Carnegie Mellon University
Teaching Portfolios

Teaching Portfolios

Documentation by the department

We keep teaching files on all graduate students: the courses graded, TAed, or lectured, evaluations by students if they are available, comments from instructors, and any extra efforts made to improve teaching, e.g., seminars attended at the Eberly Center for Teaching Excellence, or teaching awards, etc.

In addition to the portfolios kept by the Philosophy Department, the Eberly Center offers a documentation of Teaching Development program. More information is available on the web: http://www.eberly.cmu.edu/services/graduate-students.

Especially for those interested in getting a job at an institution where teaching is a high priority, this sort of systematic record of teaching experience is very important.

Documentation for dossier

A concise documentation of teaching activity should be included in every student’s dossier.

This documentation should include:

  • A statement of teaching philosophy and interests
  • Summaries of teaching evaluations
  • At least one letter of recommendation from a faculty member pertaining directly to teaching
  • Documentation from the Eberly Center (if applicable)
  • A section on your CV of courses you have taught, as well as courses you are prepared to teach

Preparation for interviews

In an interview for an academic position, candidates are often asked about courses they would like to teach, as well as courses they are prepared to teach, should they be hired. In order to be able to speak informatively about these courses, we recommend that students develop the following:

  • Course descriptions and rationales
  • Sample syllabi that include texts, lecture/discussion topics, and homework
  • A concise statement about how your teaching philosophy is refected in your design and implementation of each course