30-minute Portfolio Review

Wondering if your portfolio is ready to submit? Are you looking for expert feedback and don’t know where to turn? We can help!

Getting a portfolio review for your art portfolio is one of the most effective ways to grow as an artist— it is so helpful to have independent and professional guidance when preparing your college applications.

What is a portfolio review?

In general, during a portfolio review you have a short time (15-30 minutes) to speak about a selection of images of your work. Often, the reviewer is trying to understand your personal voice, your talents and individuality. You will often discuss your work you wish to highlight and be ready to respond to questions about the work. Sometimes, reviewers will want a few minutes to look through the work before discussing. Then, they will give you feedback on the quantity and quality of the work, what you can do to improve the overall portfolio and if you are missing any critical elements for the school you are applying to.

For college applications, reviewers are also looking to see that you have carefully edited and selected your work, that it is easy to see the work and it is not cluttered on the page.

Here are several strong reasons why it's worth doing at least one, but preferably lots of reviews :

Objective Feedback

You're probably too close to your work to see it clearly. A review helps you:

• Spot technical weaknesses or inconsistencies

• Understand how your work reads to someone with fresh eyes

• Identify what’s working and what’s not

• See if you are satisfying all of the requirements of the school you are applying to

Improvement & Growth

A portfolio review gives you a clear path to:

• Know what is missing from your portfolio, or what is making it great

• Improve your chances of acceptance at the school by responding to the advice of the reviewer

• Understand if your portfolio is clear and compelling

• Practice speaking about your work in front of strangers

Our Portfolio Review includes:

• A thorough review of your portfolio - we will discuss your projects in detail with you, from conception through material choices and your outcomes.

• Evaluation of the strengths and weaknesses of the portfolio 

• Concrete advice on how to improve it. This includes feedback on the content and variety of the portfolio, the appropriateness of the work to the programs you are applying to, suggestions on how to write the descriptive texts and advice on how to better contextualize the work within an art historical context and contemporary culture.

• Advice on how to improve the sequencing and formatting of images.

This is a thorough review in the style of what a student might receive at a Portfolio Review Day, but with detailed feedback on how to improve the portfolio. It is a great way for you to make sure you are ready for a portfolio review with a college or university or submission.

What should you expect? Register and pay, we will get in touch with a calendar link to schedule your review. You send us your portfolio as well as a list of schools where you are planning on applying and for which program. We will review your materials before we meet and then send you a copy of our feedback after the review is completed.

Students who continue their work with us will have the review cost deducted from their package price.