Information About Psychology E-Portfolios
As you advance in your major, your psychology-related knowledge and skills will grow in a variety of different areas. In
order to help you recognize and reflect on that growth, you will begin work on an e-portfolio of your learning when you
enter the major, and complete your portfolio by the end of your senior capstone course.
Why should I care about e-portfolios?
First and foremost, e-portfolios are a unique tool that allows you to track your own growth as a student of
psychological science. It is incredibly rewarding to see your hard work paying dividends via your abilities to
converse fluently about psychological theories and findings, evaluate and produce psychological research,
communicate your ideas clearly and professionally, and so on.
Furthermore, graduate admissions committees and employers typically want to see evidence of the knowledge
and skills that you claim to have (for example, graduate applications often require writing samples, and
employers may want you to provide evidence that you are comfortable with statistical analysis or creating
professional presentations). E-portfolios are a great way of organizing such evidence for yourself, and because
you can make your e-portfolio public, it can also be a great way to present that evidence to potential
programs/employers—for instance, you can include a link to your e-portfolio on your resume or CV.
What do I need to include in my e-portfolio?
The psychology major offers you a wide range of possible experiences, from the classes you choose to take, to
the experiential learning opportunities you have (e.g., study abroad, service learning, internships, research).
Your e-portfolio should reflect your unique experience, and as such, you have a great deal of flexibility in what
you choose to include. We ask that you include a handful of required assignments (detailed below), but beyond
that, you simply need to provide some form of evidence—from any source you think is most relevant (classes,
research, internships, etc.)—in each of the following 5 areas:
1. Discipline knowledge.
o Minimum submission requirements: You will graduate with knowledge of the theories and major
findings in the four psychological domains: cognitive, social, biological, and developmental psychology.
For each the four domains, choose an excerpt from an assignment that best illustrates your learning in
that domain. Include a description of the assignment, the excerpt you selected, and a reflection about
how the excerpt demonstrates your learning in that domain area. Assignments may come from content
classes within that domain or from unexpected places like Research Methods, an internship experience,
or a research experience where you used those skills.
o Suggested submission requirements: Include an overall reflection on your learning in one or more of the
domains. Give an example from earlier in your college career and later to demonstrate your
improvement. For the assignments you include, insert a link to the full document if you wish.
2. Inquiry skills/Critical thinking.
o Minimum submission requirements: In addition to the content of psychological science, psychology
students are expected to graduate with an exceptional understanding of the methods of the discipline.
This includes the ability to critique and design psychological studies, to analyze data, and to interpret
and critically evaluate psychological findings. In this section, you should include excerpts from your
research proposal from Research Methods (PSYC 202) and your final paper from Research Seminar
(PSYC 410/430) on their respective pages, brief descriptions of the assignment in question, and a
reflection on how the excerpt illustrates improvement of your scientific inquiry and critical thinking
skills.
o Suggested submission requirements: For the assignments you include, insert a link to the full document
if you wish. Create additional pages in this section for other applicable class assignments and/or
evidence from experiential learning (e.g., research experiences, research practicums, independent
studies, honors in the major projects, internships) that demonstrate these abilities. Follow the format of
other pages, and be sure to include information that provides context as well as reflections on your
learning.
3. Ethical reasoning.
o Minimum submission requirements: Ethics has always been and has recently become an even more
major component in professional psychological behavior. By the time you graduate, you will have at the
very least completed training regarding the ethical conduct of research (i.e., NIH or CITI training). Post
your ethics certification on the "Training Certificate" page. On the "Evidence of Applied Ethics" page,
include an excerpt of an assignment that improved your knowledge and/or understanding of ethical
principles or from an experience (e.g., research experience, work-study position, internship, student
assistantship) that required ethical training and/or conduct. Provide context and reflect on your
improvement in this area.
o Suggested submission requirements: Elaborate on other experiences that have significantly contributed
to your ethical reasoning. For example, give an example from earlier in your college career and later to
demonstrate your improvement. For the assignments you include, insert a link to the full document if
you wish.
4. Oral and written communication.
o Minimum submission requirements: Many classes you will take as a psychology student will require you
to write research proposals or reports, literature reviews, and other forms of professional writing, as
well as create professional presentations. Choose the best exemplars of your professional writing and
presentation skills, and post an excerpt from an assignment or project that demonstrates your written
communication skills and another that demonstrates your oral communication skills. Be sure to include
contextual information and reflections.
o Suggested submission requirements: Include additional excerpts to illustrate your skills. Give an
example from earlier in your college career and later to demonstrate your improvement. For the
assignments you include, insert a link to the full document if you wish.
