“How do you get experience in the field so you can get your first ID job?” That’s a recurring questions I hear from those trying to start their instructional design careers.

It feels like a catch-22: you can’t get any experience until you get a job, and you can’t get a job without experience. People who built portfolios as part of a masters or graduate certificate program are generally in a better position, but they may need experience too.

But what about teachers, trainers, or technical writers who are learning on their own and want to demonstrate how their existing skills can transfer to ID? If you’re someone looking to transition from another field into instructional design, what do you create for your portfolio to prove your skills?

The job market for IDs is rough right now. Good opportunities do exist, but the competition can be intense. That’s especially true for people who are new to the field. Having experience, especially the kind that helps build your portfolio and talk about working on real projects, can help set you apart in a crowded field of applicants.

Volunteer work

One common recommendation is look for volunteer work to get some instructional design experience before getting your first job. Working with a nonprofit organization whose cause you care about is a win-win for everyone. You get some experience and a project for your portfolio; a nonprofit gets some free content to further their cause.

Local historical societies or museums may be interested in your volunteer work. Open source projects often need training and documentation for their applications. Many nonprofits need help creating onboarding materials for their volunteers.

VolunteerMatch lets you search for volunteer opportunities. There isn’t much for elearning or training, but you can search for virtual opportunities and may find something relevant.

Nonprofits with ongoing L&D needs

Several nonprofits have ongoing opportunities and needs for instructional designers and other L&D professionals. These programs may change over time, but the list below is current as of the date of publication (August 2024).

The Rumie Initiative is a nonprofit that develops microlearning on a variety of topics. Their volunteer program is designed specifically for people transitioning and new to the field.

KeelWorks is a nonprofit that provides support and training for unemployed and underemployed people.

CrowdDoing has service learning opportunities for both Junior Instructional Designers and Senior Instructional Designers. Obviously, if you’re transitioning to the field, the Junior ID role is the better fit. The Senior ID volunteer role might be a good option for someone with experience who is currently between jobs.

Portfolio building

For instructional design and elearning jobs in workplace training, portfolios are significantly important. A candidate with a great portfolio but no experience may get hired over a candidate with more experience but no portfolio. If you’re finding it hard to find a job in this market, work on your portfolio.

Your portfolio doesn’t have to contain only real projects for real clients though. You can create samples on your own. I have 30+ ideas for elearning portfolio samples that don’t require much specialized knowledge (or can easily be researched online).

The weekly E-Learning Heroes Challenges are a good place for inspiration and portfolio samples. Sharing your work in that community can also earn recognition from your peers and connections with employers.

You could also use AI to act like a SME on a subject and help create content for a portfolio. I recommend that approach with some caution, since ChatGPT and other LLMs hallucinate and provide inaccurate content sometimes. If you note that you used AI for a sample rather than working with a SME, I think that would be acceptable. The quality of the samples are more important than the source of the content.

Apply to jobs anyway

One other note: If you meet all the requirements of a job opening except for the years of experience, go ahead and apply anyway. A solid portfolio will show your skills, even if you don’t have the preferred experience. That’s especially true for your first job.

Job openings generally describe an ideal candidate. Sometimes, it’s a completely unrealistic wish list. When employers can’t find the purple squirrels they ask for, they usually become more flexible and hire someone who is a partial match.

In fact, one company analyzed thousands of job postings and resumes. They found that people who met only 50% of the job requirements were just as likely to get an interview as people who met 90% of the requirements. There are reasons to be skeptical of their exact numbers (it’s a single company’s database, they don’t share their algorithms, and there’s some weirdness in the data), but the general point seems solid. It’s OK to apply to jobs that are a little of a stretch, especially if you think you can learn to do everything required (even if you can’t do it all today).

Your suggestions?

If you recently became an instructional designer, especially if you switched from another field, how did you prove your skills? If you hire instructional designers, what kind of work from candidates has impressed you? Do you know of any organizations looking for volunteers?

Originally published 1/11/2011. Updated 12/10/2019, 9/9/2020, 8/10/2024.

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