Included with School of Design Certificate or Enroll Separately

Portfolio School

Say good bye to cookie-cutter portfolio. Learn how to construct a unique personal brand and build an unforgettable portfolio in 6-12 weeks so you can truly stand out from the crowd.

Overview

There are two tracks for students to choose from in Portfolio School. Depending on where you are in your design journey, you may pick and choose one track that best suits your needs. The completion time is suggested – we always work with students to allow additional time based on their schedules. You can reach out to us if you are unsure which one is right for you, or even request a customized track designed for your particular needs.

$1,200

Portfolio Express

This program is designed for students who have 2-3 portfolio projects completed, either from our School of Design program or another program. The 6-week course provides extensive 1-on-1 training on personal branding, custom website building, visual design for portfolio sites, storytelling and career-readiness.

2-3

Existing Projects Required

9

1-on-1 Sessions Included

10-15

Hours Per Week

$2,280

Portfolio Kickstart

This program is designed for students who have not yet completed 2-3 portfolio projects or those who want more projects under their belt. The program provides 24 flexible projects prompts that can be customized as well as hand-picked pairing with 1 startup founder who will be the student’s manager for an extra month-long project.

3-4

Design projects complete by end of program

15

1-on-1 Sessions Included

1

Startup founder paired for you

Looking for custom instruction?

We pride ourselves on providing bespoke, boutique and tailored education to students. If you need custom instructions, please reach out to us so we can build a custom curriculum based on your goals.

Learning Path

Portfolio Express

Week 1 Day 1

During the first day of Portfolio Express, we ask students to fill out a few questionnaires about your current "brand" and portfolio to get a sense of where you are in your journey. It is also a tool to help to get organized in preparation for personal branding and portfolio sessions later in the course.

Week 1

Students in this track are ready to build their customized websites with existing work they have in their portfolio. But first things first, we teach them the tools necessary to build such websites without writing a single line of code. In this unit, we will provide comprehensive video tutorials for no-code building tools such as Webflow in addition to exercises that we designed to reinforce student's technical understanding of the tools. You can expect to complete an exercise every 3-4 videos you watch. In your weekly portfolio coaching sessions, you will be able to discuss troubleshooting questions.

Week 2

Designers need a personal brand - a very unique and strong one. In Week 2 and 3, we will guide students through the process of building a personal brand that is one-of-a-kind. In Week 2, students will work through their "personal SEOs" and personal logo creation to set the foundation for next week. If you are curious about what personal SEO is, enroll to find out!

Week 3

In this week, we will create a personal brand typography, color palette and create "personal branding element", which will be crucial to differentiate one's personal brand from another. Our unique coaching that encourages students to push their own personal creative boundaries in creating a unique brand experience for themselves will set students up for success in the job market.

Week 4

After the completion of the personal branding process in the previous week, we will move into creating student's portfolio site via a design program in this week. Students will be required to receive feedback during weekly coaching sessions and iterate until their site design is approved.

Week 5

After the design for the portfolio site is completed and approved in the previous week, students will move on to building their site with the no-code tool they learned in Week 1. They will also utilize this week to troubleshoot any additional technical issues working alongside their coaches.

Week 6

The final week of the program is dedicated to rigorous design critique and three rounds of final iteration, edits and fixes of the site design and build. This will culminate to a polished portfolio website immediately ready to be presented to prospective employers and clients.

Portfolio Kickstart

Week 1

Students enrolled in the Portfolio Kickstart track needs to complete 3 portfolio projects before they are ready to start building their portfolio websites like students in the Portfolio Express track do. Each project is broken down to 2 weeks, with flexibility to extend based on the student's schedules.

Week 2

Week 2 is dedicated to the second part of the Project 1 to allow additional time and feedback for students. Every project follows a recommended timeline of completion, but we work with students if they need more time or less to adjust the schedule accordingly.

Week 3

After review and feedback sessions during the first two weeks, students are expected to start Project 2. The same process repeats but students will be required to choose a project that is both different in topics but also categories. For example, if you completed a mobile application design in Week 1 and 2, we would recommend doing a website design or branding design project for Week 3 and 4.

