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Step-by-Step Guide

How It Works

From upload to Job Match, here is the full process step by step.

From upload to action plan in 60 seconds

Portfolio Mentor is the AI-powered portfolio review service used by architecture students, new graduates, and senior practitioners to ship sharper applications. The four-step flow below covers what happens between the moment you upload and the moment your review lands in your dashboard.

You retain ownership of every drawing you upload, we do not train models on your work without an explicit, separate opt-in, we do not publish your portfolio, and we do not share it with third parties. Files are encrypted in transit (TLS 1.3) and at rest (AES-256-GCM), processed in isolated environments, and automatically deleted thirty days after review unless you choose to retain them.

1

Upload Your Portfolio

Takes ~10 seconds

Drag and drop a single PDF (up to 200 MB) or up to 10 individual images. Files are encrypted in transit with TLS 1.3 and at rest with AES-256-GCM the moment they hit our servers, only you can access them from your dashboard, and they auto-delete 30 days after the review unless you mark them for retention.

  • Supported formats: PDF, JPG, PNG, InDesign INDD/IDML
  • TLS 1.3 in transit, AES-256 at rest, 30-day auto-delete
  • No file is ever used to train models without explicit consent
2

Pick Your Candidate Level

Takes ~5 seconds

Calibration matters. A first-year B.Arch student is judged against a different bar than a partner-track senior architect. Picking the right level shifts the rubric weights so the score is meaningful for your stage, choose Student, New Graduate, Mid-Level, or Senior.

  • Student, undergraduate or M.Arch applicant
  • New Graduate, first-job hunt, junior architect role
  • Mid-Level / Senior, 3+ years post-license
3

AI Runs the Review (~3 minutes)

Takes ~2-3 minutes

Multiple models evaluate your portfolio against a 10-criterion rubric calibrated to hiring partners and admissions readers at top global firms and schools. Every score is backed by page citations, never vague, so you know exactly which spread or drawing earned each point.

  • 10-criterion rubric: concept, drawing, layout, curation, fit
  • Hiring-partner calibrated against 15,000+ scored portfolios
  • Page-by-page citations, every comment is grounded
4

Receive Your Report

Delivered instantly

Your review lands in your dashboard with an overall score, a breakdown across all 10 criteria, page-by-page analysis labeled excellent / strong / needs-work / dealbreaker, and a prioritized action list of high / medium / low improvements. Every suggestion is specific, page-cited, and tied to a concrete edit you can finish this weekend.

  • Overall score (0-100), grade, and tier banding
  • Page-by-page analysis with status labels
  • Quick wins (under 1 hour each) and risk flags
5

Iterate, Resubmit, Watch the Score Climb

2-8 weeks of focused work

Make your edits, re-upload, and compare versions side by side. Most users move from their starting score to their target tier in 2-8 weeks of focused, weekend-sized work. Every review is saved to your dashboard so you can track progress over time.

  • Side-by-side version comparison after every iteration
  • Firm and program match recommendations refresh on each run
  • Average score lift after one round of edits: +11 points
6

Match With Firms (Job Match)

Refreshes on every review

Job Match ranks the architecture studios, programs and roles your improved portfolio fits best. We compare it against the public hiring standards, recent project libraries and stated criteria of hundreds of firms across twelve weighted factors, then hand you a ranked shortlist with a match score for each, so you apply where you are genuinely most likely to land.

  • 500+ firm and program profiles, twelve weighted match factors
  • Ranked shortlist with a per-firm match score
  • Match alerts when a firm that fits your profile starts hiring

Ready to Try?

Upload your portfolio now and see results in under 30 seconds. No credit card required.

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