The presentation portfolios used in the teacher education program at University of Northern Iowa illustrate readiness to meet teaching challenges, mastery of child development knowledge, participation in work experience, and documentation of technical skills, management abilities, interpersonal/personal qualities, and lifelong learning and skills…

Portfolios provide documentation of the past and a guide to the future. Participation in the portfolio process implies that owners must become career negotiators, taking responsibility for their own development. (JOW)

Multimedia career portfolios can be displayed on CD-ROMs, laptops, or the Internet. Developing them provides an opportunity to acquire and demonstrate technology skills. Multimedia presentations reduce information overload and appeal to different communication styles. (Contains 20 references.) (SK)

Discusses the benefits of career portfolios and stresses their importance to success in today's job market. Suggests approaching job search as a sales campaign. Offers a checklist of materials and information that should be in the portfolio. (JOW)

The trend in career portfolio use is merging with the trend toward self-assessment. Portfolios can assist individuals in midlife transitions by enabling life review and redirection. (Contains 16 references.) (SK)

Explains the benefits of career portfolios in an uncertain job market. Suggests how a portfolio can assist in career development and offers items to consider including in a professional portfolio: documentation of education and training, evidence of work performance, and examples of skills with data, people, and things. (JOW)

Describes success stories of the portfolio projects at the University of Michigan. Includes information about the content and benefits of portfolios and suggests that developing a profile is a lifetime process. (JOW)

Job seekers can demonstrate their knowledge of a potential employer by developing a company portfolio. Elements include company history, mission, values, and goals; size and location(s); financial status; and recent changes in the company and industry. (SK)

Job seekers should distinguish between learning portfolios and career portfolios. The latter should organize skills into categories and use appropriate technology. Maintaining a portfolio helps focus the job search and provides data for interviewing. (SK)

A career portfolio is organized evidence of work readiness and specific job skills and can be focused to show the skills that employers want. It can make a case that one is prepared for the next stage of a career. (JOW)

Describes the implementation of Prior Learning Assessment (PLA) at many educational institutions across Canada. Suggests that PLA should be incorporated into every skills training and upgrading program. (JOW)

Includes "Writing Effective Resumes" (Kursmark); "Writing Cover Letters with Credibility" (Davis); "Career Portfolios" (Miller); "Writing a Top-Flight Vitae" (Orlando); "Converting a Curriculum Vitae to a Resume" (Katz, Morahan); "Special Reports" (Chapman); "Every Job Searcher Needs an e-Resume" (Dixson); "Military Value" (Burns); "Key Words"…

Portfolios have uses beyond job seeking. They can be developed to promote a new idea or work assignment, used as a tool for employee evaluation, and serve in the process of organizational succession planning and internal recruitment. (SK)

Key elements of master of business administration career portfolios include the following: personal mission statement; analysis of the job seeker's strengths and weaknesses and career field opportunities and threats; personal positioning statement that clarifies the job seeker's uniqueness; and strategic research on a company or employer.…

Explains how Clark College (Washington) uses career portfolios in cooperative work experience, early childhood teacher education, and nursing programs. Suggests that they are a means of achieving academic as well as career goals. (SK)