Creating the perfect CV for a graphic designer can feel like a tough task to overcome. There’s so much information to include, like your work history, key skills, and qualifications. How can you make sure that all of this information is in one place, written in a simple and engaging way? 

One of the first things you can do to make the process easy for you is to use our online library of resources. We have an extensive list of CV examples that use tried-and-tested methods to craft CVs that catch the eye of a hiring manager. 

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    Graphic designer CV sample - image plus text CV

    Graphic designer CV example 1

    Kiara Connell

    444 Kingsway
    Manchester M60 3TT
    (555)555-5555
    Kiara.Connell@example.co.uk

    Professional summary

    Highly skilled Graphic Designer with 7 years of experience in creating visually appealing and impactful designs. Proficient in Adobe Creative Suite and experienced in both print and digital media. Strong attention to detail and ability to meet tight deadlines. Excellent communication and collaboration skills.

    Work history

    January 2023 – Current
    ABC Company – London, Graphic Designer

    • Created innovative and eye-catching designs for various marketing materials, including brochures, banners, and signs.
    • Collaborated with clients to understand their design requirements and deliver high-quality designs that met their expectations.
    • Managed multiple design projects simultaneously, ensuring timely completion and adherence to brand guidelines.
    • Worked closely with the marketing team to develop and execute creative concepts for advertising campaigns.

    January 2020 – December 2022
    123 Design Studio – Birmingham, Graphic Design Manager

    • Managed a team of designers and coordinated design projects from start to finish.
    • Developed and implemented design strategies to meet client objectives and enhance brand visibility.
    • Collaborated with clients to understand their design requirements and provided creative solutions that aligned with their brand identity.
    • Conducted regular design reviews and provided feedback to ensure high-quality deliverables and continuous improvement.

    January 2018 – December 2020
    XYZ Agency – Manchester, Senior Graphic Designer

    • Led a team of designers in creating and implementing design solutions for clients across various industries.
    • Developed and maintained brand identities for clients, ensuring consistency across all marketing materials.
    • Collaborated with clients to understand their design needs and provided creative solutions that aligned with their brand image.
    • Managed multiple design projects from concept to completion, ensuring high-quality deliverables and client satisfaction.

    Skills

    • Adobe Creative Suite
    • Print Design
    • Digital Design
    • Brand Identity
    • Typography
    • Layout Design
    • Visual Communication
    • Attention to Detail

    Education

    • 2018, University of London London
      Master of Arts in Graphic Design, Graphic Design
    • 2016, University of Manchester Manchester
      Bachelor of Arts in Visual Communication, Visual Communication
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    Graphic designer CV template

    To create the perfect CV for a graphic designer, you’ll have to make use of the right resources. To make the writing process fast and simple, check out our CV templates to design a CV that will engage any hiring manager reading it, and paint the picture of you as an easy choice for employment!

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    Choosing the right format for your graphic designer CV

    It can be hard to know where to start for your graphic designer CV. Your CV format is a good first port of call. Choosing the right structure will lay the foundation for everything that is to come. You’ll want a CV that displays all of your most important achievements, experience, skills, and qualifications. While this might seem like a lot to fit into a single document, choosing the right format will help you to make this process easy.

    There are many different formats you can choose, but there are two that stand out for a graphic designer. The first is the reverse-chronological CV. This format focuses on your work experience, starting with your most recent or current role, then working backwards to give a total overview of the jobs you’ve had that have led you to this point in your career. We’d recommend this format if you already have an extensive history of work to draw from.

    If you are lacking direct experience, or are newly graduated, then you might want to choose the second option, which is the skills-based CV. A skills-based CV focuses on your key skills, whether they are direct or transferable. You can use these to show how you are the right match for the job. 

    Which is best? If you have experience, we’d always recommend going for the reverse-chronological CV. However, the one you choose will come down to how much experience you have, and which suits the specifics of your situation. 

    Need some more tips on structure? Consider the following:

    • Try to avoid long swathes of text. Break up long bodies with headings and section breaks.
    • Your CV should be one or two pages long.
    • Use a legible, professional font like Times New Roman, Arial, or Calibri. 
    • Use the job advertisement as a guide, narrowing down the most important skills and responsibilities they are asking for. 
    Choose your format now

    How to write a CV for a graphic designer

    In the following sections, we’re going to go in-depth on how to write a CV for a graphic designer. We’ll be taking a look at what to include in each section, making sure that you have everything covered. 

