Networking & Job Searching for IP&T Instructional Design Portfolios

Portfolios are a staple for most of the instructional design world, and it's becoming more and more common for professionals to have some kind of personal website. Future employers will review your portfolio to see if you're a good fit by learning more about you, how you work, and what you have to offer to their organization.

This page provides a high-level guide on how to outline, build, design, and refine an online instructional design portfolio.

Portfolio Creation Process

A design portfolio is a written and visual synthesis and representation of your work style, experience, design philosophy, credentials, personality, and skills. Here is a brief outline of the creation process to ensure that your portfolio includes all necessary elements of a basic instructional design portfolio:

Narrative/Goal Statement
Review Good Examples of Portfolios and Artifacts
Select your Platform (and create your portfolio shell website)
Outline your website
Select Portfolio Artifacts (run your artifacts by your committee chair, if applicable)
Draft Narrative and Visuals for Portfolio Artifacts
Create your Portfolio
Present your Portfolio

At any or all of these stages, you should be sharing your work with peers, your committee chair, or IP&T classmates and asking for feedback to ensure that you're on the right track and in-progress designs benefit from external ideas and input.

For IP&T Master's Students on the Design Track

IP&T MS students on the design track are required to take IP&T 698R (your final sixth project credit for your Design Project) in the semester you plan to graduate, which will guide you through the process of creating your portfolio in preparation for your Portfolio Defense. Make sure you reference the IP&T handbook for additional design specifications and specific graduation deadlines to meet IP&T department expectations.

1. Crafting Your Portfolio Goal Statement

Write a 1-2 paragraph statement identifying the goals for your IP&T portfolio (beyond fulfilling a graduation requirement). A strong portfolio is a professional staple in the design field to prove to others, especially future employers, that you're capable of the kind of work that you want to do. As you build your goal statement, keep in mind your portfolio audience and intent.

In your goal statement, consider answering some of the question prompts below:

What type of work do you hope to do after you graduate?
What are some of your skills that you want your portfolio to highlight?
What does the work you have done in the IP&T program communicate about you, your skills, and your interests?
How can your portfolio items (or IP&T work) show that you are a good "organizational fit" for future employers?
How can you make your portfolio unique to you and reflect your personality and skills?

Tips for crafting your goal statement

How to Identify Areas of Strength video (2:20)
How to Choose Portfolio Artifacts video (3:11)
As friends, family, and colleagues, for ideas for projects, themes, artifacts, and content you want to include.
Using your portfolio to tell a story video (4:41)
Medium: Great Design Portfolios Are Great Stories

2. Good Instructional Design Portfolio Examples

Portfolio Tip

To find exemplary instructional design portfolios or other professional portfolios, search online using phrases like "example instructional design portfolios" or "example evaluation portfolios." (Adjust your prompt to include terms that are specific to industries or types of design, evaluation, or other jobs that interest you.)

Exemplary Portfolios from IP&T Students & Alumni

Natalie Larsen Portfolio:

Great examples of design project artifacts, including simpler /synthesized project artifacts, and more detailed, case-study-like artifacts.

Ana Gonzales Portfolio:

Ana’s portfolio highlights her excellent graphic design and instructional design skills.

Evie McKonkie Howell Portfolio:

She highlights her design skills and creativity well.

Ashley Schumacher Portfolio:

Ashley’s portfolio is a model of a solid evaluation portfolio.

Helpful Resources for Design & eLearning Portfolios

eLearning Portfolio Reviews - YouTube Playlist

10 Tips To Help You Build Your eLearning Portfolio | eLearning Industry

12 Best Portfolio Website Builders in 2025 (Free & Paid Options) | Trickle blog

**Great Design Portfolios Are Great Stories | by Simon Pan | Interactive Mind | Medium

**UX Portfolio Presentation: How To Structure Your Portfolio For An Interview

UX Portfolio Template to Get You Hired | UXfolio Guide

UXfolio - Fast & easy UX portfolio building

The Ultimate UX Case Study Template & Structure (2026 Guide)

Additional Portfolio Examples

In addition to EdTech Careers, which features some remarkable instructional design and eLearning artifacts by past IP&T students, you can look at some other great student-made portfolios below!