5. Professional development. (Note: The content for this area should be located in the pages of the “Home”
section. Below, the requirements are listed based on what should be on each page. Additional suggestions are
given for some but not all of the pages.)
o Minimum submission requirements:
 On the “Home” page: In the text module, type some basic information about yourself such as
where you are from, your class year, and what degree you are pursuing. Upload a picture
(preferably of yourself) in the media module.
 On the “My Mission and Reflections” page: Part of your experience in the psychology program
should be learning how to connect the knowledge and skills you acquire with long-term
professional goals. In this section of your e-portfolio, include a mission statement regarding your
professional goals and experiences that you have had—in classes or via experiential learning
opportunities—that have directly furthered you toward those goals. This statement should be
explicit about what your future career goals are (whether or not that includes graduate work or
other training) and what skills you have developed in psychology and at the College that will
make you competitive. (Note that Career Services and LinkedIn assignments embedded in
classes will likely help you here.) Your mission statement should at least be updated twice
during the program, during Research Methods and Research Seminar.
 On the “Curriculum Vitae/Resume” page: Post selections from your Curriculum Vitae and/or
resume, or post the whole document(s). You may especially want to include any Honors that
you have received, leadership positions, research/clinical interests, work experience, etc.
 On the “Courses” page: List the psychology-related courses that you have taken by the year that
you completed them. You can also include courses that you plan to take in the future, which
may be useful for planning and advising.
 On the “Experiential Learning” page: Use this page to elaborate on your applied or experiential
learning to demonstrate your professional development. You can list out your experiences on
the main page and then create separate pages for experiences you would like to elaborate
upon. (A subpage has been already been created for your use on the portfolio template, but you
o
are welcome to add more.) Include excerpts, reflections, pictures, etc. that showcase
experiences you have had in classes, research, internships, and so on that have brought you
closer to your professional goals. (Note that this page will be different for everyone as some will
have more experiential learning to talk about than others.)
Suggested submission requirements:
 On the “Home” page: Add in a link to any external webpages such as your LinkedIn profile in the
text module below if you wish. You can also add other general information about yourself
outside of what is listed.
 On the “My Mission and Reflections” page: Update your mission statement once per year and
add in reflections about your undergraduate experience at the end of your senior year. You can
upload your statement for the year whenever you wish, but it is recommended that you do so
just before the beginning of each school year.
 Note: Additionally, there is an optional “Completed Papers and Projects” section that may be
helpful in illustrating your professional development. This section is not part of the standard
requirements. If you wish, post completed papers and projects that you feel demonstrate your
best work or your improvement. Write a short description of each assignment that you post that
includes a reflection. Add as much content as you would like, and format this section to suit your
personal needs. You could post all your content on the main "Completed Papers and Projects"
page or create new pages within this section.
You will add to each of these areas as you progress through the program, and we’ll check on your progress at
two points.


Research Methods (PSYC 202). At this point, we expect that you will have evidence of improvement in at least 3
of the 5 areas detailed above.
o Minimum submission requirements: (1) An excerpt from your research proposal from Research
Methods (PSYC 205/202); (2) An excerpt from an assignment that demonstrates your oral or written
communication skills (from any psychology class); (3) Your mission statement; (4) An up-to-date list of
the psychology classes that you have completed.
o Additional suggested submissions: (1) An excerpt from an assignment that showcases your knowledge
in one of the four psychological domains; (2) Evidence of professional development. (Note that it would
be beneficial to you to add to your portfolio as you go through the program, so it is recommended that
you keep that in mind and also add anything else that you are able to.)
Research Seminar (PSYC 410/430). By the end of this class, you should have a complete e-portfolio; thus, in
addition to the requirements presented above in PSYC 202, you should have the other pieces of evidence
required added to your portfolio.
What will happen if I don’t complete my e-portfolio?
Because we believe that e-portfolios uniquely contribute to the learning and overall experience of psychology
students, and because we use e-portfolios to assess our effectiveness in preparing students, it is a departmental
requirement that students complete their e-portfolios by the end of Research Seminar. For this reason, their
final grade in Research Seminar will not be released until a completed portfolio is submitted.
Where can I go if I have questions about my e-portfolio?
If you’re having trouble figuring out how to navigate or add to your e-portfolio, or if you have any questions
about the psychology department’s requirements, feel free to contact the psychology department’s e-portfolio
fellow, Stephanie Shields, at smshields@mail.roanoke.edu.