PORTFOLIO

Portfolios should be mailed to Graduate Admissions, College of Design, NC State University, Box 7701, Brooks Hall, Raleigh, NC 27695-7701.

A portfolio – literally “carry the leaves or sheets” – is defined in the dictionary as a flat, portable case, usually of leather, for carrying loose sheets of paper, manuscripts, drawings, etc. In architecture, as in all the design professions, portfolios are regarded as the most effective way to communicate their work to others. They typically are brochures containing a selection of architectural projects and other pertinent 2-dimensional or 3-dimensional work of artistic or technical interest, presented as reproductions in one of the standard paper formats. Students with an undergraduate degree in architecture applying to a graduate program and graduates looking for a first job or moving from one employer to another are expected to present portfolios to illustrate their abilities, their experiences, and their accomplishments. Specific suggestions: A few specific suggestions for you to keep in mind as you assemble your portfolio.

• Submit your work in a bound brochure or ring-type binder, not in loose-leaf form. Portfolios should not exceed 15 pages and 11” x 14” in size, and the 8 ½” x 11” format is preferred. Include only reproductions, reduced where appropriate, rather than originals. Portfolios are rarely lost, but it has happened and originals cannot be replaced. Do not submit slides, videotapes, CDs or web pages.
• It is useful to include some information regarding the context in which your work was produced, particularly whether it was done in response to a class assignment, a job-related task, or by your own initiative. It is also good to include the dates of execution as well as the size, materials, and media. If a project was done by a group of persons or in the context of a professional office, please be specific as to the exact nature of your personal involvement and contribution.
• You should give special attention to the form and craft of your submission. We are not only interested in the quality of what you show, but also in the quality of how you show it.
• Please be sure to include your name on the portfolio and on all items. If you want us to return your portfolio, please include a self-addressed, stamped mailing envelope or box of correct size with sufficient postage. Note: We cannot accept checks or credit cards to cover the expense of mailing.
• You can consult references on portfolio design. As an example, Portfolio Design, Second Edition by Harold Linton (New York: W.W. Norton & Company, 2000, ISBN 0-393-73059-X) contains much information and many examples of portfolio design, some by NC State University students. At NC State, this book available at the College of Design Library and the university Career Center. This book or others like it should be available at design and university libraries around the country.

Portfolios for applicants with previous architectural degrees are considered as demonstrations in ability to design architectural projects. Other pertinent 2-dimensional and 3-dimensional work of artistic, design, or technical interest may be included as supplementary to this desired purpose.

TRACK THREE APPLICANTS

Portfolios for applicants to Track 3 have a somewhat different purpose. Because applicants come from a great variety of backgrounds, some have experience in architecture or a related field, while others have none. Our Admissions Committee will look upon your portfolio not so much as a track record, but primarily as an indicator of your promise in the field of architecture. Your portfolio should present some proof to us that your professed interest in architecture, and in becoming an architect, is based on more than the tentative contemplation of a vague possibility. It should show that you have tested the strength of your interests by acting upon them and that these actions have left some traces in the form of products you can present. We are therefore interested in seeing evidence of your curiosities and interests, your perceptual sensibilities and your skills, your initiative, your creativity, and your judgment as you experience, record, represent, analyze, criticize, and -- most important of all -- transform the environment around you, architecturally or otherwise. Design is making, and it is important for you to demonstrate that you can actively make things, not just passively observe them.

The Graduate Admissions Committee feels it is important to allow a fair degree of latitude regarding the format and content of your portfolio. The included items, as well as the manner in which they are presented, are the first important clues to your sensibilities and overall promise in the field. In other words, the committee tends to look at your portfolio as a first "design assignment."

Track 3 applicants should keep in mind that architecture deals with three-dimensional entities. Whereas two-dimensional work (such as drawing, painting, 2-dimensional design and photography) is useful to illustrate compositional and graphic abilities, the Admissions Committee will look for some evidence to assess your promise in the conception and manipulation of 3-dimensional form, volume and space. Samples of elementary mechanical drawing or architectural drafting are not considered pertinent to show potential for architecture. Nor is it essential to include "architectural work" per-se. Examples of successful portfolios of past applicants to the Track 3 program are kept on file at the desk of the M.Arch. Admissions Secretary. Please feel free to stop by and take a look at them. You may also arrange an appointment through the secretary with a member of the Graduate Admissions Committee to discuss any questions you may have regarding admissions procedures or portfolios.