Using Pathbrite to Build Your Online Portfolio

By: Robert Vanisko
Part of the Career Toolbox Series 

While resumes are very crucial to getting a job, most of the time they do not tell the full story of who you are and what you can contribute to a particular job.  This is especially true for people with creative majors.  Don’t you wish there was a way for creative people to show off their writing and design samples without having to create an entire portfolio from scratch? Luckily for you, there is. 

Pathbrite is an online service that allows you to build an online portfolio in just a few quick and easy steps.  Pathbrite gives you different options for what type of portfolio you want, including Professional, Academic, and Freestyle.  When making a Pathbrite portfolio, you receive prompts that tell you exactly what to include in your portfolio.  For example, the first step in a professional portfolio is to upload your resume, followed by a prompt to upload something that represents your professional skills, which could include a writing sample, design sample, etc. 

Pathbrite takes you step by step until you have a completed portfolio full of diverse materials.  These materials should adequately represent the skill set that you want your potential employer to see.  As a Public Relations Major, my Pathbrite portfolio includes my resume, my design samples from Adobe InDesign and Illustrator, a Press Release, and a Backgrounder.  Therefore my own portfolio reflects my graphic design skills, writing skills, and work experience that shows that I have used those skills in a work setting before.

The portfolios are very easy to send to any employer and can go a long way in differentiating you from other candidates for a particular job.  This is also a very good networking tool as well.  If you are giving an elevator pitch to your dream employer and don’t have too much time to get all of your qualifications across, it is always good to have the URL to your Pathbrite portfolio ready to go so you can have all of best work available in an instant.

Overall, Pathbrite is a great tool to use and can be a key factor in separating yourself from the rest of the pack when applying for a job.  To view a sample Pathbrite, click here. For those of you looking for additional information on how a portfolio can help your job search, you can refer to this blog post.