The Writer's Portfolio: Presenting the Professional You

What's in a portfolio?

The first page of a typical professional writing portfolio is a simple title page: Portfolio of Jocelyn Warnock, for example, printed one-third of the way down the page in large type or allcaps, boldfaced or otherwise highlighted to fill up the page appropriately.

Follow the title page with your resume. This can be either the same one-page resume you included with your job application letter or a longer, professional resume that offers more detail. Refer to any of the numerous books on the subject for specific advice on how to prepare a resume.

Consider this: be sure that your skills jump off of the page at the interviewer. What you did is more important than where or when you did something. And if you're a writer, emphasize the writing you did on the job--whatever the job might have been.

In the front pocket of the binder place copies of your resume and copies of "Selections from the Portfolio of . . . ," a five to seven page, stapled, photocopied sampling of key pages from your portfolio. Remember, your complete portfolio should never leave your sight. But your resume and the "Selections" make a nice hand-out to offer interviewers and others who might ask to "look at" your resume or your writing samples overnight. Photocopy the first pages (or pages with significant features, such as graphics or unusual--but good--layouts) of your best work.

After the resume include a brief table of contents on a separate sheet of paper that lists the sections of the portfolio. The sections of a professional writing portfolio are usually grouped by types of writing: technical writing, public information writing, freelance writing, and so on, much in the same way that the chapters of this book have been titled and grouped.

Then comes the bulk of the portfolio: samples of your work, separated into sections (using the pocket dividers mentioned above or some other method). At the back of the binder, you may wish to include copies of particularly glowing letters of recommendation or impressive commendations or certificates, either in a pocket divider or in the back cover pocket.

Often, classroom writing makes up a large portion of a recent graduate's portfolio. This is not a drawback. Of course, you should feature classroom work that mimics world-of-work writing: technical reports, editing assignments, layout and design projects, and other similar professional writing assignments. If possible, choose writing samples that mimic the writing performed on the job at the place where you are being interviewed.

But don't neglect your favorite essay on the English poet, John Milton. Or your best freshman English essay. No interviewer will read more than the first paragraph. If the first paragraph of your Milton essay can get the reader into your discussion with a clear sense of what you have to say and where the discussion is going, you can probably write clearly and effectively on just about anything.

The point is that you will not be evaluated on the content of your essay or the content of any other classroom writing that you present. A technical report from a technical writing class demonstrates familiarity with report writing and offers an example of your skills in the layout and design of a technical report. It usually does not demonstrate professional mastery of the content or subject of the report.

Similarly, what you know about Milton's poetry probably isn't vital to the job interviewer. But your ability to make Milton's poetry, or your opinion, accessible to a reader through your writing is valuable. In fact, that translational talent is exactly what the better employers of professional writers look for. Your portfolio takes classroom work out of the classroom and presents it in a professional context. Your ability to do this effectively demonstrates that you have the professional writer's talent for controlling context.

The prized contents of any portfolio are samples of professional, world-of-work writing. Include the brochure you did for your internship, or the set of instructions you wrote for training new docents the summer you worked as a volunteer at the museum. Both are world-of-work documents; both are equally important.

Remember, just as with your classroom writing, even the world-of-work document's contents are probably not as important as the communication value of the documents, which demonstrates your ability to present information clearly and effectively on a variety of topics to varying, but specific, audiences.

If you are applying to be a technical writer and you have an actual, world-of-work technical report, place it prominently in your portfolio. It is not necessary to present the entire document. If the report is more than ten pages long, photocopy the first page or two. Preferably, include a page with your name listed as an author, or a page with a unique layout demonstrating your ability to mix text and graphics.