include your name and contact info in portfolio...send a seperate cover letter and resume along with the portfolio

as a kind of first-step before interviews and making the real portfolio, i made my work-sample job application package as a folder:

got some museum board (like card stock) and printed out my name and contact info on it (using the same typology and design as in the header of my resume) along with some guidelines for cutting and folding the thing (the outline for cutting, and some flaps for the folder part, etc). it folds into roughly 8.5x11, and unfolded it was printable on my oversize inkjet.

inside, i placed some academic work samples and some professional stuff (renderings, snippets from a dd/cd set, etc) as loose sheets on thick paper. my resume went inside as well as the first sheet you see. the cover letter went outside, but could go in as well.

seemed like it worked out. i think the plus of having a folder is that there's no binding (as opposed to your real portfolio). you can add and subtract to it, i.e a job reference that you may bring to the interview, any kind of sheet or notes the employer may want to include--they could just put it into the folder, your "file".

good luck!

I was wondering the same thing. I am currently out of my country and will be applying for summer internships mostly via e-mail. does anyone have suggestions on how to do this?
-my thought was to submit a cover letter and a resume and then some form of digital samples of work. stating the intent to bring an acctual portfolio to any in person interview?

is this the best method of approach?

Something to keep in mind: If you include your resume as part of the book, will it photocopy well?

The last time I was looking for a job, I included my resume as the last page of my portfolio (a simple Itoya plastic insert-type book). All of the pages were cut down to allow for a black border around them; this included my resume, which was slightly smaller than an 8 1/2 x 11 sheet.

I interviewed with one of the firms to whom I sent a portfolio. As a result of the interview, we mutually agreed that it was not a good fit. However, one of the interviewers graciously photocopied my resume from the portfolio and faxed it to another firm.

When I showed up at firm #2 for an interview, the interviewer had the photocopied, faxed version of my resume in front of him. It looked awful (the original photocopy was not 'square'), but I got the job anyways. Funny how that works.

For most employers the resume is the most important item. In some firms the resume will be separated from any other enclosures you sent and coped and distributed around the firm, while the other materials may not be seen by more than one person - or not seen until right before the interview. So I agree with those who are telling you to keep the resume separate (though it could be ok to put a smaller version in your booklet in addition to the standard-sized separate resume.) Because of the photocopying issue you should also refrain from including imagery on the resume itself. Those little thumbnail sketches and model photos tend to turn into black blobs after a couple generations of copies - and the only person who usually sees the original is the person who opens mail and distributes it, which is often not a position with much hiring clout.

I definitely agree about having a standard 8.5x11 resume. It's inconvenient having to file a non-standard size piece of paper, and it will likely be photocopied and passed around as mentioned above. But...

I would suggest emailing resumes and work samples as pdfs rather than mailing a hardcopy. There are a lot of reasons for this. A.) You save cash by not having to print a ton of work samples. 2.) It's a quick and dirty way for getting people to see your work. They just have to open an attachment. If they don't like it, they can easily delete it. 3.) Quick response. If a firm isn't hiring, they bust off a quick email. 4.) It's simply an introduction; if they want to see real work after seeing your pdf work samples, they'll ask. I've had a lot of luck with this, and don't know why more people don't do it.

A few things to keep in mind though. Keep your pdf less than 1MB. People don't want your work samples clogging up their email or to have to spend a long time waiting for it to download. Also, something I found out too late, remember that if people do print your pdf, it's going to be on 8.5x11 paper. So it's not really worth fussing with non-standard trim sizes.

jafidler... this is what i was thinking as the best approach to submitting work via e-mail but i know only a few years back many places still wanted hard copy stuff. hopefully the digital is a little more widely accepted now.

anyone else have any input on this type of resume/work submittal?

jafidler:
8 1/2 x 11 is only standard for 1/20th of the world.

i've reverted back to using a4 for resume, teaser, letters. it looks better, too.

my typical resume package is a cover letter, resume, and 2-page teaser. in pdf, the package is about 450kb.

on my last (local) job hunt, i submitted 10 resumes electronically and 2 by mail. i had better and faster responses from the emailed resumes. although for top-100 type firms, i'd always recommend hard copy unless noted otherwise - it's more professional, and it goes along with craft. this can be taken too far, however. i know several people from school that actually made their own paper and printed on it... not attractive.

lastly, remember to take hard copies of your resume (i usually take 2-3) and a pen to every interview.

Sorry, holz.box and other global citizens. Lesson learned: know your audience.

I've had the best luck sending pdf samples to small to medium-sized firms. Large firms will generally have an HR person be the first person to look at it, and he usually can't tell squat about what you're trying to say through your graphics.

Obviously a craft-oriented firm will not be impressed by a pdf, so don't even try, but most firms are looking for your digital modelling skills, graphic design ability, attention to detail, CD experience, things that can be communicated through a pdf.

Before sending out the pdf, I research the firm very thoroughly, get to know people in the office, try to figure out who my allies would be, then specifically target who should receive the pdf in the office and what that person would be looking for in my work samples. I have about a dozen work sample pages and before sending the email decide which ones would work best with each potential employer.

The pen thing is key too. Always carry a pen. Personal/business cards for informal occasions don't hurt either.

many firms and it was my practice as well automatically deleted pdf files that were sent from unknown sources (like you do at home). Unless you know the person, having met prior you aren't likely to open the pdf.

Granted if you wanted to get the benefits you mentioned prior you could always have it as a .html (and your biggest worry becomes if they have internet access)

I couldn't disagree more with architechnophilia. Yes, there may be firms that delete unknown pdfs, but generally I would say this reflects poorly on the firm or that firm is just getting a million resumes and you probably don't stand a chance anyway unless you have an inside track. If you include a thoughtful email, people will open it. I'm always curious to see other people's work, and it allows an employer to tell in a few seconds if you are a potential candidate or not.

do any of you think it would be wise to send the e-mail to alert the firm of your interest in employment before giving them all of the good (your resume and work samples) so that they do not maybe delete it or is it better to send it as a package(e-mail, CV, resume, work samples)?

I don't think it is so important to send an email warning that you will be sending all of your info later, it is more important to know who within the firm is in charge of reviewing your material and just make sure to send it to that person. Most larger firms have an HR person whose job is to sift through that stuff and they aren't going to delete pdfs or attachments. As far as whether to send electronic or hard copies, just educate yourself about the firms you are applying to and rank them. Send your hard copies to the firms on the top of the list and electronic files to the others.