PORTFOLIO GUIDE

 FOR PSU CAS STUDENTS

 

 A portfolio is a collection of materials that represents a body of work.

 

 PSU Communication Arts and Sciences students are encouraged to construct a portfolio to illustrate your work and the competencies you have acquired throughout your educational program[1]. In addition, a portfolio provides you with an opportunity to reflect on the learning experiences you have had in the past few years. This portfolio will be a valuable document to share with possible employers, graduate school admissions personnel, and/or parents.

 It is very important for students to save work they create throughout each semester to build upon and revise the portfolio.  Indeed, a good portfolio is far more than a well-arranged compilation of work; instead, it offers a memorable and self-aware picture of the author's learning and growth, especially in core competency areas.

 A portfolio will generally include an introduction, samples of your work, brief summaries of key learning points from each course, and comments and reflections on your work. Because portfolios are usually considered holistically, you should consider how the parts fit together to create a detailed and comprehensive picture of your learning. 

 Samples of work an individual's graduation portfolio might contain essays, research papers, videos, presentations, and also evidence of learning in co-curricular activities (for example, volunteer activities, service learning, and participation in student organizations) and internship experiences.

 

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PORTFOLIO  

The following is a checklist of the items you may want to include in your portfolio:

 

1.      A brief personal summary including mention of your academic goals, personal, and professional goals.

2.      A description of the CAS major.

3.      A current resume including:

 

________ Current and previous work experience

________ Core courses that contributed to your training

________ Copy of audit

________ Professional affiliations

________ Credentials (Certificates, other training)

 

4.      Professional Development: A list of workshops, conferences attended (who, what, when, where)

5.      Current Professional references (minimum of 3; including one professor)

6.      Brief summaries of the key things you learned and skills practiced in each class.

7.       Narrative reflection of your growth in the following competency areas. Provide work samples as evidence for the claims you make in this narrative.

 

          Competencies: (see Lori Bedell for a summary of each)

 

                           a.          communication

                           b.          critical thinking

                           c.          problem solving

                           d.          social interaction

                           e.          effective citizenship

                           f.          diversity awareness

 

7.      Provide samples of your work. (E.g., essays, research papers, videos, presentations, and also evidence of learning in co-curricular activities [for example, volunteer activities, service learning, and participation in student organizations] and internship experiences.)