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Web Designer CV tips
I'm going through lot's of web designer CVs at the moment and I thought it might be helpful for budding web designers if I share what I'm looking for in a CV.Are you able to do the job?
In my previous blog I described what skills a web designer needs so when I'm looking through a CV these are the areas that are important to me:
- What tertiary education do you have in design? If you haven't been trained in commercial design then it's unlikely you have the skills needed to create commercial web designs.
- What previous web design employment experience have you had? If you're a graduate then it's understandable that you don't have a lot of experience so that's when your portfolio has to be fantastic.
If you have good commercial design skills then my next question is:
- What are you like at coding and what languages do you use? For our company a web designer needs to be proficient in CSS3, HTML5, PHP, JavaScript, MySQL, etc. because these are the dominant web technologies that we use.
It's all very good to show these in a CV and I've seen some CVs that make a web designer look fantastic but the "proof of the pudding" is in your portfolio. It's the most important thing that decides whether you get short-listed because from a portfolio I can tell:
- Whether you're able to do commercial web design (Can also be called communication design. Here's a good article).
- Whether you can design for different markets such as men, women, industrial, retail, non-profit, etc. You should have several good examples of your designs for different markets.
- What level of graphic design you're at by analysing how you've used typography, negative space, gestalt, semiotics, etc.
- What level of coding you're at by viewing the source of your web pages.
Will you fit the team?
This is really important too. Your CV should list your hobbies and show what you're passionate about. If you're into sports, have a family, are religious, make movies or like travel all of these are important factors showing that you have a life outside of work which would make you a better employee.
Work history
If your work history shows a short time in jobs or missing periods then that poses questions. If you weren't working that's fine but explain what you were doing for that period such as further education, contracting, travelling or volunteer work.
Design
If you're a professional designer then make sure your CV and portfolio look professional. This is the first thing I see from you so it is your first chance to make an impression. Also include a photo of yourself because, to me, this makes you a real person and not just another CV.
LinkedIn
I like it when people put their LinkedIn profile link in their CV because it builds trust with me. I can friend them and see if they've been endorsed by other professionals.
Anyhow, that's what I'm thinking about this week. If you'd like to be notified of our latest research FOLLOW our LinkedIn page. The link is at the bottom right of this page. If you'd like to learn more about how you can improve your online marketing and sales check out our Internet Marketing workshop here.
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