For a successful Handshake account registration, employers must:

• Complete all required sections.
• Provide as much information as possible to help students research and learn about your organization and opportunity.
• Provide a professional website and matching contact domain email address (e.g., no personal, Gmail, or Yahoo accounts allowed).
• Represent a recognized business with a business location and address. Personal requests/postings are prohibited. Remote businesses without an office location are considered for postings but will be reviewed on a case-by-case basis for approval.

Handshake job postings are reviewed and approved/declined based upon the information you provide in your posting. All posted opportunities must:

• Include a professional website to help evaluate the opportunity, and recruiters must use a professional/organization-related email address in the contact field (e.g., no Gmail or Yahoo accounts).
• Be used for the hiring of candidates for your human resource needs or the human resource needs of your clients; job postings cannot be used to advertise events, services, or programs (e.g., career fairs, test prep, placement or learning programs, etc.).
• Include an English language website if your organization is based outside the U.S. and must be hiring for your internal needs (i.e., no placement programs are allowed); for employment outside of the U.S., employers are advised to use the following language when stating applicant qualifications: “must be legally eligible for hire in the country of employment.”
• Not include fees or purchase requirements for employment (e.g., fee-based training, fee-based placements, or positions requiring the purchase of supplies or a training kit).
• Not require employees to market/promote or create/develop free or fee-based programs, products, services, events, etc. and/or collect student information on the UTRGV campus on behalf of an organization. Such roles are prohibited and not in compliance with Regents’ Rules and Regulations.
• Not include referral bonuses.
• Align with the goals of the university and provide experiences for the development of marketable skills and career competencies that ensure continued career growth.
• Explicitly and transparently describe straight commission-based salary structures so that students are aware and informed when evaluating opportunities.

The Career Center believes that experiential learning opportunities, such as internships, create high-impact experiences for students and should be for the primary benefit of the intern. Both paid and unpaid opportunities will be reviewed and fully vetted if they align with the Department of Labor’s Fact Sheet “primary beneficiary” test, and with NACE’s Criteria for an Internship to be Defined as an Internship.

• Positions that do not comply with Department of Labor regulations listed above will not be approved (both paid and unpaid).
• Positions requiring interns or employees to market/promote or create/develop free or fee-based programs, products, services, events, etc. and/or collect student information on the UTRGV campus on behalf of an organization are prohibited and not in compliance with Regents’ Rules and Regulations.
• Commission-only internships are prohibited.
• Stipend-based internships are allowable and must meet the federal minimum wage requirement.
• Remote/virtual internships, both paid and unpaid, will be considered and must comply with Department of Labor regulations and NACE’s criteria to ensure a high-impact experience.
• Opportunities that provide all resources, equipment, and facilities are highly favored.
• Postings for internships located outside of the Rio Grande Valley that take place during the academic year are allowable, but please note that some colleges and schools do not allow their students to accept these positions.
• Summer internships may require students to work up to 40 hours per week. See related federal labor laws on overtime.

We welcome you to explore the following university recruiting guidelines and applicable federal, state, and local employment laws referenced above.

•   Fair Labor Standards Act
•   National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE) Principles for Ethical Professional Practice
•   NACE Seven Criteria for Internships – Position Statement: U.S. Internships
•   The Age Discrimination in Employment Act
•   The Americans with Disabilities Act
•   U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission
•   Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964

Handshake is a service offered at the discretion of The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley to students, alumni, and employers free of charge. The university reserves the right in its sole discretion to refuse access to employers at any time. Access to Handshake job postings will not be allowed for employers that do not comply with our recruiting policies and guidelines detailed above, or for job types that do not appear to support the interests of students or the university.

Employers and students are advised to use caution and encouraged to request reference information as needed to establish qualifications, credentials, and conditions of employment.

• Excessive postings, duplicate postings, and misleading postings are not allowed.
• Postings that do not correspond to an organization’s actual interviewing, hiring, and compensation practices, or postings that misrepresent the identity and affiliation of the employer, are not allowed.
• Postings for positions that require at the time of application, personal information such as bank and social security numbers, or photos of the applicants, are not allowed.
• Postings for positions that pay in cash, require a candidate to make a financial investment, or pay a fee prior to employment are prohibited.