Overview
In the competitive world of graphic design, your portfolio is more than a collection of work—it’s your creative identity and career-defining asset. Whether you’re preparing for your first professional role, looking for freelance opportunities, or preparing for further education, a well-crafted portfolio showcases your creativity, technical expertise, and design process.
This optional course is designed as an elective in the Graphic Design Certificate of Achievement and best taken after you’ve completed all core/required courses. Each required course in the certificate introduces key skills, and this course complements them by helping you reflect on your learning and assemble a dynamic portfolio. You’ll refine past projects, develop a strong personal identity, and craft compelling creative rationales to articulate your design decisions.
With expert guidance, hands-on experience, and industry-standard software, you’ll create both print and digital portfolios that align with professional expectations.
This course is ideal if you:
- need a professional portfolio for job applications, freelance work, or further education
- want to develop a strong personal brand that enhances your professional presence
- are looking to refine and present your work in a way that meets industry standards.
We strongly recommend taking the following courses before registering for this course:
Upon successful completion of this course, you'll be able to:
- discuss the value and purpose of graphic design portfolios, including design approaches, industry standards, and design theory
- discuss industry examples of graphic design portfolios and how to prepare work for a graphic design portfolio
- write effective creative rationales that explain design concepts
- create personal branding collateral in preparation for a career in graphic design
- use typography tools and practices to develop an aesthetically appealing design portfolio
- describe industry practices and how to prepare for a career in graphic design
- use industry software to create and modify complex page layouts to complement and display design work
- create and publish a professional digital portfolio
- present printed and digital portfolios for instructor and peer reviews
- design a complex and compelling design portfolio that showcases your conceptual, creative, and technical skills and communicates your design process.
To request a course outline, contact ConEdAdvising@sait.ca.
Upcoming dates
Select an available section and add it to your cart. When you're ready, proceed to check out to sign into your student account and complete your registration.
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Registration closes seven days before the start date for on-campus, online scheduled, and blended courses, and one day before the start date for online self-paced courses.
After you've completed this course
Upon successful completion of this course, you'll be able to self-print a proof of completion document from your Continuing Education student account.
Costs
Textbook and reading list
Included in the purchase of this course, you'll receive access to online course content in Brightspace (D2L).
Technology
To be successful in this course, you’ll need:
- Access to your own computer or laptop with standard hardware/software requirements
- Functional webcam and microphone
- Internet access.
Before the start of first class, please have Adobe Creative Suite downloaded and installed on your computer. Educational pricing is available, and you can use your SAIT “edu” email address as proof of student status to access the software at a reduced rate.
Financial support
Financial opportunities are available to help pay for your course fees. Learn more about how to reduce your education or training costs with available awards, bursaries, loans and grants, including the Canada Alberta Productivity Grant.
Applicable certificates
This course applies to the following certificate programs:
- Certification type
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Certificate of Achievement
Train your team
Interested in group training opportunities for this course? Tell us about your organization's needs, and one of our training consultants will contact you within one business day.
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SAIT is located on the traditional territories of the Niitsitapi (Blackfoot) and the people of Treaty 7 which includes the Siksika, the Piikani, the Kainai, the Tsuut’ina and the Îyârhe Nakoda of Bearspaw, Chiniki and Goodstoney.
We are situated in an area the Blackfoot tribes traditionally called Moh’kinsstis, where the Bow River meets the Elbow River. We now call it the city of Calgary, which is also home to the Métis Nation of Alberta.