Next, you’ll need an account on Handshake, MIT’s online career management system, to manage internship and job postings. Handshake enables employers to search and view student resumes, post jobs and internships, participate in career events, manage on-campus recruiting schedules and report MIT hires.

From the Handshake employer login page, select “Sign up as an employer.” Search for your username to see if it’s already in the system. If it’s not, complete the registration form.

Once you’ve registered, it will take us a day or two to review and approve your request. Once approved, you are expected to follow our recruiting policies and procedures.

Employers seeking to host individual and company-specific programs and events are encouraged to connect with MIT students through the following:

Host a program or event near campus

MIT is centrally located near a multitude of unique restaurants and hotels venues that have the capability to host a private event. Employers should reach out directly to a desired hotel/restaurant to make their accommodations.

Recommended advertising includes posting the event in Handshake on the program calendar, emailing students directly to RSVP to attend, and sharing the opportunity with student clubs/organizations, among other employer initiated marketing tactics.

Offer a virtual program or event

Virtual programs and events should be posted in Handshake on the events calendar. Virtual programs/events are most successful when they involve an interesting topic and or incentives for attending.

Once the Employer Relations team approves your Handshake submission, employers should email students directly to RSVP to attend, share the opportunity with student clubs/organizations, among other employer initiated marketing tactics.

Collaborate with an MIT student club/organization

Build meaningful relationships with one or more of the 640+ MIT student groups/organizations and their members. Work with a student club/organizations to collaborate on a program, and ask them to book a room on-campus.

Please note that many student clubs/organizations have their own sponsorship programs and seek employer sponsorship.

Types of programs and tips for connecting with MIT students

MIT students are known to be inquisitive and want to solve the world’s most challenging problems. In the planning of your programs please be aware that the traditional “why work for XYZ company” program does not draw as well as programs which engage students with valuable insight, details, advice, and first hand experiences.

Incorporating MIT alumni employed at your company into your presentation can also be an effective way to attract current students. For best results in attracting MIT students when posting in Handshake, provide details about the session, desired target audience, and also have minimal restrictions so all interested students can participate. CAPD can help you connect with relevant student organizations and academic administrators.

Company presentation

Raise awareness and build interest in your company, mission, culture, and opportunities. Considering also discussing recruiting timelines, interview tips, and answer questions from participating students.

Tech Talks

A more detailed presentation regarding a specific problem your company or team faced, how you diagnosed the issue, and the steps you took to solve it. Tech Talks are often presented by members with first-hand experience of the problem-solving process.

Office hours, coffee chats, and resume reviews

Hold scheduled 20-minute, one-on-one appointments with students to discuss their company as well as provide career advice and resume/portfolio critiques.

Mock interviews

Hosted virtually or in-person, mock interviews coach students through the interview process and allow employers to provide industry-specific insight to students and postdocs while raising brand awareness on campus.

Site visits

Hosted via a virtual platform, a typical visit consists of an employer presentation/information session, panel of employees, office space or lab tour, Q&A and alumni and professional networking opportunity.

Professional development opportunities

Instead of presenting on your company and opportunities, consider co-presenting with CAPD staff on coaching students and building their skillsets to better prepare them for life after graduation. Topics can include, but are not limited to: networking, leadership, work-life balance, communication, organization, research, and creative problem solving.

For any questions related to hosting on-campus or virtual events, please contact the CAPD employer relations team at hiremit@mit.edu.

At Career Advising & Professional Development (CAPD), we seek to expand access to career opportunities for all of our students, postdocs, and alums. We believe in the ideal that success should be driven by talent, determination, and hard work; however, not everyone starts from the same place. In our work, we aspire to see each of our community members have a fair shot at career advancement through building strong support systems and fostering inclusive networks.

CAPD values employers who share a commitment to fairness, equal opportunity, and excellence. In addition to following MIT’s Recruiting Guidelines, we recommend best practices that help ensure all students—regardless of background—have the opportunity to compete and succeed in the hiring process.

* If you arrived here from the self-registration page in Handshake, please scroll to the bottom to complete the required form.

Important: Self-registered Handshake accounts will be deleted without notice, even if the form is completed, as stated on the Handshake self-registration page. Accounts for cross-registered students, exchange students, and spouses/partners are not permitted and will not be approved.

What is Handshake?

Handshake is an online career management system — in other words, it’s a website where you can find job and internship listings, upcoming events to build your career, and helpful resources from around MIT. The platform was built around the belief that software could help democratize career opportunities, equalizing access to meaningful careers.

All MIT undergraduate students, graduate students, postdoctoral scholars, and recent alumni have access to the platform.

Here’s how to make an appointment with CAPD through Handshake.

Why use Handshake?