Parker Whitlock: Parker Whitlock Portfolio
Stephanie West: Stephanie West Portfolio
- Stephanie showcases her skills very well.
Bennett Gustafsen: Bennett Gustafsen Portfolio
Devin Young: Devin Young Portfolio
- Devin does a good job of customizing the IP&T requirements to match his unique career choice as an athletic coach.
Faith Jennings: Faith Jennings Portfolio
- Faith does a good job of talking like a designer throughout (in her icons, photos, discussion of her hobbies, etc.).
Abby Marks: Abby Marks Portfolio
- Good use of color/design theme, interactions, and web functionality; very personalized and aligned with personality.
Hillari Bollard: Hillari Bollard Portfolio
- Does a great job telling her story as a designer.
Johanna Chan: Johanna Chan Portfolio
- Really well organized. Great use of web affordances to find your way around the portfolio.
Amy Rogers: Amy Rogers Portfolio
- Really high-quality projects described really well.
Cara North: Cara North Portfolio
Dan Randall: Dan Randall Portfolio

3. Select Your Portfolio Platform

Here is a breakdown of potential portfolio website platforms, as well as the pros and cons of the sites available:

Best, Most Professional

Best Free Website Builders (More Professional Look)

Wix (Easy)

Considered one of the most versatile free portfolio builders, thanks to simple customization and an extensive template library.

Pros

Free templates
Drag-and-drop customization
No coding

Cons

Free plan has Wix branding
No custom domain unless paid
Can't change template

Best for: Professional-looking beginner portfolios; Visual artists

Example: Ashley Schumacher’s Portfolio

Webflow (Medium-Hard)

A more robust, customizable platform option for those who want full layout control, CMS, and built-in SEO tools.

Pros

Very professional looking
More advanced customization
Free hosting (with limits)

Cons

2 page limit (free)
No custom domain unless paid
Steep learning curve

Best for: UX/UI designers; Polished portfolios; Learning web design

Example: Johanna Chan’s Portfolio

Framer (Medium)

Popular with designers, Framer is a modern no-code website builder with a Figma-like interface that offers remarkable design freedom.

Pros

Easy to create modern, interactive, stunning visual designs
Great animations and interactions
Highly customizable
Free plan available
Dozens of free portfolio templates and 100s of free components

Cons

Learning curve
Free version includes Framer branding & subdomain
Custom domain requires a paid plan

Best for: UX/UI/Product designers; Modern/interactive portfolios

Example: Abby Marks’ Portfolio

Fast, Easy

Canva (Very Easy)

Easily design a digital one- or multi-page portfolio with ready-made templates, an expansive media library, and simple tools.

Pros

Free portfolio websites
Drag-and-drop (super easy)
Nice modern templates
Can export as a website or a presentation

Cons

Limited (free) design options
Limited customizability regarding layout and interactives
Can't support all embedding

Best for: Clean, simple portfolios; Quick setup; Non-technical users

Google Sites (Very Easy)

Free website builder from Google. Customizable and completely free, though less widely used.

Pros

Completely free
Intuitive tools
No hosting required
Good Google integration

Cons

Limited design customization
Less visually impressive
Fewer templates

Best for: Students, Academic portfolios, Simple portfolios

Example: Evie McKonkie Howell’s Portfolio

Simple, Popular

Behance (Very Easy)

One of the most widely used portfolio sites, with millions of creatives and recruiters browsing for talent.

Pros

Completely free
Huge creative community (recruiters actively browse it)
Easy to upload projects + case studies
Free plan with unlimited projects and uploads

Cons

Limited customization
Somewhat restrictive format for portfolio presentation
Requires consistent engagement for max benefit
Not ideal as a standalone professional website

Best for: Students, First portfolio, Graphic/UX/UI Design

Weebly (Easy)

Beginner-friendly website builder. Weebly is often ranked as one of the best free portfolio builders, with free hosting, SSL, and marketing tools included.

Pros

Free plan available
Drag-and-drop builder
Built-in SEO tools
Very beginner-friendly

Cons

Less modern designs
Limited customization
Free plan shows branding

Best for: Beginners, Simple portfolios, Quick professional site

One Page, Minimal

Notion (Very Easy)

A document-style workspace that people increasingly use as minimalist portfolios. Many designers customize Notion into portfolio sites using templates or tools like Super/NotionSites.

Pros

Completely free
Clean, minimalist aesthetic
Easy to update
Good for case-study portfolios
Fast to build

Cons

Limited customization
Not very "visual" compared to website builders
Not as professional-looking for design-heavy portfolios

Best for: UX/UI design; Students; Simple portfolios; Case studies

Carrd (Very Easy)

Affordable, straightforward solution focused exclusively on creating responsive one-page websites, with a solid balance of customizability and ease of use.

