GUIDE FOR THE USE OF AN ACADEMIC PORTFOLIO

1. INTRODUCTION AND PURPOSE

The Academic Portfolio is the required document for all applications for promotion, tenure and for annual Professional Development Reviews for academic staff.

2. WHAT IS AN ACADEMIC PORTFOLIO?

An Academic Portfolio is a summary of your major activities and accomplishments, documenting the nature and extent of your contributions as well as your role and achievements. It has three major components (or folios) – Teaching and Learning, Research, and Service, supported by your Curriculum Vitae. A Teaching and Learning folio is a summary that documents your major accomplishments and strengths in this area. The Research folio documents your research interests and contributions. The Service folio documents your contribution to both the University community, your profession, and beyond. It may be that some of your achievements can be placed under more than one heading. Include information most appropriate for you and, elsewhere where the information is relevant, indicate where it can be located. Please make clear in your documentation when the achievements occurred.

You will have more information and evidence regarding your activities and accomplishments that can be incorporated into your portfolio documents. The academic portfolio will be a summary and synthesis of your year or your career to date. You will be expected to collect and organise all of the evidence available about your performance so that you can draw on it when needed for different purposes. An academic portfolio is used to substantiate your claims for a particular purpose.

The Academic Portfolio can be used for:

• Supporting an application for promotion or tenure.

  In preparing their Academic Portfolio, it is recommended that applicants for academic promotion refer to the criteria for promotion appropriate to the level for which they are applying. These are found on the Promotion of Academic Staff website.. Assistance in the preparation of an Academic Portfolio may be obtained from Organisational and Staff Development Services. Assistancet in preparing your teaching folio may be obtained from the Centre for the Advancement of Teaching and Learning. Example Academic Portfolios may be viewed by contacting the Executive Officer, Academic Promotions Committee, extension 3215.

• The Professional Development Review process.
• Supporting an application for sabbatical.

Preparing an Academic Portfolio can also be useful for reflecting on and evaluating one’s personal and professional development needs.

A completed Academic Portfolio will contain a number of different elements depending on the purpose for which it is being used. Not all aspects are needed for all purposes.

• Cover Sheet or relevant Application Form, signed and dated by the applicant and containing the following information:
  TITLE AND NAME OF STAFF MEMBER
  SCHOOL AND/OR DISCIPLINE
  POSITION HELD (e.g. Level A, Level B, etc.)
  APPOINTMENT (i.e. Tenurable or Fixed Term).
• Personal Statement - one to two page statement summarising your case according to the use being made of the Portfolio (for example, an application for promotion). The Personal Statement articulates the specific grounds on which an application is based. It is anticipated that it will contain an explicit statement delineating clearly the main focus of your work and the particular achievements that are claimed, together with a brief overview of the significance of your contribution in the wider context of the discipline and University. It is an opportunity to indicate why the application is timely and how your duties may have affected the overall contribution;
• Curriculum Vitae;
• Folio 1: Teaching and Learning;
• Folio 2: Research, Scholarship and Original Achievement; and
• Folio 3: Service (if applicable).

Whilst there is no page limit on the CV, applicants are encouraged to limit each of the three folios to no more than five (5) pages when submitting the portfolio for promotion or PDR purposes. Use language suitable for both practitioners in your field and lay people.

3. SUMMARY OF DOCUMENTATION TO BE SUBMITTED WHEN APPLYING FOR PROMOTION OR TENURE AND FOR ANNUAL PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT REVIEWS.

4. GUIDELINES FOR THE PREPARATION OF THE ACADEMIC PORTFOLIO

THE CURRICULUM VITAE

It is likely that most detail about your academic career will be contained in the Curriculum Vitae (CV) which will change as your circumstances alter. There are no page restrictions on the CV. The standard CV will include:

(1) The publications list should be presented in a way that makes clear both the nature and the date of the publication. It should also make clear which publications are refereed and/or invited.

FOLIO 1. TEACHING AND LEARNING

It is recommended that teaching activities be documented according to the headings below, with reference to the UWA Teaching Criteria Framework and standard descriptors.

When using the Academic Portfolio in seeking promotion refer to the detailed teaching and learning criteria.

Where the folio is being used to support a nomination for a teaching award, you should refer to the ALTC Award Criteria, available from the UWA ALTC Support Office.

Your teaching folio is a summary or synthesis of your career or year to date – you will need to interpret and summarise the evidence you have collected to make a case or present a summary

Teaching and Learning Objectives

Self-reflective statement about your teaching philosophy, including your goals, objectives and methods.

Teaching and Learning Achievements

• Statement of the range and scope of your teaching in the period under review
• Major achievements in the period under review

Refer to the teaching criteria framework to structure your response – consider the evidence you have collected in relation to the activities you have undertaken and how this demonstrates excellence in your teaching practices. Consider all six areas of activity, core knowledge and professional values in summarising your major achievements.

Refer to the standard descriptors for your level for expectations in relation to teaching quality and development and demonstrate how you meet, exceed, or are developing toward, those expectations through your activities in teaching and learning.

