Download Handshake and Set Up Your Profile
Don’t wait until you get to the Career Fair — download Handshake ahead of time! You’ll need the app to find the latest information about the companies at the fair.
Companies want to be able to find candidates by searching through Handshake, too! Make sure your profile makes it easy for them to find you.
- First, learn more about building a public Handshake profile.
- Next, optimize your resume. Career Services is happy to help with this — don’t forget to share your resume with us once you have it done.
- Upload your final resume to your Handshake profile and make it public.
Getting to the Career Fair
Spring 2026: The Career Fair is held at the Student Development Complex (SDC) on Tuesday, Feb. 17 from noon–5 p.m.
- It is not recommended that you drive to the SDC due to high traffic and parking congestion. If you choose to do so, please follow the directions of the traffic officers.
- Consider walking, carpooling, or taking the continuous shuttle from the MUB to the SDC (running from noon to 6 p.m.).
- Enter through the North entrance of the SDC (UP Health System Portage clinic side).
- The SDC has a full range of accommodations for guests.
Look Your Best
Dress for success!
- Attendees are encouraged to wear business attire. For ideas about what that means, here are a few external references:
- A campus resource that is available to students is free professional clothing at the Career Closet. The Clothing Closet has stocked many professional items for the fair and is open weekdays 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. in Wadsworth Hall G04W.
- Professional Portraits are available during normal walk-in hours using the Iris Photo Booth in Career Services.
Company Research
Handshake is a powerful tool for finding companies to meet with. Doing some work ahead of the fair will help save you time later. Here are some pro tips.
- Collections
- If you are trying to find jobs of interest from any of the companies coming to the fair, there are two collections designed to help you.
- Internships From 2025/26 Career Fair Companies: This collection features all internships posted in Handshake by companies who are coming to the Career Fair.
- Jobs From 2025/26 Career Fair Companies: This collection features all full-time jobs posted in Handshake by companies coming to the Career Fair.
- Based on your major, Handshake will show you other collections that match your requirements.
- If you are trying to find jobs of interest from any of the companies coming to the fair, there are two collections designed to help you.
- “Following” a Company
- Once you find a company that you are interested in, you can “Follow” them.
- Following a company will give you notifications whenever they participate in an event on campus.
- Once you find a company that you are interested in, you can “Follow” them.
- Filter and Search
- One of the key benefits of using Handshake is the ability to find companies hiring students in your major. To make the most of your time at Career Fair, use the filters available in Handshake to narrow your search. Common filter options include:
- Job Types – Filter by the type of employment the employer is offering, such as full-time jobs, internships, or co-ops.
- School Years – Filter by the school year the employer is targeting (e.g., Senior, Junior, Sophomore, Freshman, Master’s).
- Majors – Filter by the majors employers are interested in. Keep in mind that not every employer selects every major they’re hiring for, so use this as a guide rather than an absolute list.
- One of the key benefits of using Handshake is the ability to find companies hiring students in your major. To make the most of your time at Career Fair, use the filters available in Handshake to narrow your search. Common filter options include:
- Finding Employers Attending Career Fair
- On a desktop: Go to the Events tab in the left-hand menu, select Career Fairs at Your School, choose the fair you’re interested in, then click Employers in the top navigation bar to view the list and apply filters.
- In the Handshake app: Tap Events in the bottom navigation bar, select Career Fairs at Your School, choose your fair, then tap Employers in the top navigation bar to view the list and apply filters.
- Here’s Handshake’s support article.
Note: If an employer you’re interested in doesn’t appear in your filtered results, they may still be hiring for that selection but left it blank during registration.
Maps (New for Spring 2026!)
The Career Fair can be crowded. We want to make it as easy as possible for you to find employers and their opportunities. Studying the map before the Career Fair can help you make an efficient trip through the fair itself.
- Fair Navigation Stripes – Uncertain where you are located? Cross-reference the colored line on the ground to the colored line on the map to help you navigate each aisle.
For Spring 2026, we are using a new software package to provide digital access to the map. There isn’t an app to download, but you’ll want to bookmark this page: https://mtuspring26.fairmapr.com/
- Searching Options:
- You can filter the list of companies coming to the fair using the “Filter by Major” option.
- During their registration process, companies are prompted to include all majors they would like to hire, but some registrations are incomplete. You may find it valuable to scan the list with the filters turned off.
- The description of the companies can be searched using the “Search” box. You can look for things like OPT/CPT, school years, job type, and approximate hiring locations
Student Comfort Options
- Recharge Zone located in the Multipurpose Room. Need a spot to review companies, plan your next stop, or charge your phone?
- Need a friendly face to talk to? Career Services will have a booth near the recharge zone where you can stop by and talk to us or just practice your personal introduction.