How to tailor a graphic designer resume to the job
Graphic design posts usually ask for a portfolio and a list of tools. Your resume's job is to say what you designed, for whom and in what formats, so the right work gets looked at.
What graphic designer posts usually ask for
Not every post asks for all of these, and the order changes. Check which ones the post you're applying to lists first or repeats.
- Adobe Creative Cloud. Illustrator, Photoshop, InDesign. Name the ones you use. Figma increasingly too.
- Brand work. Logos, guidelines, keeping a brand consistent.
- Formats. Print, digital, social, packaging, motion. Say which, since posts often name one.
- Deadlines and volume. In-house roles want to know you can handle many requests.
- Working with marketing or clients. Who you took briefs from.
What to put first
Lead with work in the format the post names. For a packaging role, your packaging projects go first even if your social work is more recent.
A tailored line, before and after
Before: Designed marketing materials for the company. Social posts, flyers and some packaging.
After: Designed packaging for 14 products and the brand's social and print campaigns, working from briefs by the marketing team.
The 14 products came from the person's portfolio list. The rewrite leads with packaging because that's what this post was for. This is an invented example.
Gaps, and how to handle them honestly
- Motion or video. If you've done some, say how much. If not, don't add it.
- A tool you don't use. Name the tool you use for the same job. Many posts accept close equivalents.
Posts often list more than the job needs. If you clearly show most of the main requirements, it's usually worth applying.
Wording that often appears in these posts
Use these where they describe what you've actually done, in sentences about that work. A list of terms you can't back up reads badly to recruiters, and they ask about every line in an interview.
Adobe Creative CloudIllustratorPhotoshopInDesignFigmabrand guidelinestypographylayoutprint productionsocial media assets
Tailor yours to a real post
Paste the post you're applying to, and cvagent.ai lists what it asks for, marks which of those your resume shows, and rewrites your resume for it using only what's in your resume. Every change is shown next to your original, and anything it can't trace back to your resume is flagged. Or start with the free resume check, which needs no account and saves nothing.