Overview
Design portfolios get you noticed, but your resume gets you through the applicant tracking system. A lot of junior designers put all their energy into their portfolio and send in a bare bones resume with "Creative thinker" and "Adobe Suite" as the highlights. That is not enough.
This resume belongs to Sophie Williams, a graphic design graduate from Nottingham Trent University. She has freelance experience, a university placement, and a strong project section. Her resume works because it treats design work like business work, with deliverables, deadlines, and client outcomes.
What Makes This Resume Work
Freelance work is presented professionally. Sophie completed logo and branding projects for three small businesses during her final year. Instead of listing "designed logos," she describes each project with the client type, deliverables, and timeline. One project involved creating a complete brand identity kit (logo, colour palette, business cards, social media templates) for a café in two weeks. That shows she can deliver under real deadlines.
The placement section shows volume. During her six month placement at a marketing agency, she produced over 120 social media graphics across four client accounts. She also designed two email newsletter templates that were adopted as the agency's standard for new clients. These numbers prove she can handle production pace work, which is exactly what junior roles demand.
Tools are listed with specificity. Adobe Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign, Figma, and Canva Pro. She also mentions experience with After Effects for basic motion graphics. Hiring managers know exactly what she can use on day one without any additional training.
The portfolio link is prominent. Her portfolio URL sits right below her contact details. For design roles, this is essential. Recruiters will click it. Having it visible at the top means they do not need to hunt for it further down the page.
Key Takeaways
Treat freelance projects like professional jobs. Name the client type, describe the deliverables, and include the timeline. Even unpaid work for a friend's business counts if you frame it with enough detail.
Show volume and speed. Junior design roles involve producing a lot of work quickly. If you created 20 Instagram posts in a week or turned around a logo concept in three days, say so.
Always include your portfolio link at the top of your resume. A design resume without a portfolio link is like a developer resume without a GitHub profile. Make it easy to find.

























































































































































































































































