Professionals seeking a job in the design industry require good creativity and an understanding of aesthetics.
But because job postings in this space are competitive, it’s important to stand out.
The question is, how?
You’ll need to sum up your professional background and mention the essential skills on your application to present yourself as the best applicant on the list.
With the 7 design resumes in this article, we’ll look at what makes each of these examples work so you can seize your next career opportunity.
We’re trusted by over 850,000 job seekers and have helped candidates get their foot in the door for big companies including Amazon, Facebook, and Spotify. Our templates that we’re about to go through are all proven to overcome the resume scanners and get applicants hired.
“The entire experience is focused on the user, and it helped me craft the resume that ultimately landed me 5+ interviews, a few offers, and one full-time job!” - Ryann.G
Another option to speed up the job search is to get started with Rezi’s online resume builder!
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Do Graphic Designers Need a Resume?
As job seekers, you need to sell your value and skills to your prospective employers. That being said, most job opportunities require a resume so the company can assess your professional background which mainly includes:
- Work experience
- Education
- Skills
There may be exceptions where resumes aren’t always necessary for the job application process, e.g. freelance opportunities. In these cases, it’s good to have a portfolio to show to your potential client.
Even so, everyone in the workforce should have a resume ready.
What Should a Design Resume Include?
Some of the main attributes of a skilled designer include:
- Active listening
- Creativity
- Curious
- Open-minded
- Communication
Some things about the resume itself won’t change and are still the same. For example, the following sections will apply:
- Contact details
- Work experience
- Education
- Skills
If you have a website URL that contains your portfolio or published pieces of work, include this in your resume header.
For aspiring designers, it’s key to translate your professional values into a hirable job document. Don’t forget to check the company’s job description too and match the requirements to beat the applicant tracking system (ATS).
Looking for a UX/UI job right now? Here's a job board created specifically for UX and UI jobs, make sure to check it out: UI UX Designer Jobs board.
7 ATS Design Resume Examples
Each of the design resumes listed is optimized for bypassing the resume scanners.
You’ll find the ats resume format is professional and minimal. None of them are extravagant or over the top, yet it’s more than enough to get the job done. To stand out, some have made subtle differences in their application – more on that later.
Animator Resume
The animator resume has a simple layout and only uses one additional resume section, being the certifications. While the design is minimal, it doesn’t mean it’s not a good resume.
What matters more is the content written and the value portrayed, not the appearance. If recruiters can identify key points easier, they’re more likely to be impressed when skimming through your application.
For this position though, candidates will usually have gone to university and achieved a relevant bachelor’s degree.
Creative Producer Resume (Interviewed at Tesla)
The creative producer resume template above was used by a candidate who managed to land an interview with Tesla.
Despite not having years of experience in the corporate environment, it doesn’t mean they’re an unqualified applicant. This is a great example of sticking to your strengths. In this case, it’s the candidate’s projects and skills.
Even before that, the resume summary section is also effective. It outlines a brief overview of their professional background in specific areas, e.g. a successful collaborator with multi-disciplinary teams, artists, and personalities.
As the resume skills narrow down to the specifics, it’s effective for showcasing their abilities to prospective employers.
Graphic Designer Resume
This graphic designer resume sample is a popular career path for many designers in the industry.
One thing they’ve done well here is the what to write in a resume for work experience section as it’s written in the active voice and highlights the duties and responsibilities in previous positions. From this, the candidate’s competence shows for itself.
As you start to list your work experience, don’t forget to do so in reverse chronological order. This makes the progression of your career transparent and shows the most up-to-date details.
Like the previous example, the skills section has been narrowed down to specific areas, e.g. technical skills and industry knowledge.
Product Designer Resume
In the product designer resume template, notice how clear the companies are outlined in the experience section.
When skimming through the application, the resume summary states the candidate’s corporate objective.
At first glance, the reader will notice some of their strengths and career highlights, i.e. working at reputable companies:
- Salesforce
- Noom
- Duolingo
To further reinforce this, the description puts emphasis on the applicant’s ability by the use of action words (be wary of using any of the weak action verbs resume).
Another thing to point out is how they’ve made a subtle difference with the phrasing of their skills section header.
Startup Founder Resume
With the startup founder resume, the areas of expertise and knowledge have been outlined throughout their work history.
To personalize the resume, an extra section has been added, i.e. consultancy.
Hiring managers can see the work ethic and passion of the candidate based on their resume objectives. As the last sentence makes it clear what they’re seeking, it saves the reader’s time and gets them engaged.
When describing your work experiences, try to include the following:
- Data
- Hard numbers
- Results/accomplishments
Combined with non-generic trigger words, it makes the section twice more impactful. That being said, avoid using any of the top 30 resume buzzwords to avoid.
UX Designer Resume
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With the UX designer resume, no summary section has been included. Only the things that are more necessary and relevant should be used.
With that in mind, the candidate incorporated one additional resume section, i.e. training.
While the resume is simple, it’s effective. Nothing too fancy or artistic, but it gets the job done and is much easier to read through than having a decorative job application. Which may come across as unprofessional.
Web Designer Resume
Finally, the web designer resume has a clear format that outlines key details using bullet points.
In all resumes and job applications, we suggest using a sans-serif font. Using ats friendly fonts in this category makes your application appear more modern.
When sentences are only one line long, it’s easier to read through. Most of the time, this is how your recruiters and hiring managers will be reviewing your resume.
One thing on this resume that can drive the reader’s interest as well is the relevant coursework and training section. That’s because it adds to their level of knowledge and academic background.
Don’t underestimate adding other resume sections as these can show the hiring manager what makes you unique as a professional.
More ATS Resumes From Rezi
There are more winning ATS resume templates across multiple industries in our list. To be precise, 313 resume and cover letter ready-to-use templates.
We continue to put out more powerful examples that are free and easy to access for professionals at all levels including:
- Students
- Graduates
- Entry-level
- Associate
- Managers
- Chief Executive
Is a Creative Resume Better?
While it’s good to show your creativity, one of the best approaches is to do it subtly.
It’s better to have a basic yet compelling resume that gets the job done rather than a decorated resume that doesn’t show much to your employers. For example, using the space strategically and sticking to colors black and white. If you’re not careful and the color doesn’t fit in, it can look unprofessional.
When it comes to a resume, making subtle distinctions and keeping the ATS format concise is more efficient. This is something hiring teams are going to value.
Aside from the design, you can demonstrate your innovative ability in your resume writing, e.g. how you use resume keywords and adjusting certain parts of your resume. Overall, focus on your strengths and highlight the things that make you uniquely qualified for the role.
Final Piece of Advice
You might feel the need to take a more bold approach with your resume layout and design to stand out.
But, you’re better off sticking to a minimal approach.
That means keeping your application as short as possible and making it easier to scan through for the hiring team. With this strategy, it’s faster to identify the key points on your CV.
So as you write up your next or current resume, ask yourself if what you’re including is:
- Necessary
- Relevant and
- Helpful
If you’re struggling to cut down your resume in size and trying to figure out how to show recruiters you’re uniquely qualified, try using Rezi. It’s more difficult to manage the format on a standard Word document. On the other hand, we offer AI tools and elements that are designed to help you present yourself as the best candidate.
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