Week 4

This week is dedicated to continue completion of Project 2. Weekly coaching session will need to be scheduled accordingly for review and feedback.

Week 5

Around Week 5, students are expected to embark on the last project assignment, which will repeat the process of the previous 2 weeks.

Week 6

This week is dedicated to the second part of Project 3, with coaching and feedback sessions at the end.

Optional

This component of the course will flow alongside the regular week to week schedule as we work to pair students up with a startup that meets their preference. Students will take the initiative to independently work with a startup for a month-long project. Communication between the company and the student will not be shared with us, but we request progress updates from students to keep track of their progress and assist in reassignment if the match is not successful. Students will be able to include the project they completed for the startup as part of their portfolio to strengthen the real-world connection of their design experience.

Week 7 Day 1

As students finish 3 projects, they will be ready to move on to the same curriculum as Portfolio Express. During the first day of Portfolio Express, we ask students to fill out a few questionnaires about your current "brand" and portfolio to get a sense of where you are in your journey. It is also a tool to help to get organized in preparation for personal branding and portfolio sessions later in the course.

Week 7

In this week, we teach them the tools necessary to build such websites without writing a single line of code. In this unit, we will provide comprehensive video tutorials for no-code building tools such as Webflow in addition to exercises that we designed to reinforce student's technical understanding of the tools. You can expect to complete an exercise every 3-4 videos you watch. In your weekly portfolio coaching sessions, you will be able to discuss troubleshooting questions.

Week 8

Designers need a personal brand - a very unique and strong one. In Week 2 and 3, we will guide students through the process of building a personal brand that is one-of-a-kind. In Week 2, students will work through their "personal SEOs" and personal logo creation to set the foundation for next week. If you are curious about what personal SEO is, enroll to find out!

Week 9

In this week, we will create a personal brand typography, color palette and create "personal branding element", which will be crucial to differentiate one's personal brand from another. Our unique coaching that encourages students to push their own personal creative boundaries in creating a unique brand experience for themselves will set students up for success in the job market.

Week 10

After the completion of the personal branding process in the previous week, we will move into creating student's portfolio site via a design program in this week. Students will be required to receive feedback during weekly coaching sessions and iterate until their site design is approved.

Week 11

After the design for the portfolio site is completed and approved in the previous week, students will move on to building their site with the no-code tool they learned in Week 1. They will also utilize this week to troubleshoot any additional technical issues working alongside their coaches.

Week 12

The final week of the program is dedicated to rigorous design critique and three rounds of final iteration, edits and fixes of the site design and build. This will culminate to a polished portfolio website immediately ready to be presented to prospective employers and clients.

Startup Project

Students enrolled in the Portfolio School Kickstart track will receive the opportunity of being paired with a startup for a month-long project that provides direct client-designer work experience. We work with founders and students to make sure that the match fits the mutual interests of both parties. Students have full autonomy in this project and will be able to include it in their portfolio. Partnered startups are required to provide constructive feedback as well as credit students for their contribution.

1

Portfolio project built with real business impact

1

Maximum 1-month duration

1

Startup founder paired for you

Student Work

Our students produce amazing work. Your work could be this amazing, too.

Christina Lee

Christina is an illustrator and UI designer. She has designed a unique plushie product line herself and now venturing into broader design disciplines.

Robin Lee

Robin is a UI/UX designer based in California. She was a personal trainer and an avid hiker. She solves client problems with her client, visually-pleasing and user friendly design.

Donna Carroll

Donna is a UI/UX designer based in California. She was a dance entrepreneur before her career transition to design. She is a master storyteller with an outgoing personality. Her work is solving business problems every single day.

Carina Venet

Carina is an illustrator and animator. Her style of illustration resembles those right out of a storybook. Her animation background makes her stand out more as a multi-talented creative.

Kristina Bozhanova

Kristina is a well-rounded graphic and branding designer with lots of experience working in design roles for various businesses. She is also an experienced creative project manager. When clients hire her, they know she will deliver the project on time and with great quality.

