Job applications
Choose portfolio samples for a specific job
Start from the posting's requirements and shortlist samples that show them. For each one, note your own contribution, whether you may share it and what context a viewer needs. A few well-explained samples serve a reader better than a long folder.
A text to start with
I am applying for [job title] at [organization]. The posting asks for [requirements]. My candidate samples: [list, one line each]. For each, I will give my role, who owns the work and whether sharing is allowed. Rank the samples by how directly they answer the requirements, and say what context each one needs.
Example request. Change the details to fit your situation.Portfolio sample shortlist
Role and employer: [ ] Requirements from the posting: [ ] Sample 1: [title] Requirement it answers: [ ] My contribution, in my own words: [ ] Who owns the work: [ ] Permission to share: [yes, no or not yet, from whom] Contains private or confidential material: [yes or no] Context a viewer needs: [ ] Link or file: [ ] Sample 2: [title] Requirement it answers: [ ] My contribution, in my own words: [ ] Who owns the work: [ ] Permission to share: [ ] Contains private or confidential material: [ ] Context a viewer needs: [ ] Link or file: [ ] Samples dropped, with reason: [ ] Posting requirements I have no sample for: [ ]
Material to leave out
Remove any sample that belongs to a current or former employer or client unless you have permission to share it. Find samples where your part is unclear, such as team projects with no record of who did what, and either add a contribution note or drop them. Check that names, numbers and screenshots do not expose private information. CareerOneStop describes a portfolio as work samples with project context and the applicant's contribution, so a sample missing either is incomplete. Prefer a smaller set you can fully explain.
Ask another agent to check the result
Review my shortlist and exclude any sample with confidential material, missing permission or an unclear personal contribution. Explain each exclusion in one sentence. Then name any posting requirement the remaining samples fail to show.
Assemble and test the set
Write a short context note for each chosen sample covering the problem, your contribution and the date. Order the samples by relevance to the posting. Open every link in a private browser window to confirm it works without your login. Ask someone you trust to look at the set for a few minutes and tell you what they understood. Save a trimmed version for each different application.