What is an online portfolio and why should you have one?

The idea of an online portfolio is quickly growing in popularity, replacing the traditional paper portfolio that showcases work and life experiences. It essentially takes items from your resume and shows potential employers examples of what you can do in more of an interactive and accessible way.

There are several different free and easy to use sites that can help you. Blogging sites such as WordPress and Blogger are some of the most common where you do not have to understand HTML to create a professional-looking portfolio. Withen these sites, there are multiple templates and settings you can use to personalize your portfolio. Another platform is Google Sites. This is free with any Google account and also offers free website building tools with portfolio templates.

Whichever platform you decide to use, there are several key things to remember according to “Online Portfolios”, an article from Penn State.

1. When gathering your evidence or artifacts think of everything you have done. This includes sports as well as school and volunteer work. Think outside the box when collecting your evidence.
2. Try to keep your evidence within a unified theme. Think about what your end goal is and use your experiences to help you achieve it.
3. Consider some reflective writing. This helps show prospective employers what you have learned from an experience.
4. Remember, good portfolios share 3 traits: unity, navigability and simplicity.

The most common type of online portfolio is a design or photography portfolio, but they are quickly progressing to other fields. To show you what a professional student portfolio looks like, we will share some of the best portfolio websites Wednesday.