Portfolio School

96% of design hiring managers say the first thing they look at is the portfolio. Is yours up to scratch? Path Unbound’s Portfolio School is perfect for anyone with a background or foundational education in design. Take your skillset and create a polished, professional portfolio during our intensive portfolio course with the guidance of our acclaimed design instructors.

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Overview

We created our Portfolio School because time and again we hear design school graduates say they don’t have a portfolio of work they’re confident in. So often, traditional two or four year colleges will teach you the skills, but won’t help you distill and refine your best work into an employable portfolio—that’s where we come in.

This course is designed to help you focus on refining and elevating your work to a stand-out level. Our industry professional instructors will guide you through the most important things to consider when building your portfolio, and help you showcase the depth and breadth of your design skillset and knowledge.

What to expect in Portfolio School:

1

Build​

4 Portfolio Projects​​

Create and receive multiple rounds of feedback from our expert instructors on 4 new (or existing) portfolio projects.

2

Refresh​

Existing Projects​​

Inject new life and energy into stale projects and expand smaller projects with large cross-channel deliverables.

3

Work On​

Real Client Projects​​

Get paired with a company to create a new, real-world project. Prove your client-facing skills to potential employers.

4

Build A Unique​

Personal Brand​​

Build your unique personal brand not just for your job search but also as a foundation for your design career.

5

Build Your​

Custom Website​

Build your non-cookie-cutter portfolio website that will land your application in the “hell yeah” pile.

6

Work On

Real World Projects

Learn to present your work, negotiate salary and manage clients before you even start your first design job

Curriculum Overview

Portfolio Express

For students who are proficient in design foundation and has at least 3 existing projects

Portfolio Kickstart

For students who are proficient in design foundation with no existing projects and need to build them

14

Units

4

Projects

5

Advisor Meetings

10

Instructor Sessions

2

Months

16

Units

4

Projects

5

Advisor Meetings

16

Instructor Sessions

3

Months
Lesson

What Is A Design Portfolio

You will learn how design portfolios affect the success of a designer’s career and see some initial examples of outstanding portfolios

Lesson

Curating Your Portfolio

You will learn techniques on how to choose the best work for your portfolio, how many projects are necessary and how to present them.

Lesson

Presenting Work In A Portfolio

You will learn about different portfolio website styles, the role of a personal brand, how to put together mockups and resources you can use to get started.

Lesson

Maintaining and Upkeep

You will learn strategies on maintaining, updating and redesigning your portfolio throughout the course of your career as a designer in order to stay competitive in the job market.

Lesson

Approaching Creative Briefs

You will learn how to get started on dissecting creative briefs and decide on initial creative strategies

Lesson

Ideation Techniques

You will learn helpful techniques on how to come up with creative directions that steers the project in the right way

Lesson

Thumbnailing

You will learn how to use thumbnailing as a core technique for ideation and creative direction

Lesson

Moodboarding

You will learn why moodboarding is important for the ideation stage of the creative process and how to use it to narrow down visual directions and communicate your ideas effectively to clients.

Unit

Portfolio Project 1

You will work on (or revise and improve if you are in the Express track) the first full-scale portfolio project using one of our creative briefs that are designed with industry-level complexity. You will receive hands-on guidance from your instructor as well as frequent feedback as you go through iterations.

Unit

Portfolio Project 2

You will work on (or revise and improve if you are in the Express track) the second full-scale portfolio project using one of our creative briefs that are designed with industry-level complexity. You will receive hands-on guidance from your instructor as well as frequent feedback as you go through iterations.

Unit

Portfolio Project 3

You will work on (or revise and improve if you are in the Express track) the third full-scale portfolio project using one of our creative briefs that are designed with industry-level complexity. You will receive hands-on guidance from your instructor as well as frequent feedback as you go through iterations.

Unit

Portfolio Project 4

You will work on (or revise and improve if you are in the Express track) the fourth and final full-scale portfolio project using one of our creative briefs that are designed with industry-level complexity. You will receive hands-on guidance from your instructor as well as frequent feedback as you go through iterations.

Unit

Personal Brand Logo Design

You will work on creating a logo for your personal brand as well as defining the tone of voice and personality of your brand.

Unit

Personal Brand Typography Design

You will work on creating a set of typography guidelines for the visual assets of your personal brand

Unit

Personal Brand Color Palette Design

You will work on creating a color palette that speaks true to your personal brand identity that you will use for your visual design throughout different medium.

Unit

Personalized Brand Elements

You will be guided to brainstorm visual ideas that create a unique look and feel for your personal brand that you can use for multiple visual assets so that your website will always stand out.
Unit

Storytelling in Case Studies

You will learn the techniques of effective storytelling and how that can help you craft case studies that are engaging to read.
Unit

Case Study Building

You will begin to write your case studies for each of your four projects and receive feedback from your instructors.

Unit

Case Study Feedback & Revisions

You will receive detailed feedback for your case studies from your instructor and make revisions.

Unit

Build Your Site Map

You will build your sitemap as the blueprint for your portfolio website

Unit

Gather Inspirations

You will gather visual inspirations to determine the style of your website

Unit

Portfolio Website Design & Feedback

You will work on the design of your portfolio website and receive feedback from your instructor.

