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Detailed Guidelines
> Purpose of Portfolio Examination
> Criteria for Submission of Portfolio
> Incomplete Grades
> Deadline for Submission
> Portfolio Requirements
> Evaluation and Assessment of Portfolio
> Portfolio “Exemplars”
> Advisor/Faculty Role in Portfolio Preparation
> Notification of Students Regarding the Results of Portfolio Assessment
> Procedures Following Notification of Results
Other Materials and Information
> Highlights of Portfolio Evaluation
> Doctoral-Level Courses that Satisfy Program Requirements for the Portfolio
> Portfolio Evaluation Checklist
Purpose of Portfolio Examination
The purpose of the portfolio evaluation is to provide, at an early point in the doctoral program, feedback on the strengths and weaknesses of your work thus far. Use of a portfolio, rather than an examination, has the dual benefits of distributing the assessment period over a longer time frame and of allowing the evaluation to include a range of materials and performances that will be expected of you during your program.
Criteria for Submission of Portfolio
Warner policy requires the submission of a portfolio by students who have met the following criteria:
- Completion (since matriculation) of at least 18 credit hours by September 30, 2009; AND
- Completion of
- ED 506, Concepts and Issues in Social Science Research (formerly Doctoral Research Methods), AND
- One additional doctoral-level course among those identified by their program (see Courses that Satisfy Program Requirements for the Doctoral Portfolio Assessment).
You have met these criteria and therefore are required to submit a portfolio by Tuesday, September 30, 2009. Students who are required to submit a completed portfolio, but do not do so, will be judged to have failed the portfolio evaluation. A doctoral student whose portfolio is not judged passable after two submissions will not be permitted to continue in the doctoral program.
Incomplete Grades
Students who have an Incomplete grade in (1) ED 506 (Concepts and Issues in Social Science Research) or in (2) the one additional doctoral-level course among those specified on the “program requirement list” must complete the coursework for that course(s) prior to submitting a portfolio. Students who do not complete the coursework and receive a grade prior to Wednesday, September 30 will fail the portfolio examination. If you have questions regarding exactly which Incomplete courses must be completed in order to pass the portfolio evaluation, please contact Brenda Grosswirth at 585-275-1009.
Students are strongly encouraged to complete all other Incomplete courses, because grades of Incomplete will be considered as part of the portfolio evaluation.
Deadline for Submission of Portfolio
Your portfolio must be submitted to either Brenda Grosswirth or Claire Urbanowicz in the Office of Student Services (Dewey Hall 2-161) no later than 5 p.m. on Wednesday, September 30, 2009. UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES WILL EXTENSIONS BE GRANTED.
Portfolio Requirements
Your portfolio must include:
- A curriculum vitae or resume.
- A copy of your approved Program of Study. If you have submitted a Program of Study but have not yet received an approved copy of that Program of Study, please do not worry. Your Program of Study will be reviewed, and an approved copy of the Program of Study will be mailed to your home address prior to Wednesday, September 16.
- A narrative statement of no more than four double-spaced, typed pages. In this narrative statement, you should explain how your coursework and other doctoral experiences are integrated into a coherent plan of intellectual growth and scholarship, and you should articulate a cogent plan for continued doctoral study. This personal narrative should provide a context for reading the remainder of the portfolio by making apparent your academic development and scholarly interests. (See Part II of the Portfolio Evaluation Checklist for more detail about the criteria used to evaluate this narrative statement.)
- Two papers that have been submitted for, and evaluated in, Warner School courses, including all comments written by the instructor and the grade for the paper. At least one of these two papers must be single-authored. These papers should be chosen to demonstrate the skills identified in Part III of the Portfolio Evaluation Checklist.
Keep a copy of all the materials that you submit in your portfolio. Materials submitted in the portfolio will not be returned. Portfolio materials are confidential to the Warner School.
