshake and tap your profile icon (top left). 

2. Tap your name. 

3. Tap the Insights tab (next to Posts). 

What You Will See 

• Total views in the past 90 days. 

• A list of who viewed your profile (employers, peers, etc.). 

• If someone has a private profile, they will appear as “private profile.” 

• Handshake does not sell any of your personal data. 

• Employers only see information you choose to share. 

• Handshake follows FERPA guidelines to keep your educational records secure. Here is what that means for you: 

• Handshake safeguards your information from unauthorized access, misuse, or accidental loss using industry best practices. The Tufts Career Center does not store student records in Handshake. You can maintain your own Handshake account after graduation to keep using career tools and networking features. Every Handshake employee is trained on FERPA, data privacy, and security—and re-trained regularly. Handshake provides detailed privacy and security information in its Customer Trust Portal. 

• For details, visit Handshake Privacy Policy, How Handshake is FERPA Compliant, and/or Tufts FERPA Policy 

The Tufts Career Center reviews and approves employers within the Tufts Handshake network in our best effort to ensure that all employers on the platform are engaging with students in good faith. But, for the purposes of your own privacy, protection, and data security, please see below for some tips on how to screen employers, especially those who may post roles, internships, that may seem fraudulent. 

Tips on reviewing employers:  

• Research the company and the recruiter. Check out the company website to see what you can learn about their culture and their business model. If they have a list of staff members, see if you can find the name of the recruiter listed on the job posting. 

• Familiarize yourself with common job scams. Forbes has a great article here. 

• If something feels “too good to be true,” be suspicious. Make $300 a day from home. Large sums of money for minimal work are a common tactic that a scammer will use to lure students in and steal your information. If a job seems “too good to be true,” flag that employer so Handshake can investigate immediately and protect you from being potentially scammed. You can click here to learn how to flag an employer.  

• Never cash a check for, or give any money to, an employer. A common technique of Internet scammers is to ask you to cash a check at a bank and then return some of that money to the employer while you get to keep some of the cash for yourself. This is a scam. No reputable employer will require you to pay for anything on your own, or cash a check on their behalf, before starting your job. If you receive an email asking you to do anything remotely like this, flag the employer immediately and contact your city’s Better Business Bureau. 

• Be wary of an employer who offers you a job before even speaking with you. Any reputable employer normally requires an interview (and more) before hiring. If you have any questions or concerns, flag the employer and Handshake will investigate. 

What To Do If You’ve Given Your Personal Information to a Fraudulent Employer

Tufts alumni can continue to use Handshake after graduation to search for jobs, attend events, and connect with employers. Here is how to maintain access: 

1. Update Your Email 
   Before your Tufts email expires, log in to Handshake and add a personal email address to your account. This ensures you can reset your password and receive notifications. Students can also keep their @Tufts.edu if they set up a Tufts forever account, which is basically just mail forwarding: https://access.tufts.edu/email-students. 
   • NOTE: If you do not update your email address before your Tufts email expires, please contact the Career Center (careercenter@tufts.edu) before trying to create a new account so we can update your email address on your existing account. 

2. Change Your Primary Email 
   In your account settings, make your personal email the primary email for login. 

3. Verify Your Email 
   Handshake will send a verification link to your new email. Complete this step to keep your account active.