DRAFT

THE PERSONAL PORTFOLIO

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WHY?
To reflect on your experiences
To identify the skills you possess
To identify the qualities you possess
To draw attention to you so that the potential employer
remembers you

Reflecting on your experiences allows you to identify your

skills, qualities & interests so that you can use them to seek
employment
You must be able to put them in writing (Letter of Application,
Resume, Portfolio) & talk about them (Interview)
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STUDENTS EMPLOYABILITY SKILLS

Business Representatives want students who have:
Academic skills (written, verbal, math, problem-
solving, etc.)
Soft skills (function in a group, be a leader & follower,
listen to others views, etc.
Personal skills (punctuality, meet time lines, have
career goals, etc.)

Portfolios document skills acquired!

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WHAT IS A PORTFOLIO?
A collection of student-selected documentation of in-school &
out-of-school accomplishments; shows the students
employability skills
A visual resume of the important things
Themes, pictures, drawings, transcripts, technology-related
pregrams/documents, etc.
A motivational tool if you dont have entries, join a club, get
involved, volunteer, etc.
Students develop & manage the portfolio
Start with a career plan
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ORGANIZATION

Organize based on:

Employability skills (academic, soft & personal)
see slide 4
Career choice requirements

College/university requirements

High school IGP (Individual Graduation Plan)

Core curriculum

Scholarship requirements
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WHAT YOU WILL INCLUDE

Cover
Generates the first impression
Name of student

Picture of the student

Resume the portfolio will support skills listed

on the resume
Documentation evidence of achievements in
each skills area (academic, soft, personal)
Use a divider page for each skills area
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ACADEMIC SKILLS
Transcript Summaries describe each entry; only
Report card a few sentences; box them in, add
Photos color, change the font, etc. to make
them stand out
List of computer software used &
examples of application Pictures of awards, etc.
Test scores (ACT, SAT, other) Certificates - evidence of membership,
awards, recognitions
Checkbook reconciliation
The portfolio represents the skills you
Academic certificates, medals, have
ribbons How is your spelling?
Awards ceremony programs What about your grammar?
Acceptance letters from Continuously update your portfolio
colleges/universities
Newspaper clippings
Articles written for school newspaper
Drawings & artwork
Projects
Etc.
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SOFT/TRANSFERRABLE SKILLS
Sports Student council
Newspaper articles Team class projects
Programs from sporting Group activities (example:
events homecoming)
Certificates Clubs
Team or individual pictures Yearbook
Ribbons, medals (color Scouts
copies) or picture of varsity Debate team
jacket Participation in political campaigns
Written performance
Student leadership organizations
evaluation from the coach (FBLA, DECA, HOSA, etc.)
Band
Choir Provide BRIEF summaries of
entries
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PERSONAL SKILLS
Entries that show that you are reliable, self-disciplined,
dependable, flexible, organized & have a career plan
Transcript with absences/tardies noted
Chart of chores performed at home
Timeline developed for completing a project including pictures of various stages of
progress
Letters from coaches indicating the student agreed to play sports & be drug, alcohol &
cigarette free and fulfilled that pledge
Spreadsheet showing how a personal budget was created & implemented
Ledger showing payments made toward a debt (senior trip, cheerleading uniform, etc.)
Pages from a personal calendar with practice times documented to show
organizational skills
Copy of Individual Graduation Plan (IGP), Career Plan, etc.
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WORK EXPERIENCE
Demonstrates work readiness skills
Paid & unpaid work experience
Activities such as ushering at church, volunteering at the library, child care,
lawn work cleaning a park or sports field, housework tutoring, gardening or
farm work, splitting wood, pet or livestock care, etc.
Summaries: list job duties & skills gained from the experience
Collage of business cards of places worked
Pictures on the job
Co-op or internship training agreement & evaluation forms
Letters of experience from employers
List of duties & skills gained
List of references people who can verify employment or volunteer work
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OTHER INTERESTS
Out-of-school activities
Church functions

Community fund raisers

Volunteer activities

Participation in political campaigns

Travel

Hobbies

Collections (stamps, coins, sports cards, etc.)

Anything that tells about you

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MISCELLANEOUS

Special poems
Letters of recommendation from teachers,
counselors, pastors, etc.
Pictures of helping at family functions
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GRADING

Cover
Dividers

Documentation with summaries

Of academic skills
Of soft skills

Of personal skills

Of other information
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HOW PORTFOLIOS ARE USED

Job interviews
Serves a tool for communicating your abilities

Serves an an icebreaker for employers

1/3 of resumes are inaccurate information omitted or embellished

Allows the employer to see documentation of the skills listed on the resume
When asked a question, you can show evidence of skills
1 in every 1,470 jobs gained from a resume; Stand out above the others
Colleges & scholarships often request portfolios
Membership into organizations
Applying for apprenticeship programs
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E-PORTFOLIOS
Artists have portfolios of their art work
Why not SHOW what you are capable of

Definition:
Digital or Web-based document that allows you to
gather & organize your experiences &
accomplishments, reflect on these experiences, &
market yourself to colleges & employers in a
multimedia format (Orndorff, p. 162)
Displays your skills, qualities & interests
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CONTENTS OF E-PORTFOLIOS
Research projects
Reflection papers on jobs & activities
o Summarize
Your role
Your responsibilities
A profile of the company/organization
Outcomes & accomplishments
o Reflect on:
o the skills & qualities developed
o What you like & did not like
o Include a hyperlink to the company/organizations Web
page
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CONTENTS OF E-PORTFOLIOS

Courses taken
Summarize:
What you learned
What you enjoyed & did not enjoy

Include:
Names of teachers & textbooks (for references)
Links to Web sites you like (football football
section)
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CONTENTS OF E-PORTFOLIOS
Resume
Add links from the first page to second-level pages
Example: football link to the schools Web site
football page that has your pictures on it
Provides information on the team you played for

Samples of work
Images, videos, etc.
Animoto, Glogster, Prezi & all programs used in this
course
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SAMPLE E-PORTFOLIOS

www.career.fsu.edu/portfolio
From the Home page, click on History
Click on Prototype of a Completed Career Portfolio

Click on each tab & links within the tabs to view a

sample Career Portfolio
Click on PowerPoint under Career Portfolio
Slideshow to view a presentation that tells
about portfolios
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NEW TECHNOLOGY HIGH SCHOOL

NAPA, CALIFORNIA
http://www.newtechhigh.org/
Click on Student Portfolios on the left

View numerous portfolios

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RESOURCES FOR E-PORTFOLIOS

School resources & Web space

Blogs

E-Portfolios are ongoing documents

Continue to develop them beyond this course
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STEP 1
Gather documents, etc.
Items placed on your portfolio MUST be of high
quality
Formatted professionally
Correct spelling & grammar
Have others review items

Describe each item

Give each item a title
Categorize items
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STEP 2

www.blogger.com
www.wordpress.com

www.visualcv.com
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SOURCES

Orndorff, Bob. Becoming the Best Me.

Indianapolis: JIST Works, 2009.
Hodges, Ph.D., Diane. Portfolio A Self-Learning
Guide.