1. Career Portfolio Georgia GPS Standard FS-CTAE-10 Career Development: Learners plan and manage academic-career plan and employment relations
Dr. Frank B. Flanders and Katherine Hudson
Georgia CTAE Resource Network Curriculum Office
July 2008

2. Essential Questions What is a career portfolio?
How is a career portfolio beneficial?
What should go into a career portfolio?
How can a career portfolio assist in career development and employment?
What do employers want to see in a candidate’s career portfolio?

3. What is a Career portfolio?
Easy and visual way to display your best work and accomplishments
Employers and college admissions staff may use it to judge a person’s academic ability, maturity, and motivation
May help determine a person’s future employment or acceptance into a two- or four-year college
Includes an account and evidence of a person’s accomplishments, experiences, and activities
Should be used throughout a person’s working career
Should be added to and updated regularly as career-relevant experiences occur and new skills are mastered
The finished product will provide others with a comprehensive profile of the person and their abilities.

4. Components of a Career Portfolio
Leadership Experience
Extracurricular
Activities
Special Skills
Examples of Work
Follow-up Letter
Cover Letter
Resume
References
Awards and Achievements
Work Experience

5. Cover Letter
Way of introducing yourself to prospective employers, show interest in a position, and highligh your qualifications
A cover letter should address:
Why you are interested in this position/business/college
Your career aspirations and goals
The skills and abilities that would make you successful in a particular career or at a particular college
Why this business or college should select you

7. Resume Summary of a person’s qualifications
Uses short statements to inform potential interviewers about important facts about the applicant
A resume should include:
Who you are
How you may be contacted (mail, telephone, )
Your experiences, skills, and abilities for the position
When creating a resume, ask yourself:
What skills do I have?
What should a potential interviewer know about me?
What achievement(s) could I highlight to help get the interview?
Should not exceed 1 page in length

9. Letters of Recommendation and References
Include at least 3 letters of recommendation, one of each kind:
Employment-related: A letter from a past employer evaluating your work performance.
Character-related: A letter from a person who has known you for more than one year and can testify to your personal and/or academic attributes
If you have not been employed in any way you may use 3 character-related letters
When asking for a letter of recommendation, explain your time frame and ask each writer to complete the letter by a specific date
Some people give their resume to letter writer to help the writer draft a more detailed and personalized letter
Thank the writer by writing a thank-you note
The portfolio should also include a list of at least 3 references, made up of past employers, co-workers, teachers, and close family friends
Each reference should give the person’s name, phone number, address, and address

10. Awards and Achievements
Shows employers all of your accomplishments
Possible awards and achievements could be:
Making the honor roll
Winning a scholarship
Being recognized for community service
Awarded MVP on a sports team
Obtaining a certification
An example of a particularly outstanding performance
Include any certificates or documents that prove your achievement or receipt of award and take pictures of any medals or trophies that will not fit in your notebook
For each award, explain what it was for, why it was given to you, and what work was involved in attaining it
For each achievement, explain what your goal was, the steps you took to accomplish it, and any obstacles you encountered along the way

11. Work Experience
Shows an employer you are mature enough to handle job responsibilities and have had the opportunity to practice your skills and training in real-world situations
Proves you have prepared for full-time employment and have learned to work with others in ways that are successful and rewarding
Could be a summer or after-school job, an internship, helping with a family business, or a neighborhood babysitting gig
Can be organized two ways. You should choose the way that best fits your work experience and your desired career:
Experience related to your desired career appears first
Chronological order
Each work experience entry should tell the reader:
The employer
Your title
Dates you worked there
Job responsibilities
Description of day-to-day tasks
Any projects you worked on, including your role on the project, the contributions you made, and how you helped reach project completion
Include evidence of your work experience, such as certificates or other documents of employer recognition, business cards from past employers, copies of performance reviews, and pictures of you on the job

12. Leadership Experience
Shows you:
Can use your intellect, experience, and job-relevant skills to lead and motivate others
Have been trusted enough to have been put in a leadership role
Can work well with others
Can communicate effectively
One of the most important factors in hiring and promotion decisions
Examples could be:
Holding an officer position in a club
Being captain of a sports team
Being the leader of a group assignment
Any time you showed leadership skills during an activity
or project
For each leadership experience:
Describe the situation
What your responsibilities were
How you accomplished your goals
The skills you used or acquired
How your leadership affected others
Include proof, such as recognition of your leadership or relevant pictures