Evleen Huang

Evleen is a multidisciplinary designer skilled in graphic design, web design, branding design and motion graphics. She is a designer at a top NYC agency and has an impressive client roster.

Student Testimonials

See how students from all over the world up leveled their creative careers from our courses

I joined this program after completing a Designlab and a General Assembly course for UI and UX respectively. However, upon completion I realized that I needed more helped with forming a cohesive portfolio. Even though I had a…

Michael A. Pierce

Art Director/Designer at Spec Haus

After completing 90% of my Designlab UX Design bootcamp, I realized I needed extra guidance creating a portfolio I’m proud of. I was specifically looking to build a portfolio of the quality I need to get the quality job I’m looking for….

Donna Carroll

UX Designer | Former Dance Entrepreneur

In my opinion, I think Path Unbound has come up with many creative programs such as the portfolio school and design school, with multiple skills taught in them both. They cater to both eager-to-learn designers and current designers who want to…

Meryl Berman

University of Arizona Student
I had learned the basics of UI Design from another program, but felt at a loss when it came to creating a portfolio without feeling like an imposter. The Path Unbound Portfolio School turned out to be exactly what I needed to finally…

Christina Lee

Finance Professional Transitioning To Design

Great organization with courses that are extremely valuable for designers. While the portfolio school is geared mostly towards people relatively new in their field, it is great for both people who are just starting out, and for people who have been in…

Kristina Bozhanova

Graphic Designer Transitioning to Digital
I had tried for months to remake my portfolio website on my own – but I kept feeling lost, and unsure of myself, and my portfolio didn’t feel like ‘me’. Path Unbound was a perfect opportunity. I really enjoyed the buildup to the actual site building…

Carina Venet

Illustrator

Financing Options

Our creative education is tailored for you, so is our financing options.

Portfolio School Express Track

Simple

One-Time Payment

• Lowest tuition rate

• Best-value for your education

Dropout Policy: 90% refund of your entire tuition if you drop out within 1 week; 50% refund of your entire tuition if you drop out after 1 week; 25% refund f your entire tuition if you drop out after 2 weeks and no refund of your entire tuition after 3 weeks of enrollment. Exceptions with customized refund will only be granted with proof of extreme financial hardship, which requires a separate application and review process.

Available Worldwide

Payment Installments

• Split your tuition payment evenly into 6 smaller payments

• Pay $220/month

• Pay it off over 6 months

• No early payment penalty

• Auto payment setup is required

• Enrollment may be terminated if auto-payment fails and no action is taken after a 5-day grace period upon notice

Dropout Policy: Based on the total monthly payment you already submitted, you will receive a 90% refund if you drop out within 1 week; 50% refund if you drop out after 1 week; 25% refund if you drop out after 2 weeks and no refund after 3 weeks of enrollment. Exceptions with customized refund will only be granted with proof of extreme financial hardship, which requires a separate application and review process.

Your Total Payment is

$1,200

One-Time Payment Rate
Your Monthly Payment is

$220

Your Total Payment is

$1320

Payment Installment Rate

Portfolio School Kickstart Track

SIMPLE

One-Time Payment

• Lowest tuition rate

• Best-value for your education

Dropout Policy: 90% refund of your entire tuition if you drop out within 1 week; 50% refund of your entire tuition if you drop out after 1 week; 25% refund f your entire tuition if you drop out after 2 weeks and no refund of your entire tuition after 3 weeks of enrollment. Exceptions with customized refund will only be granted with proof of extreme financial hardship, which requires a separate application and review process.

Have Questions? We are here to answer them for you.
IN PARTNERSHIP WITH MERITIZE, U.S. Only

Deferred Tuition Agreement

• You apply for approval with our financing partner. Upon approval, you start learning with $0 down.

• Your interest rates are varied based on your Merit Score, which is a comprehensive scoring system based on many factors, not just your FICO score. 

• You can defer your tuition repayment for up to 18 months after graduation. 

