Components of the Successful RBA Portfolio
Contents of The Master Portfolio
The Master Portfolio contains all of the non-repetitive materials from all the individual portfolios.Refer to the Relationship of Master and Individual portfolios (pdf format) to see how the master and individual portfolios are related. Note : You need Adobe Acrobat Reader to view this file. If you do not own this program, you can download a free copy at this location: http://www.adobe.com/products/acrobat/readstep2.html
Outside Cover
Give your name and the semester and year of submission.
Inside Cover Page:
Your Name
Regents Bachelor of Arts
Master Portfolio of Work to be Evaluated for
College-Equivalent Credit
Date: (Semester/year)
The Master Course List
Immediately follows the inside cover page, identifies all credit requests listed by institution, department, and course number.
WVU Credits Requested :
Department A
Course # 1
Course # 2
Department B
Course # 3
Institution X Credits Requested:
Department C
Course # 4
Course # 5
Provide one copy of your resume in the Master Portfolio.
Put one copy of each narrative in the Master Portfolio in the same order as in the listing above. Identify and separate individual narratives by institution and department.
Provide one copy of all documentation in the portfolio. If your documentation includes books, paintings, etc., which cannot be conveniently duplicated, you may indicate in the Master portfolio that specific documentation is available upon request.
It is not necessary to provide page numbers for the Master Portfolio materials. A Table of Contents is not needed, but you do need the Master Course List.
The Master Portfolio is kept by the Regents Office for three years and then returned to the student, or destroyed. By mutual agreement some master portfolios are made available to students in the RBA program who want to see a sample portfolio.
Contents of Individual Portfolios
Individual portfolios go to departments for evaluation -- a separate portfolio is sent to each department.Outside Cover
Give your name, semester of submission (e.g. Fall 2000) and the name of the institution and department that will be receiving this portfolio (e.g. WVU: English).
Inside Cover Page:
Name
Regents Bachelor of Arts
Portfolio of Work to be Evaluated for
College-Equivalent Credit
Date: (Semester/year)
Table of Contents
This is necessary if you are requesting credit for more than one course, or you have multiple support documents. The Table of Contents can refer to page numbers in the Narrative or to the Documentation sections which might be identified by tabs (A, B, C, etc.) or numbers.
Credit Request(s)
List on this page the course numbers, exact titles, and course descriptions from the catalog of the courses for which you are requesting credit. Identify the institution and the year of the catalog, using the most recent edition.
Remember that only courses which WVU does not offer--or cannot evaluate--are sent to another institution for assessment. You cannot request credit for graduate-level courses, but you can request credit for topics (no numbers) that are in graduate catalogs . If you do not know what credits to request, how much credit to request, or what institutions offer credit in areas --when WVU does not--you should contact the Regents Director for assistance.
Resume
Include your work history, education, and/or outside activities that are relevant to the credit requested in this portfolio. If you have attended relevant continuing education programs or non-credit training sessions, include a list of these. While transcripts are not needed, a list of college courses taken that are related to this portfolio area can be used to establish your knowledge and skills background.
Narrative
The narrative demonstrates that your knowledge and skills in the area are roughly comparable to those of students taking these courses. You will need a separate narrative for each course requested (although sometimes one of more related courses can be discussed in the same narrative if the content is substantially the same for both--e.g. beginning and intermediate swimming). Courses are of two different types which require distinct approaches when writing the narrative: 1) specific content courses; and 2) special topics, field experience, and similar courses where the content is not pre-determined.
For specific content courses you should obtain course outlines and look through a textbook on that subject. WVU as well as most other schools, require course outlines for all regular courses. Contact the academic department for the current syllabus. In the process of discussing your own experiences, the narrative should make reference to almost all of the topics covered in the regular course if full credit is desired. Use your personal experiences to illustrate your knowledge of these topics. You should also demonstrate familiarity with the concepts and vocabulary used in that field of study. Remember you are requesting credit for today=s course. You may need to do a little reading to bring yourself up to date.
For special topics or field experience courses, outlines and texts are not available. Emphasis should be placed on relevant activities you have engaged in and the associated learning. It is not sufficient to simply describe what you do or have done in your job or in the community; you must also identify what you have learned from these experiences --the reader should be able to see you actively thinking about your experiences. Your discussion should also show your knowledge of the concepts and vocabulary used in that field of study. Be sure to indicate how long you have worked or served in this area. You may want to cite important changes that have taken place in your work or service over that time and their impact. If you are requesting special topics' credit--which is very useful for knowledge you have gained in areas where colleges usually don't offer courses--you need to identify the topic you want credit for (e.g. Programming in ADA). For multiple requests for specific topics credit, you need to identify multiple topics.
Remember that you can submit drafts of your narratives to the Regents Director for feedback.
Just don't wait until the last minute to do so.
Documentation
Documentation verifies what you have discussed in your narrative. Documentation may take the form of certificates or licenses; appointment letters or letters of commendation for your efforts; creative writings or technical reports written by you; graphic designs or marketing materials; photos, theater programs (showing your participation), slides or paintings; training or non-credit course materials; lesson plans and sample tests; etc. All materials worth putting in your portfolio are worth mentioning in your narrative--identify the documents by page or Appendix label to ensure the reader pays attention to them.
Occasionally documentation is impossible to provide. Just be honest about why
-e.g. "it got lost in the last move" or "the company was bought out and no longer exists."
Portfolio Return
The individual portfolios sent to departments are returned to the student. However, the Regents Office does not mail portfolios so you need to arrange for someone to pick them up.