The Portfolio: Your Ticket To Successful Interviewing

By Ruben Britt, Jr.

Assistant Director of the Career and Academic Planning Center

Rowan University

Successful interviewing requires strategic planning and knowing how to market yourself effectively to employers. During the pre-interview stage it's important to prepare for all phases of the interview. By anticipating what lies ahead and by knowing how to communicate your strengths and accomplishments to a perspective employer. However, it is imperative that you are able to identify and assess your strengths before the interview takes place. This is done by conducting a complete self-assessment. The self-assessment requires identifying specific skills, accomplishments, work experiences and other non-work related experiences that will allow you to emphasize specific competencies. Once you make this assessment, the ideal strategy for packaging those skills for presentation to an employer is through the portfolio. The portfolio is designed to allow you to highlight evidence of your skills, accomplishments and capabilities to perspective employers. It encourages self-evaluation, self acknowledge and it provides a developmental look at your progress.

Today, many college students are involved in activities outside of the classroom related to roles in both their personal and professional development. The creation of a portfolio allows you to document significant activities that took place during your college experience. You should begin developing a portfolio during your freshmen year. However, other experiences, including work, community involvement and appropriate volunteer experience prior to the college experience should be documented.

What goes in a portfolio?

A portfolio should consist of the following:

· Resume

· Job descriptions from field experiences or past work experiences that are related to your field of interests

· Letters of references

· Evaluations

· Transcripts

· Thank you letters

· Awards and citations

· Research projects or reports

· Certificates or certifications

· Articles or work samples

· Conferences and workshops attended

· Videotapes, photographs, diagrams or computer disc

· Presentations notes, outlines or other supporting documentation

Traditionally, portfolios were generally used by art, communication and theater majors as a vehicle for showcasing their work in an interview. The highly visual nature of a portfolio makes it the ideal vehicle for students majoring in other disciplines to support their accomplishments by actual demonstration of skills and contributions. The existence of a portfolio will help to develop confidence in your abilities and better prepare you for the interviewing process.

Ruben Britt, Jr. is the Assistant Director of the Career and Academic Planning Center at Rowan University in Glassboro, New Jersey.

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