Design Portfolios

Unique perspective of a seasoned designer and veteran A/E industry recruiter regarding what design industry recruiters actually look for in a Design Portfolio

Design Portfolios: A Recruiter’s View provides a student-friendly guide, written from the perspective of a designer and design industry recruiter, on what recruiters look for as they review a design portfolio. It shows students how to create a professional-quality portfolio that will get them to that all-important next step in the recruiting process—the interview.

Using a unique plan of action, “The Four S’s”, the book presents an organizational mindset focused on the added value of telling your Story, revealing your Style, proclaiming your Substance, and Sharing your uniqueness effectively.

In today’s competitive market, a winning portfolio is much more than a simple accounting of digital skills and volumes of high-resolution graphics. This book shows students what recruiters really value and how to ensure their portfolios make the right impression.

Design Portfolios: A Recruiter’s View explains:

• How to develop a memorable organizational approach around story, style, substance, and sharing and create a winning portfolio
• Answers to the key questions students ask to fill in gaps in their academic instruction
• Real examples of resumes, cover letters, and portfolios that reveal what is needed for success
• Years of “big picture” insight gained from actual portfolio reviews during the author’s time as a designer and recruiter

Aimed at the inexperienced design student rather than the practicing professional, Design Portfolios: A Recruiter’s View is an easy-to-understand and constructive guide that is incredibly helpful to young designers with project histories that consist only of academic and internship work.

Mark W. Smith is a practicing Landscape Architect with four decades of professional practice focused on planning and design throughout the US. He is currently a vice-president and managing principal with a large multi-disciplinary planning and design firm. Mr. Smith has been engaged in design-industry recruiting since 1990 and leads his firm’s recruiting activities. In this capacity, he reviews hundreds of portfolios annually, interviews candidates, negotiates salaries, prepares offer letters, and oversees on-boarding activities.

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