Pros

Very easy to use
Free plan available
Clean minimalist templates
Fast to set up

Cons

Mostly one-page sites
Limited features on the free version
Not ideal for large portfolios

Best for: Simple/quick portfolios; Personal branding pages

Advanced, Paid

Squarespace (Medium)

Squarespace is known for award-winning templates and aesthetic portfolio designs, especially for creative professionals. Designers often say Squarespace is easy and expandable.

Pros

Beautiful templates
Very professional look
Great for personal branding
Easy and expandable
Customizable layouts

Cons

More expensive alternative
Limited customization
Template dependencies
Learning curve
Performance issues with lots of content

Best for: Professional portfolios; Freelancers; Premium look

Adobe Portfolio (Medium)

Adobe Portfolio is included in Creative Cloud plans and cannot be purchased separately. It's clean, simple, and easy to update, especially for students or professionals who use Adobe.

Pros

Clean, professional templates
Integrates with Adobe apps (Photoshop, Illustrator, etc.)
Custom domain supported
Very polished designs

Cons

Not free unless you already pay for Adobe
Limited customization
No standalone subscription available

Best for: Designers already using Adobe; Graphic designers

Summary/Comparison

Easiest to use

Behance
Canva
Google Sites
Notion

Most professional look (Free)

Wix
Webflow
Framer

Best for UX / Instructional Design

Webflow
Framer
Notion
Wix

Fastest to set up/create

Canva
Carrd
Notion
Weebly

Platform	Difficulty	Free Features	Best For
Canva	Very Easy	Website builder, templates, drag-and-drop editor, hosting	Simple portfolios, beginners, fast setup
Google Sites	Very Easy	Free hosting, collaboration, Google integrations, basic templates	Student portfolios, academic portfolios
Behance	Very Easy	Unlimited projects, community, project galleries, Adobe integration	Students, visibility, quick portfolios
Weebly	Easy	Drag-and-drop builder, free hosting, basic SEO, ecommerce (limited)	Beginners, simple professional sites
Notion	Very Easy	Basic pages, database organization, public sharing links, templates	Minimalist portfolios, UX case studies
Carrd	Very Easy	One-page sites, templates, responsive design, simple customization	Simple portfolios, personal branding
Wix	Easy	Drag-drop builder, templates, hosting, basic SEO;⚠️Limited free plan	Professional-looking beginner portfolios
Webflow	Medium-Hard	Free hosting, templates, CMS (limited), animations; ⚠️ Limited free plan	Advanced, modern design portfolios
Framer	Medium	Free hosting, templates, animations, CMS (limited), SSL, up to ~1,000 visitors/month; ⚠️ Limited free plan	Modern interactive portfolios, UI/UX design
Squarespace	Medium	Premium templates, drag-and-drop builder, hosting (trial only); ❌ Free trial only	Premium professional portfolios
Adobe Portfolio	Medium	Professional templates, Adobe integration, hosting, custom domain (with Adobe plan); ⚠️ Free with Adobe subscription	Designers already using Adobe tools

4. Instructional Design Portfolio Content/Outline

At a minimum, you should have these elements in your portfolio:

Personal statement/introduction
A picture of you
Brief history/background
Work experience, education (you could also display your resume to accomplish this)
Resume, and a way to copy/download a PDF of the resume
Projects/Artifacts (min 3, max 8)
Your design philosophy (doesn't have to be its own section, but it should be included in some capacity)
Contact information/form, social media (minimum: LinkedIn and email)

Here's a good basic framework:

Home page
About Me page
Contact (page/form/footer)
Projects (all) page, then a page for each project or artifact.

Optional elements/sections: Strengths/skills; Publications; CV; Awards/recognitions; Interesting facts; Introduction video; Schedule/book an appointment; Services offered; Articles, blog posts, writing

Portfolio Artifacts

Remember:

IP&T MS Design students' portfolios and artifacts need to meet specific requirements outlined in the IP&T handbook.

5. Select Your Portfolio Artifacts

Identify five artifacts that you plan to include in your portfolio. The IP&T Handbook for Design Portfolios recommends artifacts that showcase:

Your Design Knowledge and Skills, or Evaluation Knowledge and Skills
Your ability to use Discipline-specific Tools to produce instructional and evaluation solutions
The way you use instructional design theory, models, or research; learning theory; or evaluation theory, models, and research to inform, ground, and guide your instructional and evaluation solutions
Two Artifacts: The strengths and skills you possess. They do not have to be IP&T-related artifacts.

