Advice for portfolio defenders...

If I were to give any advice to someone that is going to defend a portfolio, or any starting master's student that has a portfolio option, I would say to become a packrat. Stash away every email and paper that was returned to you. However, the biggest piece of advice is to blog. It would seem blogging does two things. The first is that it moves your thoughts out into an area that you can read and correct. It puts them into a coherent (usually) format that lets you contemplate and evaluate your responses to different areas in your school work. This is valuable later when you are attempting to put together your portfolio to show your growth in the program. The second thing it does is force you to put those ideas into a manner better consumed by the public. Personal journalling may express the thoughts and emotions, but a blog makes you think about how to phrase what you are thinking and feeling differently since the person you are talking about may have access to your blog. (Maybe the second half just applies to me. I've read many blogs that go ripping into someone else, come to think of it.) The point is to have a coherent reflection of your experiences in the program. They will really show their value at the end of your program when you are trying to remember how you felt that first semester as opposed to now. If you chose not to do the portfolio at a later time, you still would not have wasted your time putting your thoughts and feelings into words as you work toward your degree.