Recruiting Information for Students

Throughout the year, Colgate Career Services facilities information sessions on campus, led by visitors and recruiters from an array of employers. Students are highly encouraged to attend these sessions for several purposes:

• To learn more about industries and careers as part of their personal career discovery process.
• To learn more about employers and fields of interest.
• To begin a conversation with an employer of specific interest.

For information about upcoming information sessions, check the campus calendar (careers and graduate school category), and read Colgate Career Services weekly emails.

Campus calendar

Explore job and internship opportunities from employers interested in recruiting Colgate students and recent alumni.

About the Colgate Handshake platform:

• Colgate Handshake is Colgate University’s online job and internship board. Handshake uses machine learning, similar to Netflix or Amazon, to direct opportunities to you based on your preferences. If you search a lot of public relations jobs, for example, it will begin to bring more opportunities in that industry to your feed. The “Career Interests” section of your profile influences the types of opportunities that Handshake will display in your jobs feed. Filling this out accurately will greatly improve your experience and help Handshake and Career Services to bring opportunities that are relevant to you. 
• Premier opportunities:
  • Premier opportunities are jobs and internships, usually brought by alumni or parents, that are cultivated by Employer Relations. This connection to alumni or parents often acts as a unique entry point into organizations where it can be difficult to get hired through traditional channels. In Handshake, Premier opportunities can be found by filtering for our “Colgate Premier” label in the “Jobs” section of Handshake. Note that restrictions may be in place on some posted positions:
• Some positions may only be open to students from specific class years.
• Some positions may only be open to students in the Colgate Premier Recruiting Program. To join Colgate Premier, see the information below.

Summer on the Cuyahoga (SOTC) is a summer internship program open to students from Case Western Reserve, Colgate, Cornell, Denison, Ohio Wesleyan, Smith, University of Chicago, and Yale.


All Colgate students are eligible to apply for internships. Before applying, please meet with a Career Services adviser to certify your résumé and review your application materials. The program is highly competitive and we're here to help you. For more information and to apply, visit the SOTC website. 


SOTC exposes the best young talent to the abundance of professional opportunities in Northeast Ohio. The program brings together 60–80 students for an intensive summer immersion program designed to help interns explore the professional, civic, and social offerings of the Cleveland area. SOTC offers students challenging internships, community introductions, alumni connections, and free group housing for the summer.


Summer on the Cuyahoga has four primary components:

1. Paid Internships
Meaningful internships are the core of the summer experience in Greater Cleveland and are found by registering on the SOTC website. The program works with more than 40 employers in the fields of finance, marketing, IT, urban development, nonprofits, education, entrepreneurship, and more. Many participants have turned their SOTC internships into full-time job opportunities.

2. Events
SOTC and its alumni volunteers host more than 40 events during your summer in Northeast Ohio. Events include meetings with civic leaders; cultural, social, and community service experiences; and career explorations with young professionals and alumni.

3. Housing
Housing is arranged by SOTC and provided at no additional cost. Participants live in an air-conditioned apartment-style dormitory in Fenn Tower on the campus of Cleveland State University. Fenn is minutes from downtown and uptown. Students enjoy a double bedroom, common area, and kitchen in a four-person suite.

4. Networking
You will meet Colgate alumni who will help you settle in Northeast Ohio. Some events are arranged for students and hosts together, but some hosts will coordinate more frequent interactions. There are also additional opportunities fostered through events and activities with community and business leaders.

More about Summer on the Cuyahoga

Certified student members of Colgate Premier have the following benefits:

Enhanced Access to Colgate Handshake

Apply to positions in the Colgate Handshake online job listing platform that have a Colgate Premier restriction. Applications to Colgate Premier positions go directly to Colgate alumni or Colgate-friendly recruiters (instead of mixing with applicants from other schools).

Summer Funding

All members of Colgate Premier automatically qualify to apply for summer internship and fellowship funding.

To become certified for Colgate Premier:

• Log on to Colgate Handshake and update your profile. In your profile, you must agree to Career Services' Student Agreement.
• Certify your résumé with a Career Services adviser. Your résumé must be recertified each academic year to remain eligible (except for seniors who were certified during their junior year).

Not sure if your résumé is certified? Contact Career Services to check your status.

While it is a great resource, students should not rely solely on the Colgate Premier Recruiting Program when searching for an internship or job.

More about finding a career path

The adage “It’s a small world” is true, particularly when it comes to industry hiring and referrals. Reneging on an agreement will burn a bridge with this employer and their recruiter. It may eliminate the possibility of future offers from this employer later in one’s career.

Often, students lean on their personal networks, alumni, family, and friends, during the job search process. Networking may open access to a company, and individuals may even to serve as official and unofficial references.

Reneging on an agreement risks tarnishing the reputation and relationship of your personal connections and references with the employer, and in turn tarnishing your reputation within your own network. These individuals may no longer be willing to refer you for positions or advancement.

Recruiters engage with Colgate because its students and alumni are excellent and reliable candidates. When a student reneges after accepting an offer of employment, however, it may cast a negative light on the reliability of Colgate candidates. This may have negative implications for future generations of students as recruiters reconsider whether to continue formally recruiting at Colgate.