There is a department page on the humanities portfolio located here. But there are some other things you should know about the portfolio.
1. The portfolio is a one credit course that a student completes in the final semester in the humanities program at UCF. Its purpose is to collect the best work over the student's career, in several specified areas of the humanities, and improve that work. The course does not have a specific meeting time (that is arranged by the director and the student).
You must register for this course like any other course. A time for the course may be listed when you go to sign up, but you can ignore that. You will need an override for the course, which can be obtained from me, Bruce Janz, during the year (for contact info see the bottom of this page), or in the summer from the chair of the department, Dr. Shaun Gallagher.
NOTE: If you miss the registration deadline at the beginning of term, you will not be able to graduate, and you will have to complete this requirement in a subsequent term.
2. It is very important that you meet with the director of the course (normally Dr. Bruce Janz, except during the summer term) within the first couple of weeks of the term. You will not need your papers at that point, but you will need to identify which ones you intend to use. We will work together on those papers over the term, so that they are up to the proper standard. That standard includes both form and content. We will pay particular attention to the level of writing, including the ability to produce coherent and well formed sentences and paragraphs. The writing needs to be well organized, with a clear statement of purpose and a logical development. The papers must exhibit an appropriately strong command of the English language. As for content, the papers must demonstrate that the student understands the concepts and objects of inquiry relevant in the paper. The papers must demonstrate a command of the relevant literature, and the ability to critically interact with it.
3. The point of the portfolio is to raise the level of your work. Expect that you will have to do revisions on your papers during the term. You can minimize the number of revisions by paying attention to the following:
a. Make sure that the papers are correct as far as grammar, spelling, sentence structure, and clear idiomatic use of language is concerned. These papers should come to the director with those basic corrections having already been made.
b. Look at your list of citations - are they properly formed? If you are not sure, look up the MLA guide, or a guide for whatever style you used.
c. Have you clearly stated your thesis or point at the beginning of the paper? Does everything in the paper support or contribute to that point?
d. Have you cited your sources? Are there claims in the text that require support?
e. Does your paper read clearly? Would an intelligent non-specialist understand what you are trying to say?
It is very important that your work is at the level of a graduating senior. WE WILL NOT ALLOW STUDENTS TO GRADUATE WHO CANNOT SUBMIT A SATISFACTORY PORTFOLIO. Students who are too late in submitting their portfolio, or who are unable to bring it to a proper level in time, will have an incomplete entered and be required to finish the portfolio in the next term.
Please note that there is another exit requirement for Humanities majors (including both Honors in the major students and regular students), and that is an exit exam. Please contact the department about this.
1. "How do I register for the course? And, the time listed on the computer conflicts with something else I have. What do I do?"
You will need to get an override from the chair of the department, Dr. Shaun Gallagher. The time on the computer shouldn't matter, since this course is arranged between the student and the director. There is no specific time for it. An override should take care of that.
2. "Can I do the portfolio course in the summer?"
Yes, you can. Contact the chair of the department for details on that.
3. "Do we meet every week, and do we meet on the day that the academic calendar shows for this class?"
No, we don't meet every week, and the class does not meet at the time that the calendar shows. The course just consists of the revisions of your papers, and their assembly into a portfolio. We meet at the beginning of term, at a time we arrange (so, email me early). Then, we only meet if there is some reason to talk about your papers.
4. "Why do you want all these revisions? I got an A on this paper from Professor X."
The purpose of portfolio papers is different from course papers. In the portfolio we are looking for overall quality of argument and a high level of writing. A paper for a course will have purposes internal to the course itself. So, a professor might decide that your work meets those internal purposes, but the portfolio committee might decide for other reasons that the paper needs revision.
5. "I forgot to register for the portfolio course, and now it is the last month of the term. Can I register now?"
No. A late registration like this undermines the whole point of the portfolio, which is to work on the papers. You can register for next term, and begin thinking about the portfolio papers now.
6. "Why do we have to do a portfolio, anyway? We already had these papers graded in a class."
