In this assignment, you will adapt the work you did in assignments 1 and 2 for presenting it in a new context and by doing this, engage in what is known as multimodal composition. To this end, you will build a visually appealing and user-friendly personal website, on which you will creatively showcase your semester-long research.
This assignment has a real-world application, as you will be able to include the link to your website in your resume for employers to view when considering you for jobs and internships. Creating this website can open up tremendous professional opportunities for you; see for example this blogger who became a Wall Street fund manager thanks to his blog.
The blog page of the website you design for this assignment gives your readers the opportunity to learn about the various projects you completed for various classes, internships, and jobs, or other relevant posts. This website, if you choose to use it after this class, can help you get the job of your dreams if you tailor your blog posts to that kind of job. While it might seem intimidating, designing this website is really quite simple. Here are some successful student examples that former students designed in a Writing II course: 1. Example 1; Example 2; Example 3; Example 4; Example 5; and Example 6.
Sample Writing Scenario: One way to stand out among a qualified pool of applicants for a job or internship is to maintain your own personal website and blog. You are asked to imagine that you are designing this website to help you apply for an important internship. Having a simple website with a welcome message and professional photo, a resume, a blog page, and a contact information page will also showcase your ability to write using multiple genres, media and modes of communication. Design your website as if you are showing it at a job fair to potential future employers.
Requirements: You are required to use Blogs@Baruch to design a visually appealing personal website. The website should include at least a home page, a resume page, a blog page (see details below), and a contact page. Under Site Address when creating the website in Blogs@Baruch, enter your name (ex. blogs.baruch.cuny.edu/susansmith). Here are more details about specific assignment requirements:
- General site specifications: Your website should contain a minimum of five webpages: a Home page or an About page, a Resume page, a Blog, and a Contact Page. The whole website should contain about 1800 words.
- General site design: It has been suggested that you start out by using the theme Mon Cahier. We will discuss themes in class and agree together on what our theme policy should be.
- The Home Page/About Page: This should include a welcome message indicating what the reader should expect from your website and a brief bio. If you choose, you can include a professional photo of yourself on this page.
- The Resume Page: This is a one-page resume for your website. Your resume should also be downloadable as a PDF (I’ll show you how to do this). You are encouraged to include skills you learn from this class in your resume, such as how to design a website. Here’s a Resume Writing Guide in case you don’t already have a resume or want to revise the resume you do have.
- The Blog Page: For your blog page, you have several options. Using personal stories and/or research you conducted this semester, choose one of the following options:
- Classic Blog Post: Write a 500-word blog post in which you adapt your research to a new audience (professional colleagues, job recruiters, etc) and for a new purpose (networking, showcasing your skills, obtaining a job, etc). Include relevant links, images, and videos following the Buzzfeed Style Guide for web writing. You will still write about the same topic and make the same argument, but you will present it as part of this website dedicated to showcasing your communication skills, professional skills, and other skills relevant to branding yourself as an educated professional.
- Video Blog Post: Create and publish a 1-3 minute video in the form of an interview, a news report, or another format you may prefer. Here are a couple of examples of what your video might look like: 1. Shari Davis on the Participatory Budget Project; 2. Monsters University and Disability by The Sin Squad
- Podcast Blog Post: Create and publish a 3-5 minute podcast in the form of an interview, a news report, or another format you may prefer. This is an example of what your podcast might sound like: Frankenstein: Our Dark Mirror
- Report Blog Post: Turn your academic research paper into a 500-word professional report. Your paper should be written following this model: Student Writing Sample, but it does not have to be this long. Upload it to your blog page as a PDF link (ask me how to do this if you’re not sure), and include a 100 word passage in which you explain to the reader of your website why you’re sharing it (e.g. you hope it will highlight your business written communication skills). Do not fall into the trap of modeling your paper closely after the student writing sample. The sample is just to give you a a general idea of expectations and organization format, but you should be creative with your own assignment. Your report should include the following: Transmittal letter; a cover page with the same format as the long report in the sample; able of contents; list of at least 2 figures (pie or other charts, infographic, image, table, etc); an abstract; an introduction (including background, problem, purpose, and scope); discussion (include headings for main themes; organize the themes logically); a list of recommendations (these form your solution); list of references.
- Contact Page: You are asked to create a page showing Baruch on a Google Map, and encouraging readers to contact you about your blog information, qualifications, or with other questions. Do not include personal phone numbers or addresses on this page. You can include your email address and if you do, you may want to write your email address in such a way that web scraping bots will not recognize it as an email address (for example, see how I wrote my email address on the Contact Lecturer page of this course website). We will also discuss other different ways readers could contact you (a contact form is a possibility, but if we want to use contact forms we will need to request a plugin for this).
- Note on Privacy: As you build your site, you should make it visible only to registered users of your site (you will need to invite your professor and classmates to register as site users). When your site is ready to be viewed by a wider audience, you will publish it as a public website. Alternatively, you can choose to keep your site private, allowing only the lecturer and your classmates to access your site. You can also choose to make your site public but password protected (this option will only be possible if the College installs a specific plugin we will need but which is not currently available to us on Blogs@Baruch).
Project Objectives: 1. Learn elements of good visual design; 2. Value your personal literacy practices and build confidence in your ability to pursue your academic and professional goals; 3. Develop literacy in the narrative, academic, and professional genres of writing; 4. Develop digital publishing skills; 5. Provide a springboard for the next assignment
Submission and Deadlines: Please see the course Schedule and Deadlines web page under the Course Information heading for draft deadlines. The final draft of the reflection letter must be submitted as a hard copy in class. Drafts 1 and 2 must be available on Google Docs and a link of the Final Draft must be available in Google Drive at the beginning of the class when it’s due.
Grading: Please find information here on: General Grading and Assignment Grading
Keywords: Visual Design; Personal Professional Website Design; Blogging and Storytelling; Resume
Bonus Points: For up to five bonus points, write a 350-word introductory blog post as the first post of your blog. To do this, use rich and descriptive language to describe your journey toward becoming interested in your major. You may also want to use this introductory blog post to tell the reader why you are maintaining the blog (think thoroughly about your rhetorical situation). You could use thematic or chronological organization to tell your story. To maintain your ability to achieve the purpose of using this website as a branding for you as a job seeker, you should not discuss the role of money/salary in your decision because this would undermine your purpose of presenting yourself as a dedicated professional with your audience (e.g. job recruiters). I also highly encourage you to refrain from discussing the role of your parents in requiring you to follow a major because this might make you look like you won’t like your job. Finally, writing that you chose your major because it’s popular can also cause your audience to doubt your commitment to your job/career. Ultimately, having you remember and write about anecdotes from your past in your blog is intended to help you understand your own personal motivation for pursuing a certain career and why this career is meaningful to you. Finding meaning in what you do professionally is highly associated with well-being, and hopefully this blog post supports you in finding meaning and well-being in your studies and future job.