    This section will break down all of the fundamental aspects you’ll need to add, including:

    How to add contact details to your graphic designer CV

    Adding clear contact details is an important first step. A hiring manager will need to be able to get ahold of you if they like what they see, so make the process easy for them! This might seem obvious, but it’s a step that many potential candidates forget. 

    You should add your contact details near the top of your document. Make sure to write them in a clear way, preferably in a larger or bold font. This will ensure that your hiring manager won’t miss them! 

    To include a full set of contact details, remember the following:

    • Add your full name – you can leave your middle name out
    • Add your location – this will let your employer know where you are based
    • Add your phone number – choose a mobile number if you have one
    • Include your email address – select a work appropriate email address

    Example of contact section for a graphic designer CV

    Julie Fuller
    5 Browns Road, Barnsley, BNSS60ILY
    07912345678
    j.fuller@example.co.uk

    Start your graphic designer CV with a personal statement

    You probably already know how important first impressions are at a job interview, but this is equally true for your CV. To get started, you’ll need to let the hiring manager know who you are with an effective personal statement. This is your moment to let them know who you are, your career objectives, and what you bring to the table when it comes to graphic design. The difficulty? You only have three or four sentences to work with, making it tough to fit all of the information in.

    Because of this, you should follow a simple formula. It begins with a punchy and informative opening. Introduce yourself in this sentence by providing a short overview of who you are as a person. You can omit any future career goals as these can be saved for your cover letter. Instead, you’ll need to explain that you have experience (or skills) and that you are adept in the field of graphic design.

    Your second sentence should give a clear example of something you have achieved. Let’s say you led the graphic design for a company rebranding, leading to an upswing in online engagement. If this is the case, you should state this with a real-life fact or figure that lends authority to your claim. For example, you could write “led the graphic design on a company rebrand, leading to a 15% increase in online engagement”. 

    Moving on to your third and fourth sentences, these are your opportunities to explain what makes you unique. List and key skills or specialisms you have that set you apart from the competition.

    What are some other tips for your personal statement? Consider the following:

    • Use engaging language, such as positive adjectives or action verbs to capture the reader. 
    • Proofread your personal statement to make sure it’s clear and free from errors.
    • Write in the third person as this sounds more professional.

    Example of personal statement for a graphic designer CV

    Seasoned Graphic Artist and Designer bringing 12 years of experience applying technical and creative abilities to diverse customer projects. Highly effective at collaborating with artistic projects, production, and administrative leadership to complete tasks according to budget and schedule goals.

    OR

    Experienced Graphic Designer looking to bring a wealth of artistic and software skills to lead customer-focused campaigns. Previously led a design team to complete a company rebranding operation, resulting in a 15% increase in online engagement. Highly skilled in Adobe Photoshop, Lightroom, teamwork, and creative design.

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    How to present your work history on a graphic designer CV

    The work experience section of your CV is one of the most important parts of your CV. Showing to a hiring manager that you have previously worked as a graphic designer is a surefire way to get their attention. The more work history you can include, the better, especially on a reverse-chronological CV. This means that you will need to ensure this section is comprehensive, readable, and engaging.

    So how can you present your work history in this way? It’s important to begin with your current or most recent role and then work backwards. List up to 6 responsibilities for each job role. You should think of each point as a building block that will help to create a solid foundation of skills, projects, and experience to present to the reader.

    If the job advertisement you are responding to has clear objectives, make a note of these and try to echo them within this section. For example, if a job ad is asking for “Adobe Photoshop skills”, you’ll want to mention that you have previously used it on a variety of projects.

    Keep the tone formal throughout, but don’t forget to make it upbeat and enthusiastic. You can do this by including positive adjectives and action verbs. A positive adjective is a way of describing yourself, for example you might be “creative” or “time-conscious”. Action verbs should replace the standard “responsible for”, with words like “led”, “coordinated”, or “designed”.  

    Example of work experience for a graphic designer CV

    July 2022 – Current
    Graphic Designer | Sutton Design Lab | Barnsley

    • Interfaced with clients to determine marketing and design vision, define scopes of work, and establish budgets and deliverable schedules.
    • Created corporate brands by designing cohesive visual styles across elements such as logos and letterheads.
    • Leveraged media and graphic design expertise to develop engaging marketing and promotional materials, including flyers and adverts to generate new sales revenues and grow customer base. Increased revenue by 5% year on year.