In addition, Warner School faculty members will be invited to complete and submit evaluation forms to the Office of Student Services to be added to your portfolio. (These evaluation forms are designed expressly for the portfolio exam, and multiple copies will be given to each Warner faculty member.) In particular, your advisor and the faculty in your program area will be encouraged to complete and submit evaluation forms, as will the instructors of the doctoral seminars and the doctoral research methods courses. If you want instructors from outside the Warner School to submit written evaluations, please ask them to do so on stationery bearing the letterhead of their institution/school/department. Please request that the letters from outside the Warner School be mailed to the Office of Student Services, attn: Portfolio/Assessment, Warner School, Dewey Hall, P.O. Box 270425, University of Rochester, Rochester, NY 14627.
Evaluation and Assessment of Portfolio
Evaluation of the portfolios will be undertaken by the Portfolio Committee, which has been constituted by the faculty and consists of one member from each of the three program areas. The advisor of each student also serves as a non-voting member of the Committee for the evaluation of his/her advisee’s portfolio. For your reference, the written materials in the portfolio will be evaluated according to the Portfolio Evaluation Checklist. The evaluation of the writings and an assessment of the other materials in the portfolio will be incorporated into the overall judgment of the portfolio.
It is important to underscore that the Portfolio Committee will assess each student with a view to the future based in part on past performance. The Committee is responsible for deciding whether each doctoral student shows promise to develop a breadth of knowledge about a specific research focus that is needed for successful completion of a dissertation. The Committee will be looking for evidence to identify a coherence between interests, program of study, motives, and scholarly work produced thus far.
There have been instances when the Committee did not “pass” a portfolio, even though the two course papers included in the portfolio were given grades of “B” or higher by other Warner faculty. Producing a passing paper for a specific course assignment does not necessarily mean that such a paper meets the criteria articulated in Part III of the Portfolio Evaluation Checklist or that the student will be successful in the advanced portion of doctoral work. Students therefore are encouraged to check their two papers for appropriateness and also to use their personal statements to
make clear the coherence described in the paragraph above. Students should reflect on their “intellectual trajectory and scholarly direction” and focus on their plans to achieve their research goals. Discussing a concept for a dissertation topic and demonstrating academic curiosity will help provide evidence of future academic promise.
Portfolio “Exemplars””: An appointment is required!
Students may review (not photo-copy) “exemplars” from past portfolio submissions in the Office of Student Services. In order to review these exemplars, you must schedule an appointment with Claire Urbanowicz. Do not “stop by” the Office of Student Services to view the exemplars; you must have an appointment. Claire can be contacted at 585-273-2927 between 9 a.m. and 1 p.m., Monday through Friday; or you can contact her via E-mail at curbanowicz@warner.rochester.edu. Scheduling appointment times enables the Office of Student Services to give each student sufficient time for reviewing the exemplars and to reserve a room.
Advisor/Faculty Role in Portfolio Preparation
It is recommended that you speak with your advisor about preparing your portfolio and personal narrative. However, advisors or other faculty members should not be asked to review drafts or final versions of your personal narrative.
Notification of Students Regarding the Results of Portfolio Assessment
Upon evaluating the completed portfolios, the Committee will write a letter to each student informing him or her of the decision of “pass” or “no pass” and their reasons for this decision. A copy of this letter will be sent to the advisor, the Program Chair, and the Associate Dean for inclusion in the student’s file. Students will be notified of the results of their portfolio assessment by Monday, November 23. The assessment letter will be mailed to each student’s home address.
Procedures Following Notification of Results
Students who pass the portfolio are expected to meet with their advisor to receive further feedback about the portfolio’s contents and the Portfolio Committee’s assessment. Students whose portfolios are not passed will receive specific feedback in the Committee’s letter about what steps should be taken to improve portfolios for the second submission in September 2010. Of course, students in this category should also meet with their advisor to discuss this feedback.
I realize that submitting the portfolio may appear somewhat imposing to some doctoral students, but I am confident that it will provide a valuable means both for reflecting upon your doctoral studies at this point and for giving greater direction to your future work.
Please contact the Office of Student Services at 585-275-1009 if you have questions about this letter or any other issue concerning the portfolio.
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