Unit

Introduction to Hosting, Domains and SEO

You will learn what hosting and domain names are and how to set your website up for success with knowledge of search engine optimization

Unit

Build Your Custom Website With Webflow

Working with your instructor, you will determine which no-code building platform works best for your needs. We introduce Webflow, WordPress and templated website platforms such as Wix and Squarespace for students to choose from.

Unit

Build Your Custom Website With WordPress

Working with your instructor, you will determine which no-code building platform works best for your needs. We introduce Webflow, WordPress and templated website platforms such as Wix and Squarespace for students to choose from.
Unit

Build Your Custom Website With A Templated Platform

Working with your instructor, you will determine which no-code building platform works best for your needs. We introduce Webflow, WordPress and templated website platforms such as Wix and Squarespace for students to choose from.
Unit

Design Interview Techniques

You will be trained in effective interviewing techniques relating to the design industry

Unit

Portfolio Case Study Presentation

You will learn techniques on how to present your case studies in the most engaging manner

Unit

Articulating Your Design Decisions

You will how to articulate your design decisions to receive client buy-ins

Unit

Networking

You will learn how to approach networking in the industry in the most authentic and sustainable way

Unit

Salary Negotiation

You will learn how to find out common salary ranges for jobs you are going after and how to negotiate the best compensation package for yourself

Unit

Content Creation

You will learn how you can leverage content creation to build a brand for yourself and start your freelance or entrepreneurship journey as a designer

Unit

Client & Stakeholder Management

You will learn strategies for managing client expectations and effective communication with stakeholders

Unit

Managing Up, Pushing Back, Advocating for Design & Compromising

You will learn techniques on managing your manager, advocating for the importance of design in your organization and how to compromise in a team environment

Unit

In House vs. Agency

You will learn about the differences, pros and cons of working in an in-house environment

Unit

Generalist vs. Specialist

You will learn the differences between a generalist and a specialist in the design industry

Unit

Freelancing As A Designer

You will learn how to get started on freelancing as a designer

Enter your email for the complete syllabus

Student Outcomes

We’ve seen some incredible project transformations come through our portfolio school. Check out some of our favorite results!
Before After

Evleen Huang

Evleen Huang is a working designer who needed to improve her portfolio for better job opportunities. Under our guidance, she was able to uplift her portfolio to a refreshing new look that landed her a new job.

Donna Carroll

Donna Carroll is a dance instructor turned UX designer who completed a bootcamp elsewhere but dissatisfied with her portfolio. Under our guidance, she completely revamped her portfolio and changed her career outlook.

Before After
Before After

Kristina Bozhanova

Kristina Bozhanova was looking to transition out of print design for quite some time but unsure of where to start and how to structure her portfolio to land new opportunities. Under our guidance, she was able to completely transformed her portfolio to an elevated look  to better prepare for opportunities.

Carina Venet

Carina Venet is a multifaceted illustrator and designer. She was stuck in her job search and wasn’t getting callbacks until she joined Portfolio School and landed a new job after. 

Before After

Why Are You Struggling With Job Search?

Have you submitted hundreds if not thousands of design job applications and heard nothing back? You are in the same boat as over 90% of job applicants. But most of them will never know why. Do you want to remain the dark or find out how to really get the call back? Take our simple and free “diagnostic” test to find out.

Still Researching?

We’ve put together useful resources that you can download for free while you do your due diligence on comparing programs. These information-packed guides are expertly written by our award-winning instructors.

UI/UX Design Interview Questions

To help students in the portfolio stage become better interviewers, we’ve put together this UI/UX design interview guide with suggested answers to the most frequently-asked questions.

UI/UX Design Case Study Templates

To help students in the stage of putting together their case studies, we have prepared an expert guide written by our award-winning instructors which includes tips and templates.

Our Expert Instructors

Our team of instructors are great at what they do and teach well, too

Aneri Patel

Lead agency visual designer

Nina Shahriaree​

UI/UX & Visual Designer

Sam Jacobs

UI/UX Designer​

Silvia Script

Senior UI/UX Design Lead

Tuition

Upfront

Pay now, learn today
$ 1,600* one-time total
  • Available to students worldwide
  • Lowest total tuition
  • Pay one-time and enroll directly
  • No interest rate to worry about
Global

Split

Make smaller payments
$ 535* per month for 3 months
  • Available to students worldwide
  • Evenly split your tuition into 3
  • Less total payment than "Defer"
  • No interest rate to worry about
Global
*We are obligated to collect sales tax based on your state of residence if you are from the U.S. If you are located outside of the U.S., whether or not you will pay sales tax is based on your country’s law.

Upfront

Pay now, learn today
$ 2,800* one-time total
  • Available to students worldwide
  • Lowest total tuition
  • Pay one-time and enroll directly
  • No interest rate to worry about
Global

Split

Make smaller payments
$ 700* per month for 4 months
  • Available to students worldwide
  • Evenly split your tuition into 4
  • Less total payment than "Defer"
  • No interest rate to worry about
Global
*We are obligated to collect sales tax based on your state of residence if you are from the U.S. If you are located outside of the U.S., whether or not you will pay sales tax is based on your country’s law.

