Can I list the projects I worked on through my job on my portfolio?

Question

I'm a web developer looking to update my online portfolio.

Can I list the projects I worked on through my day job onto my portfolio, or should the projects only be projects I found as a freelancer?

This is really a question of how much ownership one has towards the work they do through their employer (whether it's a start-up or a big corporation) without breaching any confidentiality agreement and how much flexibility one has to market themselves & demonstrate their skills to a different company.

Answer 1

Can I list the projects I worked on through my job on my portfolio?

That is the essence of the resume for many people. They not only need to describe their roles and responsibilities in a position, they also want to mention the names of the projects/contracts to show the types of things they have worked on. Of course unknown projects don't have a lot of cache.

Specifically what you can mention, how you mention, and what you can display/demonstrate online in your portfolio are between you, your employer, and their customers. The nature of some projects limits what you can show. Intranet sites are hard to show online to potential employers. It is also hard to freeze and isolate your contributions to an evolving product.

This same dilemma exists regarding your freelance work. Some customers may not want you to include their product as a reference. If they let you list/display it, then do so. If they don't let you, then just describe it or include it in your general comments.