Portfolio creation management system and method

#The present invention relates generally to the field of electronic data systems. The present invention relates more specifically to the field of electronic career portfolio creation and management systems.

#Students, job seekers, and other individuals may wish to present biographical information about themselves to third parties. For example, a student seeking an employment interview with a particular company may wish to provide the company with a resume, a cover letter, a writing sample, references, or other information. The student may also wish to provide other information related to particular accomplishments or experiences that may be particularly relevant to the employer either in summary form or in more extensive fashion. The sum of the biographical information provided by the student represents that student's personal portfolio, which may be intended by the student to serve any of a number of purposes.

#Because an individual may have a variety of reasons for preparing a personal portfolio, the individual may wish to customize the portfolio for a particular purpose. Continuing the above example, the student may be seeking a job with an investment banking firm, applying for graduate school, and supplying still life photographs taken by the student to a magazine for publication, just to name a few possibilities. For each of these endeavors, the student may wish to emphasize different biographical information. The investment banking firm may not be interested in art classes the student took while an undergraduate, while an internship at the New York Stock Exchange may not be particularly relevant as far as the magazine is concerned. Tailoring the portfolio to its intended recipient may thus be critical to the success or failure of the student in a particular situation.

#The invention will become more fully understood from the following detailed description, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, wherein like reference numerals refer to like elements, in which:

#FIG. 1 is a schematic view of a portfolio creation and management system according to an exemplary embodiment;

#FIG. 2 is a diagrammatic representation of a home page included in a portfolio module according to an exemplary embodiment;

#Referring to FIG. 1, a portfolio creation and management system 100 is shown according to an exemplary embodiment. One or more user computers or computing devices 110 and one or more third party or referred user computers or computing devices 140 are in electronic communication with a server or server computer 120. In an exemplary embodiment, a user such as a student, job applicant, employee, or the like may access a personal portfolio module 124 with user computer 110. The user may then create and/or modify individual portfolios that may include any of a variety of portfolio information relating to the user's experiences, accomplishments, and the like. A third party or referred user, such as a potential employer, school administrator, or the like, may also access portfolio creation and management system 100 to review portfolios created by one or more users.

#As used throughout the following description, the terms “communicate” and “in communication with” refer to the transfer of electronic information or data between electronic devices such as user computer 110, server 120, and third party computer 140. This communication may occur over a wired or wireless connection, and may include transmission across a computer network, such as a local area network (LAN), wide area network (WAN), the Internet, an Intranet, or the like. Each of the connections between the various electronic devices may be referred to as an “electronic connection,” or a connection over which electronic information may be transferred.

#As shown in the exemplary embodiment of FIG. 1, user computer 110 is a personal or general purpose computer. User computer 110 may include input devices such as a keyboard 112 and a mouse 113. A monitor or display 114 is provided to allow a user to view information presented thereon. Display 114 may be any type of display device, including a cathode ray tube (CRT) type monitor, a liquid crystal display (LCD), a plasma display, and the like. In alternative embodiments, the user computer may include any of a variety of input devices, including a microphone, roller ball, touch pad, light pen, or other device designed for inputting information into the user computer. Additionally, user computer 110 may be any of a variety of different types of computing devices. For example, the user computer may be a desktop computer, laptop or notebook computer, hand held computer, personal digital assistant, or the like.