Documenting your Accomplishments

1. Documenting your Accomplishments Dr. Beth Brunk-Chavez Electronic Teaching Portfolio October 7, 2009

2. What it is • A picture of who you are as an instructor • Classroom, mentoring, related research, workshops, and so on • Self-promotion • A significant part of who you are as a university citizen

3. Why is it so important? • Sell yourself as a good instructor, hard worker, reliable, someone who cares about teaching • Distinguish yourself from other applicants

4. What it tells committees • How good a fit you are • How committed you are • How good of a writer you are • What you have accomplished • What you hope to do and become

5. What not to do • DON’T • Be too personal • Write about inappropriate topics • Be too modest • Or, be too braggy • Use clichés • Dwell on weaknesses

6. What to do • Use detail • Address weaknesses • Focus on the opening paragraph • Be interesting and personable • Tell a story/create a theme • Write concisely and correctly • Follow guidelines. • If it asks for 2 pages, don’t send 3.

7. Getting started • Read instructions carefully—schools may ask for different things: • Personal statement • Statement of interest • Research agenda • Teaching philosophy

8. Getting started • Do research • On the discipline • On the program • On the faculty • On the current students • On the graduated students

9. Use a writing process • Brainstorm, invent, draw maps, free write, draw pictures • Draft quickly • Revise • Have someone read it • Revise more • Revise again • Edit • Have someone read it

10. Language Choices • Use “I”—but don’t overuse it • Use active voice/present tense • Not too casual, not too formal

11. Nice touches • Mention several faculty by name • Mention something about what current students are working on or publications of former students