Designer CV: Example and How to Write (+Template)

The design of your designer CV shouldn’t turn any heads. A CV is, of course, a designed object, but its design should definitely remain 99% invisible. There’s a completely different way to get your design prowess across to your potential new employer, and it has everything to do with content over form.

Let your portfolio be your portfolio and your CV be your CV: a collection of hard facts that summarise what you’ve brought to employers and clients in the past and foreshadow what you’re going to bring them in the future.

This article will show you a designer CV example and how to create a similar one. You'll also learn how to make and format your design CV template, with UK-specific advice on mastering your designer CV.

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We created the sample on the right using our builder. See other good CV examples like this one.

Need a different CV example? Check these samples:

• Animator CV
• Architecture CV
• Artist CV
• Fashion CV
• Graphic Designer CV
• Illustrator CV
• Interior Designer CV
• UX Designer CV
• Marketing CV
• Photographer CV
• Project Manager CV
• Music CV
• Video Editor CV

Haven't found what you're looking for? Check all our CV examples.

Designer CV example

Now you know what a CV should look like. Here’s how to write your own:

1. Draft your designer CV starting from a personal statement

Your CV personal statement is where you introduce yourself as a designer, show your potential new employer what you bring to the table, and describe your professional goals (which just happen to coincide with the company’s business goals). It’s also the perfect place to drop a second link to your portfolio.

Use 3–4 sentences total to cover the following points:

• What kind of designer are you? How many years’ experience and in what areas?
• What’s the work achievement or skill you’re most proud of?
• Have another achievement or skill to mention? What about an award? (Optional.)
• What do you hope to achieve for your employer? How?

You should end up with 50–150 words, no more. Be sure to:

• Mention the name of the company
• Mention the name of the position (as it appears in the advert)
• Use keywords from the advert wherever possible, without sounding weird.

Your all-important portfolio link should either go with your contact details or in-text here in your personal statement. Potentially both, if you can hyperlink part of your personal statement without affecting its readability.

Your designer CV might be filtered by an ATS (Applicant Tracking System), so it’s doubly important to include keywords from the advert. Research has shown that as many as 90% of companies use ATSs and that as few as 25% of applications make it through the filtering process. Don’t overdo it, though.

As you can see, your personal statement goes first in your designer CV, but it’s best written last. It’ll be much easier to write once you’ve got your skills and achievements prepared (that's why it is also called a CV summary). So keep it in the back of your mind for now and come back to it when you’re ready.

Designer CV personal statement example

A strong CV summary will convince the recruiter you’re the perfect candidate. Save time and choose a ready-made personal statement written by career experts and adjust it to your needs in the LiveCareer CV builder.

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2. Craft a work experience section for your designer CV

There are two main formats you can use to structure you designer CV:

• Chronological
• Functional or skills-based

Luckily, choosing the right one is easy. Have you worked mostly for one company at a time, on a full-time contract or equivalent? If so, then you should use a chronological format and read on.

If you’ve been freelancing, self-employed, or generally bouncing from gig to gig for any reason, then a functional format is the right one for you. A functional or skills-based format will put more emphasis on your skill sets and only briefly delve into your employment history.

A skills-based CV will have a more detailed skills section here. The work experience section will go next and be drastically shorter than a chronological one, omitting achievements entirely. There’ll then be an education section and additional skills section, before continuing on to the additional sections.

Assuming you’re pushing on with a chronological format, you’ll now need to list your job descriptions starting from the most recent and working your way back from there. This is the most common order. It’s what hiring managers and art directors are used to seeing and it’s more easily parsed by an ATS.

Use the following template to make a subheading for each job description in your designer CV:

[Job Title]

[Company Name, Location]

[Dates of Employment]

Include up to six bullet points under each job description. Don’t list your duties and responsibilities. Do focus on achievements. Quantify absolutely everything you can and show what benefits you brought to your previous employers. Use accomplishment statements for your bullet points.

Writing a junior graphic designer CV or some other entry-level designer CV? If you have no work experience to speak of, focus on any internships, placement work, and volunteer work you’ve done. Move this section to after your education section and consider writing a student CV instead.

Designer CV job description examples

3. Sketch out the educational background in your design CV

Getting the right education is a big part of becoming a designer. When listing university degrees, include the name of each degree, it’s class, the years you attended (with an expected graduation date if you’re still studying), and the name of the institution and its location.

