Having an ePortfolio comes with many benefits. Particularly in today’s digital age, it is a way of making you more employable and unlocking incredible opportunities in the job market.

There is more than one purpose of ePortfolios. But mainly, you can think of them as your digital resume. If you think that sounds like nothing new, hold your horses. ePortfolios are much more than that!
You can create your ePortfolio in your very own unique way. And this is the fun part! ePortfolios are all about visualising the words you put on your resume. Rather than just saying what your key strengths, experiences and top skills are, how about showing it?!

Let’s find out what incredible benefits it has to offer and tips on how you can get yours started.

What is an ePortfolio

As mentioned earlier, it is your digital resume, but much more interesting. Rather than just an electronic sheet or piece of paper, an ePortfolio lets you showcase your work, skills and expertise in an exciting way. In a way you are providing a digital snapshot of yourself.

Benefits of an ePortfolio

While it offers you a digital platform to show what you’re made of, there are many more benefits of having an ePortfolio. For example, by providing evidence of your technical skills you enhance your employability.
Especially in a growing competitive market you need to stand out from the crowd. An ePortfolio offers an opportunity to do exactly that.
Another great benefit is that you can actually showcase your experience in its true form. So instead of just describing your experience in writing content plans or doing an event evaluation, you can simply show it.
The same goes for your strengths in other areas of your life. For example, you might have a passion for design or photography and were able to use that in a previous role. These abilities are also valuable and show that you are exploring different areas in your career.
Additionally, an ePortfolio provides you with the opportunity to manage your time and career. Set goals, track progress and learn to self-manage.

To sum it up, ePortfolios have many benefits including:

• Enhances employability
• Gives you competitive advantage
• Develop your career
• Promote your professional identity
• Self-management
• Time management
• Goal setting / tracking

What do I include in my ePortfolio?

Visuals

Like every other document, you need to carefully consider the design and graphics of your ePortfolio. If you’re not too comfortable with creating your own design, you can just go with a predone template from a platform like  LifeTrack. But more to that later.

If you decide to do your own design, here are some aspects you should consider:

• Colour: Choose colours that make it easy for the reader to see and engage with your content
• Font: Pick a professional and readable font.
• Icons: Icons are a great way to highlight particular content pieces and help the reader to easily navigate through your portfolio.

Text

When adding text on your ePortfolio you will need to construct it in a way that the reader can follow it easily. Some key aspects include:

• Introduction: Make sure your name and contact details are easily spotted.
• Headings/subheadings: Using headings and subheadings are important to let the reader know what they are about to read. They also help guide the reader and enhance the reader’s experience.
• Project descriptions: Every project you showcase on your ePortfolio will also need a short written description as in what the project was about, purpose and outcome.

Artifacts

Which artifacts you include in your ePortfolio will depend on your field of work. Some components you could include are:

• Images of previous projects
• Video / audio clips such as an introduction video of yourself
• Certificates like volunteer work, academic awards, languages
• Diplomas and awards
• Writing samples
• Letter of recommendations (or testimonials from previous employers or colleagues)
• Copy of your resume

ePortfolios are really to give you a competitive edge in an ever more competitive market. You can start with platforms such as LifeTrack and build on your ePortfolio with an additional website.