What is an ePortfolio?

 

What is an ePortfolio?

    An ePortfolio is a webpage or website that houses digital samples of your work and gives a bit more insight into your academic or professional career. Students use it to store work from different courses such as writing samples, artwork, photos, and projects. Professionals use it as a digital representation to showcase their work to prospective clients or employers.

    Aside from work samples, an ePortfolio usually has an about me page, a resume page, and a contact page. You are free to add more pages as needed. Your ePortfolio is an ongoing project that you update as you acquire different skills and knowledge.

    One thing to remember about an ePortfolio is the tone of the language used and the information that you share. You have to keep in mind how potential clients and your prospective boss will judge you based on the information that is on this website. Therefore, it is important to keep the tone very professional. Even in the about me page, share a professional photo of yourself for example, and keep the tone as professional as possible. Your blogs can be a bit more informal and personal if you desire.

Why is an ePortfolio Important?

    More and more universities, companies, and organizations use ePortfolios to determine whether applicants have the required qualifications. Think of it as a great way to create and promote your digital identity or brand.

What should an ePortfolio include?

    There are different types of ePortfolios and each discipline or field has different requirements for ePortfolios. For an artist, the ePortfolio may consist of samples of their art on a specific page that showcases their work or it may be sprinkled throughout their ePortfolio. For a teacher, there may be more colorful and vibrant graphics and images. Therefore, the type of ePortfolio and what you choose to include will be based on your field. However, here are some pages that you should include in each ePortfolio, regardless of the discipline.

A Home Page

On your home page or landing page, you should welcome your audience to your website. You may decide to include links to other pages to make your information accessible. 

An About Me Page

This page should include a professional picture of yourself with a brief bio about yourself. The length of your bio will depend on how much you would like to share. Most about me pages, start with a brief introduction of themselves. You may decide to include what attracted you to the profession and the work that you have done so far. Some other things you may decide to include are hobbies and pastimes. 

Resume

On this page, you will share your resume. There are website builders that make this page easier to complete than others For this page, you may choose to upload your resume in pdf format, image format, or type it on the page itself. Whichever format you choose from, remember to remove personal information such as a street address, phone numbers, and other contact information that you do not want to share.

Sample Work

This page will include samples of your work. It can range from lesson plans that you've created or your art pieces that you've created. You may decide to have these samples in video, pdf or image format. Some formats are accessible to the public, one that they can easily download. Therefore, ensure it is work that you do not mind sharing.

Blog

If you have been working on a blog that you would like to share, you can provide a link to this blog. Since this is a professional ePortfolio, the blog should include information related to your field of work or profession.

There are so many other pages that you can include in your ePortfolio but these provide a solide foundation for building your ePortfolio. Whatever pages you decide to include, ensure that it is consistent with the work that you are currently involved in or the future work that you would like to be known for. Keep it professional.