Boston University’s Center for Career Development launched a new online platform over the summer aimed at helping students find more appropriate career and internship opportunities, university officials said.
CCD spokesperson Sarah Thomas said the new platform, called Handshake, was implemented jointly by several career development offices in colleges across BU and is replacing the old CareerLink system.
The university decided to make the switch from CareerLink because employers, including Fortune 500 companies, are using Handshake to recruit talent, and this system enables BU students to connect with those potential career opportunities, Thomas said.
“[It will be] the best experience for our students,” she said. “Employers who post jobs and internships on the system are specifically looking for Terriers for their organizations, so this is a win-win. We’re already seeing many new employers from a wide range of industries from across the country and around the world wanting to recruit at BU for the first time.”
The platform, launched in 2014, is the career service choice of more than 110 U.S. universities, including Stanford University, Cornell University and The University of Chicago, according to Handshake’s website.
Among Handshake’s founders is Garrett Lord, who was a college student at Michigan Technological University when he created it. According to the website’s mission statement, during Lord’s internship in Silicon Valley, he learned that many companies only recruit from a set of “core schools” because they do not have the resources for broader recruitment. Handshake hopes to solve this problem by giving more school more opportunities.
Kevin Rivlin, a sophomore in the Questrom School of Business, said that he hopes Handshake can assist him in finding a job once he graduates.
“It’s definitely something that I need, and something I’ll be using,” Rivlin said. “Especially for when I get out of school.”
Thomas said Handshake’s platform is much more user-friendly, and even has its own mobile application. Once students finish a survey, Handshake will create personalized job and internship opportunities based on the results.
“It’s hard to pick a best feature, but one thing we love is how the system can provide students with such targeted and relevant internship and job listings,” Thomas said. “It means that whenever you log in, you’ll see positions that are most relevant and could be a great fit for you.”
Students now can also schedule career counsel, register for CCD events, and practice interview skills through Handshake, Thomas added.
“There is a wealth of career information and other features you can access right through Handshake,” Thomas said. “[It] is BU’s new online hub for job and internship listings, career counseling appointments, career development resources, and much more for all on-campus, degree program students and alumni.”
Students said they are excited to try the new platform, and they appreciate university’s effort to better students’ experiences.
Dante Cilento, a sophomore in the Sargent College of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences, said he had positive experiences with BU Career Development in the past and thinks Handshake will continue down that path.
“The Center for Career Development encourages students to get experience in their desired field before they choose a major to educate themselves,” Cilento said. “This new program sounds like it makes that aspect easier through volunteering opportunities and partnerships in addition to internships and jobs.”
Giselle Gonzalez, a sophomore in the College of Arts and Sciences, said she thinks the program will definitely be a useful resource for her.
“I actually hadn’t heard about this yet,” Gonzalez said. “But it sounds cool and I’m excited to check it out.”
