What is a Portfolio Review?
The School of Visual Communication requires a portfolio review for admission to the program. During your portfolio review, we would like to learn more about your creative process and review examples of creative work you can provide. We use this opportunity to talk with you about your goals to help you make sure this is the right program for you. This is also an opportunity for you to learn about us!
Students who are admissible to the University but do not complete a portfolio or are not selected for admission to the School of Visual Communication after completing a portfolio review will be admitted to University College as an undecided major.
Schedule a Portfolio Review
The School of Visual Communication will hold in-person portfolio reviews during select OHIO Up Close events during the spring semester. Dates for fall 2025 applicants will be available soon!
To schedule a portfolio review during OHIO Up Close, you must be an admitted student who applied to a School of Visual Communication major — commercial photography, multimedia, information graphics/publication design or photojournalism. When you register for OHIO Up Close, you will be prompted to schedule a portfolio review on the OHIO Discovery Day registration form.
Registration coming soon!
Not able to make it to a portfolio review during OHIO Up Close?That's okay! You may also email Marlene Shostak, the School of Visual Communication administrator, at shostakm@ohio.edu to schedule a portfolio review at another time.
Preparing for Your Portfolio Review
Put simply, your portfolio is a collection of examples of your creative work. This is not a critique of your work, so there are no strict guidelines for what to include. It can be in any form you wish (even ceramics), as it's meant simply to give us an idea of your creative process and career goals to help us determine which of our majors best suits you. Your work does not need to be in the major field that you're applying for. We're just looking for something that showcases your creativity!
Past portfolios/examples of work have included these items:
- Photographs
- Work from school newspapers and yearbooks
- Artwork done for classes and workshops
- Posters
- Personal websites
You may choose to share your work through a website(s), a physical portfolio, an external hard drive or a flash drive. If you are brining digital material (such as a USB drive) to an in-person portfolio review, please note that we are an Apple Macintosh-based program and prepare your material for the Apple platform.
Questions?
If you have questions about how to prepare your portfolio, please email the School of Visual Communication.
Ohio University operates on a holistic, selective review and looks for evidence of academic preparation when reviewing applications for admission. Additionally, because the School of Visual Communication considers creative talent in the review process, students pursuing certain academic programs must interview and/or submit additional materials for admission consideration. Ohio University and the School of Visual Communication do not discriminate against any applicants because of race, color, religion, age, national origin, ethnicity, national ancestry, sex, pregnancy, gender, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, military service or veteran status, mental or physical disability, or genetic information.