There's 3 types of portfolios a game artist could have: Portfolio for college, used to apply to a college. A school has different needs and wants from it's students than a studio. The minute you get into college you will be working towards a professional portfolio, most of your student work won't hit the quality bar needed…
Getting an interview is 90% due to portfolio quality. Every time. We will always choose a hot portfolio over a middling portfolio with experience. The interview is where we drill down into problem-solving skills, skillset, personality, etc. But without the portfolio they never get to that point. Art is fairly egalitarian…