• It’s a powerful job and internship platform featuring millions of opportunities posted by thousands of employers, many of whom are actively seeking MIT talent.
• Since Handshake is designed for students, postdocs, and recent alumni, employers come to Handshake looking for people with your exact level of experience.
• The events and resources on Handshake are vetted by CAPD and MIT’s Career Centers, and you’re able to filter everything by your specific interests.
• We schedule appointments through Handshake, so your account will let you to connect with CAPD experts. Use Handshake to set up appointments with our career advisors, Distinguished Fellowships staff, and Prehealth Advising team.

Learn more:

How do I use Handshake?

Getting started on Handshake is easy, and you can use it on your computer or your mobile device. To set up your profile, visit joinhandshake.com and log in with your MIT email address. Handshake provides a detailed walkthrough of getting your account set up to help you begin.

To get the most out of Handshake, be sure to complete your profile.

Since Handshake uses machine learning to understand your interests, your feed of opportunities will be better-matched when your profile is complete and you’re actively using the site.

These articles can help as you create your profile:

• Updating your career interests on Handshake
• Building your profile from a resume file
• Frequently asked questions

Create job alerts to get updates straight to your email or app’s push notifications.

To stay posted on new opportunities, set up Handshake’s automated job alerts. You select the searches that you want to watch and how you want to receive updates, so the notifications stay relevant.

Let us know if you cannot access your account, or if you need an account.

You can reach us to register for, or inquire about, your Handshake account through our form. To find out if the form will be helpful for you, check details for your affiliation in the listing below.

Please email capd@mit.edu if you have any questions or concerns about the process.

CAPD staff monitor this form, so please be aware that there will be a delay if it’s filled out outside of business hours or during an Institute closing.

• On-campus interviews

  MIT Career Advising and Professional Development (CAPD) is pleased to offer services to employers who wish to interview students on-campus throughout the year. Below are additional details regarding interviewing on the MIT campus in one of the interview rooms in CAPD.

  On-campus interviewing in CAPD (building E17 room 294)

  • $200 per reserved room each day
  • Review the MIT Recruiting calendar to become familiar with key dates
  • In-person interviews can only be arranged with currently enrolled MIT students. If you choose to interview MIT Alumni or others, they can be included in the interview schedule but you must conduct those interviews virtually because MIT alumni and others do not have access to campus
  • Employer Representative(s) agree to comply with state, local, and MIT protocols and guidance requirements (see MIT’s Visitor Access Policy) and acknowledge and agree to terms and conditions for campus access
  • For more information or clarification, please email hiremit@mit.edu 

  • Interviews take place at the Career Advising & Professional Development office, Bldg. E17-294, 40 Ames Street, Cambridge, MA.

  • Interview rooms offer 1 table, 2 or 3 chairs, a large dry-erase board, a landline phone, and a cabinet to lock up personal belongings. There is also an employer lounge with a mini-fridge, soft drinks, coffee, and snacks just for employers.

  • On the day of the interviews, we ask that you provide a print copy of your interview schedule so that we can manage the students’ check-in desk in CAPD.

  • Please schedule your last interview no later than 3:30pm.

• Virtual interviews
  

  When interviewing students remotely, your organization can choose to either set-up and manage your own interview schedules in Handshake, or for a small fee, partner with CAPD and receive additional marketing and logistical support using Handshake to manage interview scheduling and sign-ups.

  Managing your own virtual schedules using Handshake (Free)

  If you wish to set-up and manage your own virtual interview schedules in Handshake, we recommend you review hosting virtual interviews on Handshake for the particulars on managing your own schedule.

  CAPD support for virtual interviews using Handshake ($100 per schedule)

  If you wish to partner with us to utilize Handshake to manage interview scheduling and sign-ups, there is no charge for posting your internship or job on Handshake but a $100 fee per interview schedule. This cost supports administrative fees to set up and manage your pre-select or select schedules in Handshake. It also includes additional marketing support to increase awareness of your job posting(s) and interview schedule(s). We value those employers who simplify the recruiting process for students by using Handshake. To increase awareness for those employers who tie job postings to interview schedules in Handshake, we will highlight these opportunities on our website and through newsletters. CAPD Support for virtual interviews consists of the following:

  • Logistical support and assistance with:
    • Use of the Handshake platform
    • Interview schedule management
    • Other support as needed
  • Marketing support
    • Visibility on Handshake to the 13000+ community members
    • “Who’s Interviewing Now” feature on our website
    • Outreach via newsletters or email
  • Hours and scheduling
    • The hours for virtual interview schedules are flexible.
    • Our Recruiting Calendar identifies helpful timeframes and restrictions for scheduling virtual interviews.
    • If not using Handshake to schedule and manage interview schedules, employers are requested to inform students about the scheduling process and timeline.