    March 2020 – July 2022
    Graphic Designer | Webster Digital Solutions | Doncaster

    • Created licensed products for sale in retail stores and outlets, generating £1.5 million in income in 2020/21
    • Directed advert, trade show banner, and signage projects from concept to final delivery.
    • Oversaw product development from conception to completion, including product design, print design, and marketing collateral.

    Graphic designer CV skills

    The skills listed on your graphic designer CV must show that you know how to respond to client demands, design and deliver projects, and work to specific briefs. To create a comprehensive picture of you as a candidate, you’ll need to try and include 12 skills in total, split between hard and soft skills. 

    What do we mean by hard and soft skills? Hard skills are anything practical you have learned on the job or through qualifications. You might be a wizard at Adobe software, or at creating websites. Soft skills, in contrast, are positive character traits that make you a useful employee to have around. You should consider the most positive traits you have and list them accordingly. 

    It’s a good choice to include a balance of these. An employer will need a graphic designer with expertise in software, design, and creation. However, they will also want to work with a person who has a list of positive character traits, adept in teamwork, leading, planning and budgeting.

    Must-have skills for graphic designers

    • Expertise in software including Adobe® Illustrator, Photoshop, and Inkscape
    • Website design
    • Corporate branding
    • Logo creation
    • Production standards
    • Illustration
    • Research skills
    • Project management

    Additional skills to help your CV beat the competition

    • Originality
    • Teamwork
    • Ability to effectively plan
    • Budgeting
    • Understanding of licensed products
    • Marketing know-how
    • Time management skills
    • Written and verbal communication
    • Leadership

    Get education right on your graphic designer CV

    A solid foundation of qualifications will only increase your chances of being accepted for a job. Because of this, you will need to include a comprehensive but concise overview of your educational history. 

    Include your qualifications that are relevant to the position, including any university, college, or school courses you have completed. You should also strive to include any external certifications you have achieved, or affiliations with regulatory bodies.

    Always add qualifications that respond to the position of graphic designer. For example, it’s not the best idea to include the GCSE you completed in chemistry, as this is not going to be relevant to the role. Instead, focus on qualifications that paint a picture of you as somebody who has an extensive background in IT and creative design.

    Here is what you should remember to include:

    • The name of the educational institution you attended
    • The start and end dates of your course
    • The title or field of study
    • The level of the qualification
    • The outcome or result

    Example of education for a graphic designer CV

    University of London
    September 2017 – July 2020
    Bachelor of Arts: Graphic Design (Hons)

    Bradford College
    September 2015 – July 2017
    A Levels in Creative Writing, Graphics & Computer Science
    A, A, B

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    Your graphic designer CV questions answered

    What should a graphic designer put on a CV?

    A graphic designer should put their formal qualifications and work experience on their CV:

    • The jobs you’ve held, in reverse chronological order.
    • Achievements and responsibilities from each post.
    • Specific facts and figures to show how effectively you handled your responsibilities.
    • A list of skills, like website design and infographics, that showcase your versatility.
    • If you have one, a link to your design portfolio.

    How do I get my CV noticed?

    Get your CV noticed by using a CV template that’s visually impressive:

    • Clear headings and short sections.
    • Lists and bullet points to convey maximum information.
    • A CV template with a simple layout and plenty of white space around the text.
    • Keep it brief and to the point.
    • Including a link to your design portfolio.

    How do I make a graphic designer CV?

    You make a graphic designer CV by including key details that demonstrate your experience, versatility, and creative approach as a graphic designer:

    • Create a personal statement that briefly summarises your ambitions and experience.
    • Highlight the formal qualifications and professional accreditations you hold.
    • Include skills like product development, corporate branding, and client liaison.
    • Check carefully for spelling and grammar mistakes.
    • Use our CV builder to make a perfect graphic design CV quickly and easily.
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    Build your perfect graphic designer CV

    Creating the perfect graphic designer CV doesn’t have to be difficult when you use our easy-to-use CV builder.

    We provide CV templates and CV examples that give you a framework to set out your qualifications, achievements, and experience in a clear and concise manner. Our CV writing advice will make it easy to fill in the right content, resulting in a graphic designer CV that shows any recruiter you’re a candidate worth getting to know. Why not give it a go!

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