• Only available to U.S. based students at this time

Dropout Policy: 75% refund of your tuition if you drop out before or on 25% completion of the course; 50% refund if you have completed more than 25% of the course but less than 50% of the course; 25% refund if you have completed more than 50% but less than 75% of the course. If you have completed more than 75% of the course, there is no refund. 

Available Worldwide

Payment Installments

• Split your tuition payment evenly into 6 smaller payments

• Pay $400/month

• Pay it off over 6 months

• No early payment penalty

• Auto payment setup is required

• Enrollment may be terminated if auto-payment fails and no action is taken after a 5-day grace period upon notice

Dropout Policy: Based on the total monthly payment you already submitted, you will receive a 90% refund if you drop out within 1 week; 50% refund if you drop out after 1 week; 25% refund if you drop out after 2 weeks and no refund after 3 weeks of enrollment. Exceptions with customized refund will only be granted with proof of extreme financial hardship, which requires a separate application and review process.

Your Total Payment is

$2,280

One-time upfront payment rate
Your Upfront Payment is
$0
Your Total Payment is

$2,280 + Interest

Deferred Tuition Agreement rate
Your Monthly Payment is

$400

Your Total Payment is

$2,400

Payment Installment rate

Split Portfolio Kickstart Tuition For 12 Months. 0 Interest.

Knoma is partnered with Path Unbound to offer a 0-interest tuition plan for UK-resident students.

Scholarships

We believe creative education should be accessible to all. That’s why we designed two scholarship programs for students in need.

Diversity & Financial Need Scholarships

We actively promote diversity and inclusion in design. We have a diversity scholarship for students who identify as any of the following.

• People of Color

• LGBTQAIA+

Eligibility:

School of Design students (one-time payment and monthly payment plan financing only, excluding deferred tuition agreement)

Portfolio School program students (Kickstart track only)

*Individual courses are not eligible for scholarships.

In addition, you must also show demonstrated financial need:

• Gross Annual Income Under $40k (proof of income required)

30% Scholarship

General Financial Need Scholarships

For students who do not qualify for the diversity scholarship, apply if you meet the following criteria demonstrating financial need.

Students with disabilities may also apply under this category if you meet the financial need requirements since we do not have a separate category.

• Gross Annual Income Under $30k (proof of income required)

Eligibility:

School of Design students (one-time payment and monthly payment plan financing only, excluding deferred tuition agreement)

Portfolio School program students (Kickstart track only)

*Individual courses are not eligible for scholarships.

30% Scholarship

FAQs

Yes! While we provide suggested completion time for each track, we understand the diversity of our student's schedules. Once you are enrolled, you will have access to the course material with no expiration date. You are assigned a set number of coaching sessions so unless you have used up all of them, you can always come back when you are ready to pick up where you left off. We suggest the amount of completion time based on our research on the capacity of students actively working towards completion, but we understand everyone is different.

You should expect to produce a visually-polished and completely customized portfolio website with at least 3 portfolio projects 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.

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 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.

For one-time payment, the drop out policy is as follows: 90% refund of your entire tuition if you drop out within 1 week; 50% refund of your entire tuition if you drop out after 1 week; 25% refund f your entire tuition if you drop out after 2 weeks and no refund of your entire tuition after 3 weeks of enrollment. Exceptions with customized refund will only be granted with proof of extreme financial hardship, which requires a separate application and review process.

 

For deferred tuition agreement, the dropout policy is as follows: 90% refund of your down payment if you drop out within 1 week; 50% refund of your down payment if you drop out after 1 week; 25% of your down payment refund if you drop out after 2 weeks and no refund of your down payment after 3 weeks of enrollment. Exceptions with customized refund will only be granted with proof of extreme financial hardship, which requires a separate application and review process.

 

For monthly payment plans, the drop out policy is as follows: Based on the total monthly payment you already submitted, you will receive a 90% refund if you drop out within 1 week; 50% refund if you drop out after 1 week; 25% refund if you drop out after 2 weeks and no refund after 3 weeks of enrollment. Exceptions with customized refund will only be granted with proof of extreme financial hardship, which requires a separate application and review process.

 

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

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Before You Go

Do you know that you may qualify for a 30% scholarship to reduce your tuition?