The portfolio ensures that our graduates have a basic set of skills. We don't want graduates from our program going into their first job without the ability to communicate clearly and think critically and carefully. We would hope that this is being learned in all courses, but we need to make sure. As well, the portfolio allows us to assess graduating seniors. We have to submit data from our department to the dean's office on the success our graduates have in meeting the goals the department has set.
7. "Can I use a paper I am writing this term in my portfolio?"
Yes, but I'd suggest doing that paper as early as possible in the term. Something due in the last week of the term isn't really early enough.
8. "Is there a grade for this portfolio course?"
This is a satisfactory/unsatisfactory course, so there is no letter grade submitted. Therefore it does not affect your GPA, but it is a graduation requirement.
9. "What if I don't have a paper from each of the categories that are required for the portfolio?"
That shouldn't happen, since you have several courses to choose from in each category. However, if you really don't have something, please talk to the portfolio director.
10. "I don't have a research paper that I can include. What do I do?"
Really? I find that hard to believe. If it is really true, it's time that you wrote one. See the director about that.
11. "I thought this was going to be easy - just put some papers in a binder, write an introduction, and hand it in. Why isn't it that easy?"
As mentioned, we want students to be able to perform at a particular level upon graduation. We have as much interest in seeing you graduate and succeed as you have in graduating. This isn't just an arbitrary roadblock to graduation, but a chance for you to think about both the skills and the content you have acquired while here. Maybe it isn't as easy as you hoped, but that's not because we are trying to be difficult. We are trying to prepare you to use what you learned.
12. "Can I use papers from the Humanistic Traditions courses?"
No. The papers have to be from the categories outlined on the department page. The HUM Traditions courses are not technically part of the humanities program, but are like prerequisites for it. They are first year classes, and so not at the level of the courses in the program.
13. "Can I just give you 10 or 12 of my papers, and have you pick the best ones?"
Definitely not. I don't want to see more papers than what you plan on including in the portfolio. That means you have to exercise some judgment.
14. "When is the portfolio due?"
The department instruction page says that the due date for the papers is one month before the last day of classes. That is the date by which the papers must be ready to be distributed to the committee members. Three people read your papers - the director and two others. The director works with you, while the others read the papers to make sure that the form and content are up to the proper standard. Let me repeat: the papers must be in distributable form (i.e., with the introduction, in a white binder, properly organized and paginated, and having been discussed with the portfolio director) one month before the end of term. That means that you have to start much earlier to discuss this with the portfolio director, because he or she will certainly have suggestions for revisions. The papers should pass the first test by one month before the end of term, which is that the portfolio director is willing to let others look at the papers. Then, if the readers request changes, those can be done in the final month of term.
15. "Why didn't I learn how to write like this earlier?"
Well, maybe you did. Or maybe not, and if not, you might go back to your earlier professors and ask. But in our opinion, better late than never.
16. "Is this the only exit requirement for the department?"
Actually, no. We also ask all graduates to write an exit exam. This exam is 1 1/2 hours in length, and tests your overall knowledge of humanities concepts and methods. You should write this in the last few weeks of your final term in your program. You will need to call the department, at 407-823-2273 to set up a time to come in and write the exam. This exam does not become part of your GPA in any way, but is important to help us gauge your level of knowledge as you graduate.
17. "The new humanities program (beginning in the fall of 2005) will have a senior research seminar (HUM 4933) instead of a portfolio course. Will you let me take that course instead of the portfolio, even if I'm still on an earlier catalogue? And what if I'm on the new program - can I still do a portfolio instead of the research seminar?"
Most likely we would allow you to substitute the senior research seminar (HUM 4933) for the portfolio course, if you are graduating under a catalogue previous to the 2005-06 one. Talk to your humanities advisor about it (currently Bruce Janz). If you are under the new program, we will not allow a substitution back to the portfolio. We are phasing the portfolio requirement out in favor of the research seminar requirement.
Further questions? Contact:
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