Greenville University prepares its students well to enter the workforce. The digital media program at GU does a great job of this by requiring students to design a digital media portfolio during their senior year. Seniors can display an array of different media on the DM Portfolio website. This variety of media includes video, photography, graphic design, audio, programming, and much more.
As stated in the course description, GU believes that by taking this course, students will be better prepared for entry into the job market or graduate school: “This course will give the student a chance to demonstrate talent in the area of digital content. Each portfolio will include interactive design (including visual, navigation, and information design), creative arts, and various projects with technical merit. The student will demonstrate the level of expertise that has been gained from Digital Media courses, such as Graphic Design, Web Design, Computer Programming, Digital Video, Digital Photography, Digital Multimedia, and Studio Recording. This portfolio is intended to prepare students for entry into the job market or graduate school.”
Upon browsing the DM Portfolio website, one can venture through semesters of student portfolios. There is a list of all the seniors who completed portfolios for a specific semester, with each individual’s portfolio website hyperlinked to their name. Once clicking on a senior’s name, one can peruse through their amazing artwork on a website created by the senior themself.
Reaghan Lesh, a current DM senior, stated, “We make our websites through WordPress. This is an opportunity to make the website cohesive with your work and brand yourself”. Lesh is enrolled in the Digital Media Portfolio course (DMDA 401) this semester. She is at the beginning stages of her portfolio. She will be working on her portfolio week by week, gathering and organizing her projects, and putting them together on the website. Each senior is required to have four categories of media within their portfolio. As of right now, her collection will include photography, videography, graphic design, and animation, comprised of work she has done in school and outside of school. Lesh has added content to her portfolio over the years by getting involved in things to utilize her digital media skills.
“Something that helped me prepare was getting involved in things where I could use my digital media skills. I was on GSGA as the VP of media and communications for two years, and I also had some internships that helped me produce a lot of content for my portfolio,” stated Lesh.
As the end of the semester nears, the seniors will start to advertise their portfolios around campus using posters and other forms of media. Reaghan Lesh, along with the other Greenville digital media seniors, will have a chance to show off their artwork and get a jumpstart into their careers with a DM portfolio showcase later in the year.
Writing by Desirae Yost, Adam Fike, Yutong Nan, and Isaac Green.
