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Portfolio Preparation

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What is a Portfolio?

• illustrates your skill set through existing information design products that you created.
• does not misrepresent your skill set!!!
• delineates between proficiency and exposure to types of writing or tools.
• obeys disclosure rules.

Portfolio Pieces

• your best material. No drafts or marked-up copy (unless applying for editing positions).
• 10 - 12 current samples that present different types of writing, designing, and illustration skills:
  • Tables of Contents (TOCs)
  • overviews, procedures, and indexes
  • graphics and flow charts you developed
  • brochures, quick reference cards, and data sheets
  • on-line help (via printouts and on diskette)
  • web pages (via screen shots and on diskette)
  • test scripts and code samples

• samples that mirror a position’s description and industry requirements (for example, ISO or GMP documentation).
• your business card (if applicable), extra copies of your resume, current references, reviews, and awards.
• anything you designed to increase productivity (for example, outlines, project plans, and spreadsheets).

Portfolio Do’s

• bring copies of your best and most pertinent work.
• keep samples neat and clean. Use protector sheets!!!
• have a Table of Contents for the portfolio.
• present samples in a logical order (for example, by type). Use tabs!!!
• check all samples for grammatical and typographical errors.

Portfolio Don’ts

• have a large, unfocused, collection of samples.
• include marked up or samples with grammatical or typographical errors.
• present someone else’s work as your own. Give the context of the sample as necessary.

On-Line Samples

• For Graphic User Interfaces, bring screen shot printouts (in color, if possible).
• For on-line help samples, bring printouts of five to seven related topics and have the compiled help files on diskette.
• For web pages, include URLs on your resume, have screen shots, and have all required files available on diskette.
• For test scripts and code samples, have printouts and all executable files on diskette.

Presentation

• Run through your portfolio and samples to re-familiarize yourself with your work.
• Be sure that you are able to give the following information on each piece of work:
  • The company and year the work was done.
  • The intended audience for the work.
  • The context of the work; developed from scratch, rewritten, or revised.
  • The sources used to complete the work (that is, Functional Specs and Engineers).
  • The tools used to develop the documentation.

• Offer to leave copies of pertinent samples with interviewer.