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Proof of Performance:
Career Portfolios an Emerging Trend for Both Active and Passive Job-Seekers, Part 4

 

Emerging Trend of Online Portfolios

 

by Randall S. Hansen, Ph.D., and Katharine Hansen, Ph.D.

 

[Part 4 of 7 of Career Portfolios: Proof of Performance]

 

Most of the focus-group participants recognize the value of online portfolios, but think that the emphasis is -- and should be for the short-term at least -- on print portfolios, suggesting that job-seekers develop an online portfolio after they have created the print version. Several reinforced, however, that online portfolios make the most sense for white-collar professionals, especially those involved with the Internet.

 

"I believe online portfolios will likely become more popular than print in the future... but print will not die out," said a focus-group member who is an online instructor and trainer specializing in portfolios. "It's a good idea to use an assortment of methods to promote yourself... and once you have one version of your portfolio, it takes little added cost and effort to produce a companion version in another medium."

 

The alumni career assistant director more specifically clarified the differences in how print and online portfolios are currently used. "Print portfolios are a way to provide tangible evidence of achievements and work product during a face-to-face interview. Online portfolios are something that employers can review before or after the interviewing process."

 

But the trend toward online portfolios may be a slow in evolving. "The recruiters I've talked with say that they first want to see resumes, not portfolios, that come in the format they specify, because the portfolios take too much time to download and too much time to look through," states the university career counselor. "They say they can look at a resume in seconds and decide whether to look more closely at the candidates, whereas it takes time to get to the portfolio and too much time to go through it."

 

Navigation:

• Go on to Part 5: A number of key elements should be included in portfolios

• Go back to Main Page: Proof of Performance: Career Portfolios an Emerging Trend for Both Active and Passive Job-Seekers

 

 

Questions about some of the terminology used in this article? Get more information (definitions and links) on key college, career, and job-search terms by going to our Job-Seeker's Glossary of Job-Hunting Terms.

 

Katharine Hansen, Ph.D., creative director and associate publisher of Quintessential Careers, is an educator, author, and blogger who provides content for Quintessential Careers, edits QuintZine, an electronic newsletter for jobseekers, and blogs about storytelling in the job search at A Storied Career. Katharine, who earned her PhD in organizational behavior from Union Institute & University, Cincinnati, OH, is author of Dynamic Cover Letters for New Graduates and A Foot in the Door: Networking Your Way into the Hidden Job Market (both published by Ten Speed Press), as well as Top Notch Executive Resumes (Career Press); and with Randall S. Hansen, Ph.D., Dynamic Cover Letters, Write Your Way to a Higher GPA (Ten Speed), and The Complete Idiot's Guide to Study Skills (Alpha). Visit her personal Website or reach her by e-mail at kathy(at)quintcareers.com.

 

Dr. Randall S. Hansen is founder of Quintessential Careers, one of the oldest and most comprehensive career development sites on the Web, as well CEO of EmpoweringSites.com. He is also founder of MyCollegeSuccessStory.com and EnhanceMyVocabulary.com. He is publisher of Quintessential Careers Press, including the Quintessential Careers electronic newsletter, QuintZine. Dr. Hansen is also a published author, with several books, chapters in books, and hundreds of articles. He's often quoted in the media and conducts empowering workshops around the country. Finally, Dr. Hansen is also an educator, having taught at the college level for more than 15 years. Visit his personal Website or reach him by email at randall(at)quintcareers.com.

 

 

Maximize your career and job-search knowledge and skills! Take advantage of The Quintessential Careers Content Index, which enables site visitors to locate articles, tutorials, quizzes, and worksheets in 35 career, college, job-search topic areas.

 

 

 

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