A well-curated portfolio can be the key to opening doors to new opportunities in your career. Whether you’re an animator, web developer, designer, marketer, or any professional, portfolios play a crucial role in showcasing your best work and ideas to potential employers. They not only demonstrate your skills and creativity but also show how you have developed professionally over time. In today’s competitive job market, having a strong portfolio can make you stand out from other candidates and increase your chances of landing your dream job.
Portfolio
How to Create an Online Portfolio
- Determine Your Focus: Before creating an online portfolio, it’s essential to decide on your focus. Determine what type of work you want to showcase, what your area of expertise is, and what your career goals are. Keeping your portfolio focused on your target audience and career goals is crucial.
- Choose a Platform: Several platforms are available to create an online portfolio, such as Squarespace, Wix, and WordPress. Choose a platform that is easy to use, allows you to showcase your work effectively, and aligns with your budget.
- Organize Your Work: Organize your work in a way that highlights your skills and talents. Use categories or tags to make it easy for visitors to navigate your portfolio. Also, include a brief description of each project, including your role and responsibilities.
- Use High-Quality Images and Videos: Use high-quality images and videos to showcase your work. Ensure that the images are clear and correctly lit, and the videos are of good quality.
- Make it Visually Appealing: Your online portfolio should be visually appealing and reflect your style and personality. Choose a color scheme that is consistent with your brand and use fonts that are easy to read.
Components of a Portfolio
- Projects: Past and current projects are the best examples of your work. Be sure to include your most notable projects. Include specific context on the assignment or task, a quick summary of the process or steps involved in completing the project (identifying main skills used), and how long the project took.
Limit use of links to other websites. Instead, screenshot anything that already exists online if it is not easily transferrable.
Include skills (technical and others) that you grew or learned as a result of the project or task.
And lastly, remember to specify if the project was a team project or a solo effort. If you worked on this as a team, include your role specifically.
- Certificates or Degrees: Ensure your portfolio includes items which indicate professional and personal development. If you have earned a certificate or degree, include it!
If you have received unofficial training in a noteworthy area, and are competent in that skill or knowledge, include it as well. In this case, you could write a short paragraph indicating what competency was learned, how it was taught, and how you have utilized that skill in your work.
- Awards: Awards are important to include in a portfolio as long as they are fairly recent, and work related. Use your discretion in this area. Depending on the situation, an attendance award could be beneficial. An award for creativity in a project also could be worth showcasing. A high school Math-A-Thon award would not likely be relevant in most instances.
Presentation of a Portfolio
- Your Portfolio Represents You: If you are needing a portfolio—in the informatics, computing, and engineering fields chances are that you do—the presentation of a portfolio is critical in showcasing your creativity. Be intentional in how you choose to present your work. Remember – this is a direct visual representation of your competencies and personality.
- Get Your Portfolio Online: You must first consider how to present your portfolio. While some students might upload their portfolio onto a USB flash drive, consider creating a website which you can reference or link to on your resume or CV. This ensures instant shareability and access.
- Keep Information Protected: No matter what platform you choose, ensure that your information is password protected and safe. Your portfolio should only be accessed by those you give permission to view. Also do a confidentiality check to ensure that you are sensitive to school or work-related proprieties. If necessary, generalize or black-out corporate/client names and information.
- Include Testimonials: In addition to the documents listed above, consider saving and including in your portfolio, written correspondence (i.e., emails or course community boards) that highlight professional relationships you have built and speak to your work performance. For instance, perhaps a professor complemented your research methodology on your capstone project, or a peer gave you a shout out for leading the team effectively over the 8-week project. Clip those remarks and compile a reference section to include in your portfolio.
Be sure to include a short paragraph on the context of the compliment. It might seem trivial but to a prospective employer or current boss, these are character indicators which emphasize that you are respected and valued, and that you are capable of building rapport with others. These are prime examples of your reputation and work ethic so showcase them!
What to Avoid
- Don’t Overload Your Portfolio: Avoid adding too many projects to your portfolio. Focus on showcasing your best work and keeping your portfolio concise.
- Don’t Forget to Update: It’s crucial to keep your portfolio updated with your latest work. Update it regularly to showcase your recent projects and skills.
- Don’t Ignore the Details: Pay attention to the details, such as spelling and grammar, and ensure that your portfolio is error-free.
Tips
- Show Your Process: Including your process in your portfolio can help potential employers or clients understand your creative process and problem-solving skills.
- Use Testimonials: Use testimonials from previous clients or employers to showcase your expertise and professionalism.
- Keep it Simple: Keep your portfolio simple and easy to navigate. Avoid using too many graphics or animations that could distract from your work.
- Have Someone Proofread: Have someone proofread your portfolio before sending it to a potential employer. Professionals in the field, faculty members, and advanced students can provide worthwhile feedback.
- Be Proud of Your Work: Present material that you are proud of and your confidence will show too.
- Mention Your Portfolio on Your Resume: Include on your resume that you have an online portfolio available.
- Keep Your Portfolio Updated: Often, this is easier to accomplish if you routinely set aside time, once per month for example, to do this. Put it in your calendar and set an automatic reminder! Keep it up to date even after you land your job.