13. Extracurricular Activities
Shows the reader:
You have made a meaningful contribution to something
What your non-academic interests are
That you can maintain a long-term commitment
That you can manage your time and priorities
What unique perspectives you can bring to a group
Could be a school club, volunteer activity, religious affiliation, sports team, or personal hobby
For each organization, explain what its purpose was, what you gained by being part of it, and how you contributed to it
For each personal activity or hobby, explain how you stay active in it and what you gain or learn from it
Include pictures and other documentation of your extracurricular activities

14. Special Skills Examples of skills would be:
Computer proficiencies and technical abilities: fluent in Java, proficient in Excel, certified in farm safety
Office procedures: answering multi-lined phone systems, taking dictation, greeting clients
Linguistic capabilities: fluency in a foreign language, ability to translate
General skills: leadership, communication, time management, organization, reasoning, decision making
Personal Qualities: team player, self-motivator, values oriented, self-confident
Any skill that is industry-specific for the job you’re seeking
Show proof of each skill by including past work, describing a situation in which you used the skill, or including pictures. For example:
If you are fluent in Java, provide a screen shot of a website you created
If you say you have teamwork skills, describe a time when you used your skills to make a group run more efficiently or achieve a goal

15. Examples of Work
Demonstrates what you can do and how well you can do it
Choose samples that display skills appropriate to your desired career
Examples should be work that you are proud of and shows care and planning
Include a picture of any samples of work that are three-dimensional or won’t fit in the notebook
Each sample of work should be accompanied by a note that tells an employer:
When, why, and for whom a project was completed
What obstacles you were faced with
The processes used to overcome those obstacles
If you were responsible for only part of the project, explain your contribution
Possible examples of work could be:
Research papers, book reports, essays
Math projects or science projects
Exams that show achievement
Computer projects
Mechanical/technical drawings
Published articles
Pictures, projects, or descriptions of activities relating to:
Personal interests and hobbies (photography, poetry, cooking, woodworking)
Community involvement outside of school (Scouts, religious organizations, 4-H)

16. Follow-Up Letter
Send a thank-you letter to the employer or admissions officer after every interview
The letter gives you the opportunity to:
Thank the person for taking time to speak with you
Restate how your skills and qualifications are a good fit for the position
Reinforce that you want the job and why
Describe how you might make significant contributions
Discuss anything important your interviewer neglected to ask or that you neglected to answer as well as you would have liked

18. Career Portfolio Tips
Never put original work in your portfolio – use high quality copies
Don’t be too humble; the portfolio helps you talk about yourself and your accomplishments
Use pictures of yourself in action shots
Be familiar with the contents of your portfolio so that you are prepared whenever you are asked about your qualifications

19. Using a Career Portfolio in an Interview
Politely let the interviewer know you have brought your portfolio to the interview
The interviewer will let you know if they want to see your portfolio
Never make the interviewer feel pressured to look your portfolio
Do not be offended if the interviewer chooses not to view your portfolio
Allow the interviewer to view the portfolio facing them – you should be familiar enough with your portfolio that you can talk about it without needing to look at or read from it
Having a career portfolio in an interview will never hurt you, but it may give you a great advantage!

20. Other Uses for a Career Portfolio
Demonstrate your abilities in a performance review
Evidence when trying to obtain a promotion
Proof that you deserve a pay increase
Review of your qualifications when preparing for an interview

21. The Electronic Portfolio
A personalized, career oriented website
Shows that you are technology-savvy
Contains the same information as a
hard copy portfolio
Electronic portfolios have become more
popular as technology becomes increasingly
important
Include the web address to your electronic portfolio on your resume
Best to start with a hard copy portfolio, but you may want to consider having both formats
The benefit of a hard copy portfolio is that it is something tangible you can bring into an interview

22. Essential Questions What is a career portfolio?
How is a career portfolio beneficial?
What should go into a career portfolio?
How can a career portfolio assist in career development and employment?
What do employers want to see in a candidate’s career portfolio?