Note: Read >>Lesson/ Lesson 5: Marketing Collateral before proceeding

What is a Resume?

A brief account of a person’s education, qualifications, and previous experience, is typically sent with a job application. The perfect resume should:

  • Reflect the personality of the person both visually and editorially.
  • It’s your advertisement, a way for you to get your foot in the door.
  • It needs to be attention-getting, but also appropriate to the industry or profession that you are seeking a job in.

What is a CV?

Similar to a resume but may show a full history of your academic credentials including research and publications. This is typically used by researchers, professors, and fine artists.

Why Do You Need a Resume?

Resumes are usually a required component of the job application process, not just in Communication Design but in most fields. Among many other things, it is used to apply for internships, freelance and full-time work, artist grants, and artist residencies.

What Your Resume Should Include

There are several things to keep in mind as you begin to create a resume. Perhaps most important is to note that a resume is a required document in most fields and therefore the document should follow certain standards, these include:

  • It should be NO longer than 1 page in length.
  • There must NOT be a single typo.
  • The following content sections should be included and in the following order:
    • Name, website/portfolio site, email, phone
    • Social media (could go in the contact section or separate)
    • Summary/ Mission statement/Clarifying statement 
    • Education: list school or schools, the years attended, location, any special projects or awards, and B.A. or B.F.A.,etc
    • Professional Experience/Experience/Work
      • Include job Tile
      • Company name and location
      • Dates: month and year, to month and year ex: January 2021-May 2021
      • Job responsibilities
    • List internships or freelance work experience if any and descriptions
    • Make sure you organize your work experience clearly. The easiest way to do this chronologically by your current job first.
    • Skills or Tools- computer programs you know and separate out
    • Clubs/Volunteer work
    • Awards/Accolades/Academic Honors
    • Languages Spoken if other than English
  • Be consistent with the tense that you use: i.e. present tense vs. past tense.

What Your Resume Should Never Include

  • References, Keep them in a separate file. 
  • GPA (unless applying for internships)
  • Photographs
  • Large graphics
  • A Resume Title
  • Availability
  • Salary
  • Mention of Age, Race, Religion, Sex, or National Origin
  • Charts and Graphs
  • Weaknesses

Qualifying Statement

A qualifying statement will appear in the first paragraph of your resume. It should summarize and pinpoint the highlights of your resume: your strongest characteristics.

Weak qualifying statements:

  1. Do not provide any useful, descriptive information.
  2. Use the term entry-level.
  3. Use the first person: me, I, my.
  4. Limit potential opportunities by being too specific.
  5. Mention weaknesses or any negative qualities.

Examples of Weak

  1. To develop a career with a company that will offer opportunities in creative collaboration and design in various types of media.
  2. Seeking full-time, entry-level employment where my graphic design skills
    and academic experience can be used effectively to enhance the company’s profits.
  3. I am seeking work: full-time/part-time/freelance/contract in Kansas City
    or Lawrence. I have professional experience in magazine design and layout, plus I am knowledgeable in pre-press, and everything in between.
    Proficient on Mac or PC.
  4. To obtain a creative design position with an innovative, progressive multi-media firm.

Effective objective/qualifying statements: clearly and concisely summarize what you are capable of and where your interests lie:

  1. Provide detail about who you are and what you do well.
  2. Highlight your most qualifying skills; exceptional talents.
  3. Express enthusiasm.
  4. Only emphasize the positive.

Examples of Effective

  1. Highly motivated, detail-oriented creative person. Team player with great communication skills. Experience in web graphics, design for print,
    multimedia, video editing and composting, and 3d production. Fast learner. Excellent technical skills. Work well under pressure and tight deadlines.
  2. Well regarded for strong organizational skills and ability to meet deadlines. Dependable. Solid understanding of project workflow. Experience working with clients to meet their design needs. Exhibits effective use of visual communication to reach target audiences. Advanced skills in ___.
    Knowledge of: ___. Proficient on ____ platforms.
  3. Innovative, motivated, and reliable, graphic design graduate. Experience
    as a freelance designer in both multi-media and print. Extensive knowledge in a variety of design programs. Comprehensive understanding of pre-press and photography.

Use Action Verbs

When writing about your work experience use descriptive action verbs. Here are a few to get you started:

Suggested Action Verbs

  • Assigned
  • Articulated
  • Animated
  • Branded
  • Brainstormed
  • Coded
  • Contributed
  • Collaborated
  • Created
  • Drew
  • Designed
  • Directed
  • Developed
  • Initiated
  • Led
  • Mocked-up
  • Organized
  • Painted
  • Photographed
  • Produced
  • Prototyped
  • Prepared
  • Sketched

Designing Your Resume

You should only begin to design your resume once you have composed, edited and finalized all the content in a text document. Start the design once you have your text ready, and copy and paste everything.

  • Your resume should be designed in InDesign.
  • Follow the design guidelines you established as part of your Identity System.
    • Your logo should appear here consistently, as it does on your Business Card and other Marketing Collateral (see >>Lessons/Lesson 5 Marketing Collateral)
    • Use no more than two fonts. Choose a typeface with an extensive font family, i.e. book, regular, italic, bold, black, etc.
    • Use a legible typeface with a font family of different weights.
    • Aim for simplicity.
    • Set up a grid.
    • Incorporate minimal color if needed.
    • Use hierarchy to convey information.
    • How will you organize your resume? In a two-column grid?
  • A good resume takes time to build. Be prepared to tweak and edit. Show to as many people as possible and ask for feedback. You want to make sure there are absolutely no spelling or grammatical mistakes.
  • Your resume must adhere to the standard requirements of a resume, but should also reflect your abilities as a designer and effectively communicate your experience.

Additional Resources

Resume Checklist

  • Does your resume include your branding and highlight your design skills?
  • Does your resume include a professional email?
    Ex: firstname.lastname@gmail.com 
  • Does your resume include a portfolio link? Your Linked In or other social media links?
  • Is your resume one page?
  • Are all the links working in the pdf version?
  • Did you proofread for grammar and spelling your resume?
  • Did you print your resume out and check the font sizes, leading, and kerning?
  • Did you save your resume with a naming convention? 
    Ex: firstname.lastname_resume2022.pdf

Next lesson >>Lessons/ Lesson 7: Job Opportunities