Leadership in Teaching and Learning

Refer to the Teaching Criteria Framework for examples of the types of activities that demonstrate a leadership role in teaching and learning (bold examples in the ‘examples of sources and types of evidence’ section)

Refer to the standard descriptors for your level for expectations of leadership in teaching and learning and demonstrate how you meet, exceed, or are developing toward, those expectations through your activities in teaching and learning.

This folio is limited to five pages.

FOLIO 2. RESEARCH, SCHOLARSHIP AND ORIGINAL ACHIEVEMENT AND/OR OTHER RELEVANT CREATIVE WORK

It is recommended that research activities (including scholarship and other original creative work) be documented according to the headings below. For staff seeking promotion please refer to the promotion criteria located on the Promotion and Tenure of Academic Staff website. It is anticipated that much of this information will also be documented in Socrates.

Research Objectives

Statement about your areas of research interest with a comment about the significance and thrust of your research activities and achievements and the breadth of your expertise.

Research Achievement

• Publication of papers, chapters, books and/or conference presentations (provided in CV).

  Conference publications may be listed on the ILDS ⁽³⁾. To demonstrate the quality of publication a brief explanation of the quality of the journals and/or publishing houses is recommended. Similarly in the studio arts or music indicate whether these were juried shows and/or competitive performances and the nature of any reviews.

• Postgraduate supervision including numbers, destination and awards with distinction (by year)

  This may also be included within the Teaching and Learning folio but not both. You may wish to cross reference.

• Competitive research grants and contracts.
• Any other activities.

Leadership in Research

• Research grants including writing of grant applications, assessing grant applications and internal reviewing of grant applications.
• Development of research staff as evidenced in team achievements.
• Commitment to quality with an international focus.
• Any other activities.

Supporting documentation for either research achievement or leadership could include the following:

• Research funds received.

  Provide full details.

• Invited lectures/seminars/conference presentations ⁽³⁾; invited books, chapters and other publications.
• International linkages ⁽³⁾
• Invited membership of professional societies.

  State the names of professional societies or associations in which invited membership is held, together with the term and title of any positions held in these organisations. Indicate where admission to membership depends on an assessment of professional competence in addition to the holding of appropriate academic qualifications.

• Awards received by professional associations for outstanding research or creative work (provided in CV).
• Citations.
• Patents.
• Any other feedback.

(3) Staff in the Faculty of Life and Physical Sciences are asked to identify/describe their international linkages through the International Linkages Database Service (ILDS) at www.science.uwa.edu/au/ilds. This will be used by supervisors as direct supporting documentation.

This folio is limited to five pages.

FOLIO 3. SERVICE

It is recommended that your service activities be documented according to the headings below – Academic Citizenship, Professional Leadership in the University, and Community Leadership and Service. A full description of what might be included under these headings is found in the promotion criteria.

Service Objectives

Statement of philosophy, goals and methods (which may include a statement of School expectations).

Academic Citizenship

• Demonstration of high standards of professional behaviour (as documented in the Code of Ethics and Code of Conduct).

  You may wish to comment on your active participation in the life of the School through committee membership and other activities and/or contribution to student welfare. (See more information)

• Sustained contribution to the development of a collegial and supportive work environment.

  Outline your involvement, for example, in mentoring staff, fostering teamwork and taking on roles of responsibility such as OSH representative. (See more information)

• Any other activities

Professional Leadership in the University

• Sustained contribution to University governance.

  Describe your participation/leadership within faculty and University committees and formal leadership roles.

• Regular contribution to policy development.

  Outline, for example, your support for strategic and operational planning, leadership of academic program reviews and supporting the internationalisation of the University, (See more information)

• Any other activities

Community Leadership and Service

• Sustained service to the discipline/professional at local, state, national or international levels.

  Outline any involvement in professional and/or learned societies, service on state, national or international bodies, development of collaborative relationships with industry and other organisations, honorary professional work, etc. (See more information)

• Community service through teaching.

  Describe any involvement in continuing education programmes, in-service education and international education. (See more information)

• Community service through the sharing of academic expertise ⁽⁴⁾.

  Describe any contribution to public debates and communicating scholarship to the wider public. As well as service on public boards and committees. (See more information)

• Any other activities

Supporting documentation for academic citizenship, professional and community leadership could include the following:

• Public recognition and awards (refer to CV).

  You may wish to include letters of special invitation or commendation relating to your service contributions, statements from expert peers, community, government or industry partners and evidence of the outcome and quality of your involvement.

• Invitations to public Boards and Committees.
• Invitations to executive roles in professional associations.
• Number and quality of international linkages ⁽³⁾
• Any other feedback

For further detail of supporting documentation refer to the service criteria under academic promotion.

(4) Staff in the Faculty of Life and Physical Sciences are asked to identify/describe their international linkages through the International Linkages Database Service (ILDS) at www.science.uwa.edu/au/ilds. This will be used by supervisors as direct supporting documentation.

This folio is limited to five pages.

Frequentlly Asked Questions on the Academic Portfolio