Students often arrive at universities ill-prepared for the reflective practice needed to derive maximum benefits from a Freshman Seminar. At the University of North Carolina at Charlotte, portfolio projects are semester-long assignments in which the portfolio serves as a capstone activity to help freshmen more thoroughly analyze their first year experiences and more meaningfully integrate them into their overall academic and personal development. Freshman Seminar portfolios contain a selective collection of "best work" developed during a student's first semester at college, chosen by the student to show his or her progress and growth. The portfolio is also a way to build in accountability for quality performance in the seminar. Portfolio entries fall into three categories: those which show evolution and change, those which illustrate accomplishment, and those which encourage integration and application. The model is easily adapted to other types of seminars. For discipline-based seminar courses, the assignments could include a "State of the Discipline" section and a "Future Trends" section. Techniques are offered for avoiding pitfalls in portfolio assignments. Sample evaluation grids are provided. An appendix contains a student handout describing the portfolio assignment. (JDD)