Tips | Online Portfolios and Social Media

While building a professional online presence can open doors, it’s equally important to protect your personal information and digital identity. Here are some key strategies to help you stay safe while showcasing your skills. 

Check and adjust your privacy settings. Every platform has different privacy settings—take the time to review them. Decide what you want to share publicly, what information can be shared with third-party ads, what can be visible to your connections and followers, and what should remain private. This is especially important for platforms like LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok, where personal content can easily be accessed by unintended audiences. 

Be mindful of what you attach your name, photos, or contact information to. Why? Because your digital footprint can be used in ways you didn’t intend. Risks include: 

• Identity theft: Scammers can use your personal details to impersonate you. 

• Phishing and scams: Public contact info can be scraped and used for fraudulent outreach. 

• Deepfakes and impersonation: Public photos and videos can be manipulated. 

• Personal and family safety: Oversharing can unintentionally reveal your location or routines. 

• Geopolitical concerns: In some cases, your identity or affiliations may put you and close others at risk depending on global or regional tensions. 

If you’re uncomfortable, consider using a pseudonym that doesn’t include parts of your legal name, initials, or a separate email address and social media accounts for your professional persona. You can also use privacy-focused tools and request that your photo not be used in public-facing content. 

For more extensive tips on protecting your identity and maintaining privacy online, check out: 

• Bitdefender: How to Protect Your Identity Online 

• Column Content: Protecting Your Identity Through Anonymous Publishing 

• SFWA: How to Establish and Use a Pen Name 

• Bibisco: Maintaining Anonymity – Tools and Tips for Writers Concerned About Privacy 

Use alternative ways to share your work. It’s ok to not have a public portfolio. You can still showcase your work in more private ways, such as: 

• Add password protection to your personal website and share access only with hiring managers. 

• Use cloud storage (like Google Drive or Dropbox) to share a curated folder of your work. 

• Create a visual case study deck using tools like Canva and share the link selectively. 

It’s ok to stay offline. While a professional online presence can be helpful, it’s not mandatory. If you’re not comfortable being online, focus on other ways to demonstrate your skills: 

• Build a strong resume and cover letter. 

• Attend networking events or career fairs. 

• Ask for informational interviews or referrals through your existing network. 

• Share your portfolio directly with employers via email or during interviews. 

• Reddit: Search for subreddits like r/AskEngineers, r/Theatre, r/environmental_science, and r/gradadmissions that speak to your career and academic interests. This can also be a great hub for helpful resources, insights into the field, and opportunities to share your knowledge. Remember to stay positive when posting, avoid engaging in online arguments, and verify the accuracy of information and opinions shared on these platforms.  

• Online Forums: Answering questions on platforms such as Quora and Stack Overflow is a great way of demonstrating your expertise and knowledge in specific subject areas. This can also be a great way for you to help others and to build credibility in the community.  

• LinkedIn Groups: Join groups related to your major, career goals, and student groups. This can be a great way for you to learn from other professionals in the group, re-share relevant posts, and stay updated on trending news and events in the field.  

• Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, X, Facebook, Podcasts, Blogs: Follow content creators and industry experts in your field and engage with their content. This can often allow the platform’s algorithm to suggest relevant hashtags, profiles, and posts that allow you to expand your network in the interested field. 

Be active in the right spaces. One of the best ways to optimize your time in online communities is to actively contribute to the community. Don’t just lurk and passively take in information – like, upvote, comment, re-share, ask questions, and share your own experiences and achievements. Remember to keep it positive and professional; the more you positively contribute, the more people will recognize you and value your input.  

Post regularly, but don’t overdo it. Take advantage of the communication skills you’ve developed in your studies and share content that will add value to the online group. For example, you may want to post about your wins (big or small), your progress in a project, 2-3 takeaways from an event or workshop you attended, things that inspire you, new tools or resources you just learned about, and lessons you learned.  

Share what you know with the right hashtags. Write short articles or blogs about what you’re learning, share tips and insights, explain concepts through an infographic, show behind-the-scenes photos, or record ‘day in the life’ videos. You don’t have to be an expert to demonstrate your knowledge. Don’t forget to include 3-5 relevant hashtags (like #StudentLife, #StudyTips, #WomeninSTEM, #MarketingTips) to help you reach others with similar interests. You can also tag classmates, mentors, student groups, and relevant organizations, when appropriate, to help you reach more people.  

Collaborate on content with others. You don’t have to create content alone. Team up with friends, classmates, and mentors to co-create content, such as a joint post about a project or co-host a mini Q&A podcast or video session. You can also strengthen your network by celebrating others’ wins and giving a shout-out for others’ work.  

Portfolios are often mistaken as supplementary application materials reserved only for those interested in the creative and tech industries. However, any individual can benefit from having a portfolio. This may take the form of a personal website or blog, a separate social media account focused on professional or academic content, a OneDrive folder or Canva slide deck containing samples of your work, or even your LinkedIn profile.  

The key to a successful portfolio is understanding what skills or knowledge areas potential supervisors are looking for and being able to demonstrate it through concrete samples, case studies, or walkthroughs.  

Things to Note 

• Different fields may have pre-established norms on the recommended platform, style, structure, and content of portfolios. It is important to reach out to people in your interested field(s) to ensure your portfolio meets these expectations. You can start by reaching out to upper-year students, alumni, TAs and professors, relevant student groups, mentorship programs, or industry associations for portfolio resources and reviews.  

• Some content may have restrictions (e.g. photo and video consent, academic policies on plagiarism, copyrights and creative commons licenses, patents, non-disclosure agreements, company data or projects that are subject to privacy protection regulations). Remember to consult with the relevant parties, so that you don’t unknowingly post sensitive or confidential information without consent.  

Sample Portfolios and Resources 

*Note: This is not an exhaustive list and is subject to change.  

Creative Fields (Design, Videography, Photography, UX/UI) 

Behance, Dribbble, Adobe Portfolio, Flickr, YouTube, TikTok, Instagram, Pinterest 

How to Start Your Own Graphic Design Portfolio 

How To Build Your First Videography Portfolio as a Beginner