  You can reserve interview schedules* for recruiting through the Handshake online reservation system. Please feel free to contact us with any questions at hiremit@mit.edu. *Please note that the employer must host all scheduled virtual interviews and be exclusively limited to the MIT community (students, current post-docs and alumni). MIT CAPD does not provide, endorse, or support any video conferencing software.

• Cancellation and refund policies

  For employers who partner with CAPD to schedule on-campus or virtual interviews, interviews can be canceled anytime. However, please provide our office and students at least 24 hours advance notice of an interview cancellation. The cost for on-campus interview space or virtual interview schedule(s) are eligible for refund, minus a 5% processing fee, only if both of the following criteria are met:

  • Cancellation is no more than 30 days after the payment date
  • Cancellation is no less than 30 days before the interview date

  Reimbursements can be issued up to 30 days after the payment but not later than 30 days before the reservation date.

• School closings and emergencies

  Our office aligns with all official MIT closings. Please check MIT Emergency Information or call the MIT Snow line (617) 253 -7669 for up-to-date closing information. Additionally, any unexpected closing will be posted on our home page. In case of an emergency closing, we will work with you to reschedule any event you may have arranged through our office.

• Tips for interviewing students from MIT

  • Read the MIT Recruiting Guideline for Employers to develop a timeline for making offers to students.
  • Plan in advance if scheduling interviews around one of the many career fairs offered throughout the year.
  • Include MIT alumni from your company in the interview process.
  • Try to be flexible but consistent with your schedule, as MIT students tend to have full schedules.
  • If a student has an academic conflict with an interview time, please be considerate and offer an alternative time which works for both parties.
  • Clarify the next steps in your interview process as it differs from company to company.
  • International employers – Please review our Interviewing Tips for International Employers for greater details on cultural differences, illegal questions, and additional resources.

Industry job shadows help MIT students explore their career options

Industry job shadows are in-person opportunities for MIT first years and sophomores to observe the day-to-day activities and responsibilities of a professional in a field of interest. Shadowing experiences can be hands-on, where students can engage with professionals, observe their tasks, and even participate in certain activities, providing a tangible learning experience.

• Time commitment: In-person during January break or spring semester, for either a ½ or full day experience. The date and length of job shadows will be determined by the host and student.
• Student participants: MIT undergraduate first years and sophomores
• Location: Within the greater Boston area

More information and frequently asked questions

**CAPD photo booth sessions have ended for the spring semester 2025**

Your professional journey starts with a strong impression, and we’re here to help you make it unforgettable. Our photo booth offers a hassle-free solution for capturing the perfect headshot to boost your professional brand and LinkedIn profile.

Here’s why it’s a must-try:

1. First Impressions Matter: Your headshot speaks volumes before you say a word, making it essential to present yourself professionally from the start.
2. Craft Your Brand: Stand out with a headshot that reflects your personality, professionalism, and unique style, enhancing your personal brand.
3. Online Impact: Enhance your LinkedIn profile with a standout headshot that catches the eye of recruiters and industry professionals, bolstering your online presence.
4. Convenient & FREE: Skip the hassle of scheduling with photographers. Our photo booth offers a convenient and cost-effective option for capturing your perfect shot.

1. Get inspired

You might find it helpful to look at photos of MIT alumni on LinkedIn or bio pages for MIT faculty and researchers. Ultimately, this will be about you but you might want to get a good sense of how you want to look in your photo before you even get here.

2. Give yourself plenty of time

Plan to arrive 5 to 10 minutes early so you can relax, de-stress, and gain your composure prior to your session.

3. Select an outfit to wear

You can consider wearing something you feel would best represent you professionally. Consider using an outfit that you would wear to a job interview or networking event. Solid color clothing typically works best. If you are worried about distance or weather affecting your attire, there are bathrooms near by that you can use to change. Please make certain you allocate sufficient time prior to your appointment time to change and get ready.

4. Make sure your hair is neat and styled the way you want

In addition to getting well-groomed prior to your appointment, don’t let a windy or rainy day in Cambridge ruin your photo! There are gendered-restrooms just down the Infinite Corridor, and inclusive bathrooms can also be locatedfor a quick touch-up.

5. Avoid over-doing things

For your professional photo, less may be more. Be mindful of the amount and style of jewelry, make-up, and patterned materials you have on for your photo. Keep things simple.

6. Bring your smart-phone

Upon completion of your photo session you will need to scan a QR code to download your pictures. Please make certain you download your photos before you leave your appointment as we may not be able to retrieve them after your session.

For more tips, you may want to check out this article from OutSnapped.

Restaurants convenient to campus

Convenient off-site hotels and the MIT Museum, where you may book your company events.