Look at sample artifacts from former IP&T students

6. Draft Narrative & Visuals for Your Portfolio Artifacts

Take a few minutes to explore the collection of excellent portfolio artifacts in the drop-down below:

Exemplary Artifact Examples from IP&T Students and Alumni

Ashley Schumacher: This portfolio models a solid evaluation portfolio.
Natalie Larsen: Great examples of design project artifacts, including simpler /synthesized project artifacts, and more detailed, case-study-like artifacts.

Evie - simple artifacts.

Natalie Larsen: Natalie Larsen Portfolio
- Great examples of design project artifacts, including simpler /synthesized project artifacts, and more detailed, case-study-like artifacts.
Parker Whitlock: Parker Whitlock Portfolio
Bennett Gustafsen: Bennett Gustafsen Portfolio
Evie McKonkie Howell: Evie McKonkie Howell Portfolio
- She highlights her design skills and creativity well.
Ana Gonzales: Ana Gonzales Portfolio
- Ana’s portfolio highlights her excellent graphic design and instructional design skills.
Ashley Schumacher: Ashley Schumacher Portfolio
- Ashley’s portfolio is a model of a solid evaluation portfolio.
Devin Young: Devin Young Portfolio
- Devin does a good job of customizing the IP&T requirements to match his unique career choice as an athletic coach.
Faith Jennings: Faith Jennings Portfolio
- Faith does a good job of talking like a designer throughout (in her icons, photos, discussion of her hobbies, etc.).
Abby Marks: Abby Marks Portfolio
- Good use of color/design theme, interactions, and web functionality; very personalized and aligned with personality.
Stephanie West: Stephanie West Portfolio
- Stephanie showcases her skills very well.
Hillari Bollard: Hillari Bollard Portfolio
- Does a great job telling her story as a designer.
Johanna Chan: Johanna Chan Portfolio
- Really well organized. Great use of web affordances to find your way around the portfolio.
Amy Rogers: Amy Rogers Portfolio
- Really high-quality projects described really well.
Cara North: Cara North Portfolio
Dan Randall: Dan Randall Portfolio

Complete and Present Your PortfolioLinks to an external site.

Now that you've crafted a goal statement, selected your platform, created an outline, and selected and drafted your portfolio artifacts, it's time to actually build it.

7. Create your portfolio:

Build: Begin creating your portfolio site and creating your artifacts
Polish: finalize the content and pay attention to small details: break points, functionality, spelling, etc.)
Test: share your portfolio with others (classmates, peers, committee members, etc.); ask for feedback and make appropriate changes

Tips for Creating Your Portfolio

Toptal Designers: Gestalt Principles: Strategic Design Framework for UI/UX Leaders
Medium: The fundamentals behind visual hierarchy
Toptal Designers: The Enduring Importance of Visual Hierarchy
Toptal Designers: Boost Your UX With Clear Visual Hierarchy
IXDF: What is Visual Hierarchy?
Medium: Design for Non-Designers: Part 1

8. Present your Portfolio:

When presenting your portfolio, be mindful of your audience and adjust accordingly:

Job Applications & Interviews:

One of the most common occasions that you will be asked to personally showcase elements from your portfolio is during job interviews when asked to explain some of your work, demonstrate your skills, or talk about your previous experience. Usually, you will be asked to include a link to your portfolio as part of the application or include the link on your resume. During the interview, it is helpful to bring along a laptop where you can access your portfolio site and show interviewers specific projects and artifacts.

MS IP&T Portfolio Defense:

IP&T Master's Design students are required to do a Portfolio Defense, which is quite different from how you might show your portfolio in an interview. Generally, it's not recommended to have your portfolio site open as you present; instead, you will create a slideshow synthesizing who you are as an instructional designer, including showcasing a handful of artifacts from your portfolio website with some select text, artifacts, and images from 2-3 projects.

Tips for Presenting Your Portfolio

Shapiro Negotiations Institute: 5 Essential Presentation Skills to Develop
Second Nature: How to handle questions during a presentation
UNSW Sydney: Tips for presentation visuals
UXfolio: UX Portfolio Presentation: How to Structure and Present Your UX Portfolio on a Job Interview

Attributions

Content

https://trickle.so/blog/best-portfolio-website-builders

https://www.websitebuilderexpert.com/website-builders/portfolio/

https://www.techradar.com/news/best-website-builder-portfolio

Sites (where can I design/host)
Articles
Design tips