Are you from the U.S.?

If you are a legal resident of the United States, you can apply for a student loan through our financing partner Meritize. However, you must apply and receive approval first before applying for enrollment.

Deferred Tuition Agreement

Apply with Meritize

Meritize is a trusted student loan lender that provides deferred tuition financing based on students’ “merit scores”.

Cohorts

Our courses run in cohorts four times a year and deadlines apply to all programs

Now Enrolling

Spring Cohort '24

Apply by March 10th, 2024 to begin our Spring 2024 cohort. 5 spots left!

Summer Cohort '24​

Apply by June 9th, 2024 to begin our Summer 2024 cohort.

Fall Cohort '24

Apply by September 8th, 2024 to begin our Fall 2024 cohort.

Winter Cohort '24-25

Apply by December 6, 2024 to begin our Fall 2024 – 2025 cohort.

FAQs

We require every student to sign an enrollment agreement which stipulates the suggested length of each course. We ask that students commit to the course period they agreed to when they enrolled. We do have flexibility that requires a separate written request from students if special circumstances arise that necessitates a course extension. We will evaluate each circumstance on a case-by-case basis. Our goal is to help students graduate as soon as possible so that they can reach their career goals in the shortest timeframe possible while remaining flexible enough to accommodate special circumstances. 

You should expect to produce a visually-polished and completely customized portfolio website with 4 portfolio projects, including 1 real client project, that have been reviewed, critiqued and iterated during your assigned coaching sessions.

 

Unlike many other programs, we emphasized on individualized coaching for portfolios. We hold students to the highest standards in terms of their work, especially the visual quality, the case study presentation and the storytelling of their personal brand.

 

Expect to have a stunning portfolio that wows anyone who comes across it, but you have to work hard under our guidance to achieve that.

We require that students either 1) already completed a design education program at another institution or by self-study, or 2) complete our School of Design certificate program first before enrolling in Portfolio School. You cannot produce the level of portfolio that we require for this program if you are starting from 0. Luckily, we have the exact design education program to help you meet the requirements of this program.

 

After a student applied to Portfolio School, we require them to complete a short design assessment to make sure they are fully-skilled in design foundation. If you did not pass the assessment, we will suggest you take our School of Design program, which is designed for students with 0 foundation or students whose design skills need improvements. 

If you already have at least 3 finished portfolio projects, we recommend the Portfolio Express track where you spend 6+ weeks learning no code website building tools, working on your personal brand, designing your portfolio website, building it yourself and receiving rigorous feedback for iterations.

 

If you already have a solid design foundation but do not yet have any portfolio projects, or if you are unhappy about your current portfolio projects and want to work on new ones, we recommend the Portfolio Kickstart track, where you have an additional 6-7 weeks to work on new projects under our guidance. You will also receive the bonus opportunity to be paired up with a startup founder for an optional month-long startup project if you choose to.

School of Design is our main design certificate program where we take students from 0 to 100 on learning how to be a great digital-first designer. We created a well-rounded curriculum that builds a solid foundation for students who do not yet have experience in design. The certificate program includes 9 courses with in-depth focus on topics that are most relevant to becoming a successful designer. We recommend students who have no design background to enroll in the full program and take all 9 courses, but if you already have some experience in design, you may choose to skip over some courses. We will help you determine your custom course package once you apply to enroll.

 

Each course in the School of Design program can be taken individually for students who would rather build their skillsets one topic at a time, but remember that you will pay more per course if you take courses individually rather than enrolling in the certificate program.

 

If you decide to enroll in our certificate program and receive a reduced workload recommendation from us, you will also receive a reduced tuition rate accordingly.

 

Portfolio School is for students who have either 1) completed School of Design or 2) completed another education program from another school or through self-study and now wish to create a uniquely outstanding portfolio to be competitive in their career search.

 

For most students who completed another program from another school, you probably feel unfulfilled or unsatisfied with the outcome of your portfolio, if you are looking at this page. If that is how you feel, then yes, you will benefit from this program. In fact, a large number of our students are in the same shoes as you! We specialize in "filling in the gaps" and helping students work on parts of their portfolio that they are not confident about.

We do not abandon our students after they graduate! We are always open to hearing your career journey after you completed the program. You can always purchase additional coaching sessions a la carte if you need more support after the program. We would also invite those students who want to share their stories with prospective students back for events, workshops and even as our podcast guests! So don't be a stranger.

To reference our complete financing and refund/dropout policies, please refer to the Tuition page for all details.

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Application is closing soon for our March 11 cohort. 5 spots left!

Job search is frustrating but you can’t get unstuck unless you know why what you are doing is not working. Fortunately, we have the right free tool to “diagnose” you so you can move forward in the right direction.

Did someone say free downloads?

We’ve got some amazing goodies for you. Information-packed guides for salary, case studies, school comparisons and interviews written by our award-winning instructional team are available for download, for free.