A good designer resume focuses on your relevant skills like web development, user-centered design, or cross-team collaboration. Give examples of your past success as a designer or in similar roles, and show your knowledge base by citing any related training or certificate programs you’ve done. This guide provides expert tips to help you create a results-driven resume showing your best designer qualifications.
Designer Resume Templates and Examples (Download in App)
Visual Designer Resume Example
Why this designer resume example is strong:
This resume has a prominent skills section showing how Raheem can add value to an organization.
Product Designer Resume Example
Why this designer resume example is strong:
This resume's experience section contains impressive performance data, showing how the candidate positively impacted their current role.
Game Design Resume Example
Why this designer resume example is strong:
This resume uses dynamic verbs like "led" and "designed" to help express how the applicant has generated powerful results at each organization.
Designer Resume Example
Why this designer resume example is strong:
This resume follows a consistent structure and format to ensure hiring managers can read it easily. See how Alex puts basic details in a consistent order (title, organization, location, and dates where applicable), letting the reader quickly scan his career progress so far.
Graphic Design Resume Example
Why this resume example is strong:
The applicant created an eye-catching document using bullet points to set off important information under each recent job.
Illustrator Resume Example
Why this resume example is strong:
Katherine has written a unique resume focusing on specific improvements she made at each employer. To achieve similar detail in your job descriptions, consider the following: What new systems or solutions did you introduce? And what benefit did those new things have in the broader organization? Your answers to these questions will make some of the most compelling points on your resume.
User Experience Designer Resume Example
Why this designer resume example is strong:
This resume showcases quantifiable achievements from current and previous positions and a bulleted list of in-demand hard and soft skills for UX designers.
Designer Text-Only Resume Templates and Examples
How To Write a Designer Resume
1. Write a dynamic profile summarizing your designer qualifications
In a brief paragraph at the top of your resume, catch hiring managers’ attention by giving the three to five main reasons you’ll excel in your next design job. (Note: most job seekers find it easier to write their profile last.)
Example
Visual designer with a strong background in graphic design and communication, holding a Master’s degree in visual design from Parsons School of Design. Skilled at developing and executing visual design concepts, partnering across functional lines, and incorporating feedback to improve design quality. Deep knowledge of color theory, typography, and user interface (UI) design principles, demonstrated by successful stints at Warner Bros. Entertainment and DreamWorks Animation.
2. Add an accomplishment-driven professional experience section for your designer role
Use your resume’s experience section to give examples of your background and success in roles similar to the design job you’re after. For each job in your recent work history, brainstorm your duties and achievements on a separate document or sheet of paper. Then, choose the most relevant ones to include as bullet points on your resume. With this approach, you can write a detailed and design-focused experience section.
Example
Senior Product Designer, Adobe Systems, San Jose, CA | June 2017 to present
- Led design of a new feature in Adobe Creative Cloud that improved user engagement by 20%
- Collaborated with other business functions on the successful launch of three major product updates
- Conducted user research to inform design decisions, raising user satisfaction scores by 15%
3. Include relevant education and certifications for your designer role
Give the basics on any bachelor’s degree(s) you’ve completed or worked toward. Then, flesh out this section with any certifications or other details that help show your design knowledge.
Below are templates and examples to help you format your education and certification details. Note optional template areas appear in [brackets].
Education
Template
- [Candidate:] Degree Name — [Major, Minor], School Name, City, ST or online | [Year]
- [Relevant honors, activities, or coursework]
Example
- Bachelor of Science – Game Design and Development, Rochester Institute of Technology, Rochester, NY | May 2018
Certifications
Template
- Certification Name or Title, [Awarding Organization] | [Year]
- [Description]
Example
- Service Excellence Certificate, VCU Advanced Solutions | 2023
4. List pertinent key skills for your designer role
Add a key skills section to show how you can contribute to your target job. These may include soft skills like time management, hard skills, and programs like Adobe Illustrator. Below are some common skills and keywords for designer resumes:
| Key Skills and Proficiencies | |
|---|---|
| Adobe Creative Suite | Concept development |
| Design execution | Digital marketing |
| Game mechanics development | Graphic design |
| Illustration | InVision |
| Player testing and feedback | Print design |
| Product branding | Prototyping |
| Team collaboration | Time management |
| Typography | Usability design |
| User experience (UX) design | User-centered design |
| Web design | Web development |
How To Pick the Best Designer Resume Template
As with most vocations, designers should use a resume template that’s simple and straightforward. Opt for a layout that lets the hiring manager quickly review your best career details. Select a traditional resume font, and avoid any template with a colorful or elaborate design. Also, ensure the template complies with applicant tracking systems (ATS) employers use to screen resumes.
Frequently Asked Questions: Designer Resume Examples and Advice
What are common action verbs for designer resumes?-
It's easy to get stuck when writing the experience section of a resume. You may start to run out of action verbs to describe your work. To help you with this challenge, we compiled the list of common action verbs below that describe designer roles.
| Action Verbs | |
|---|---|
| Clarified | Created |
| Decreased | Designed |
| Developed | Enhanced |
| Established | Fostered |
| Generated | Grew |
| Illustrated | Increased |
| Introduced | Launched |
| Ranked | Reduced |
| Rendered | Streamlined |
| Updated | Won |
How do you align your resume with a designer job posting?-
One great way to customize your resume is by adding brief descriptions of the places you've worked in [brackets] right next to or below the company name. Company descriptions let you show any similarities between your past employers and the one who posted the job. For example, you've worked for companies of a similar size or industry. Or you've worked at organizations with a similar mission or leadership philosophy. By adding these details, you can make your resume more relevant to the job opening.
What is the best designer resume format?-
Most designers should use the combination (or hybrid) format. True to its name, this format combines two important features of other resume formats: the chronological format's experience section and the functional format's profile section. (The resume examples on this page all use combination format.)
A combination resume offers the best of both worlds by fusing these two features. The experience section lets you outline your recent work history – essential information for most employers. At the same time, the profile section enables you to display your career highlights at the top, regardless of whether they're from that work history or another part of your background. As a result, you can present yourself both clearly and strategically. With this format, you give hiring managers the best view of your experience and relevant strengths so they can decide to call you for an interview.
To increase your chances of an interview, write and submit a strong cover letter. The key to a good cover letter is tailoring it to each job opening. Read our cover letter guide to learn how. For more tips and examples, see our graphic design cover letter guide.
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