If you have a degree and some work experience, then you can leave your high school education off your CV. If you do need to include it, then list all of your A-levels by subject, the years during which you studied them, the name of the school and its location.

For GCSEs simply state how many you completed, the years over which you completed them, the name of the school and its location. It’s a good idea to mention Mathematics and English when stating how many GCSEs you’ve completed.

If you're writing your first CV and lack significant work experience, you may want to add bullet points here to highlight your achievements or areas of excellence while studying. Include any projects, competitions, awards that work in your favour.

Designer CV education section example

4. Complete your designer CV with key design skills

It’s not always obvious from the outside what design skills you learned during your studies or what skills it took to get a particular achievement at work. This is why it’s important to list your key skills and to show that they at least cover what is required in the job advert.

Start by making a list of your hard and soft skills. Pair each skill with a sentence that describes how and when you demonstrated that skill (or skill set). Be specific and quantify whatever you can. Save this list—it’ll come in handy for your personal statement and cover letter, in this and future job applications.

Re-read the job advert and pick 5–10 skills from your list. Drop them into your CV and your skills section is sorted. Use the master list you created to tailor your skills selection to each advert. Pay attention to keywords used in the advert and include them in your design skills list wherever possible.

Aim for a healthy mix of hard, soft (like communication skills), and IT skills.

Graphic designer CV skills

5. Blend additional sections into your designer CV

Your CV is supposed to paint a portrait of you as a designer and an employee. Use extra sections in your designer CV to help fill in some missing details. Include certifications, awards, languages, even hobbies and interests. Adding extra sections can make a bigger difference than many people realise (just remember not to list references on your CV as it's an old-fashioned practice).

Designer CV extra sections sample

6. Write a designer cover letter to go with your CV

Unless you’ve been specifically instructed not to, you really should include a graphic design cover letter with your CV. A job application is still generally considered to be a single document in two parts: a cover letter and a CV.

Start off with the right cover letter format:

• A properly laid-out header
• An appropriate salutation
• A strong cover letter opening
• A main paragraph or paragraphs showcasing your achievements
• A neat wrap-up and all-important CTA
• The correct sign off.

When it comes to cover letter length, aim to end up with 200–350 words in total. That’s between half and a single A4 page. Having prepared your designer CV job descriptions and skills list, you’re already halfway there.

7. Keep these formatting considerations in mind

No one’s going to lecture you on the use of white space or which CV fonts to use, but there are a few of things quite specific to CV writing that you should keep in mind:

• Easy legibility and predictable CV format are the names of the game here—stick to an aesthetic of understated, professional elegance and very clear CV layout. The CV design is crucial for designers like nothing else.
• If you're going to use a creative CV template (e.g., a Canva CV), make sure it's ATS-friendly. You can view free CV templates to find one that best matches your candidate profile. Basic CV templates won't be suitable in this case.
• Pay attention to file format requirements—follow instructions religiously and of course default to PDF in their absence.

How long should a CV be? If you're a junior designer, a one-page CV should be enough. For more experienced designers, two pages are fine.

Proofread and spellcheck your designer CV and cover letter. Use any of the apps, web apps, or programmes out there that can help you with spelling and grammar (if you don't want to pay a CV writer). Get a second pair of eyes on both documents before clicking send.

One final piece of advice: follow up if you haven’t heard back after a week. A quick phone call or email lets them know you’re invested in this application.

And that's it! Now you know what to include in your CV.

You don’t have to be a CV writing expert. In the LiveCareer CV builder you’ll find ready-made content for every industry and position, which you can then add with a single click.

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Is there anything you’d like more information on? Was this guide helpful to you? Do you now know how to write a designer CV? Are you a freelancer or employed full time? Let us know and leave any other comments or questions below.

How we review the content at LiveCareer

Our editorial team has reviewed this article for compliance with Livecareer’s editorial guidelines. It’s to ensure that our expert advice and recommendations are consistent across all our career guides and align with current CV and cover letter writing standards and trends. We’re trusted by over 10 million job seekers, supporting them on their way to finding their dream job. Each article is preceded by research and scrutiny to ensure our content responds to current market trends and demand.