Wave rhythm
Design · Advertising
Blue main column and rounded label headings, ideal for creative roles.
Accent colour
Graphic, UI/UX, 3D
Design CV templates
For graphic, UI/UX and 3D designers. Layouts with visual impact, plus room for your portfolio link and the tools you master.
Layouts for visual peopleCarefully balanced white space and proportions that show your eye for design.Portfolio front and centreYour Behance, Dribbble or personal site link sits at the top of your CV.Your toolkitFigma, Adobe or 3D software listed in a block of their own.
Palette
Design · Creative
Pastel cards in the sidebar and a round photo with a coloured ring.
Accent colour
Graphics
Graphic design · Branding
Vivid magenta with scattered confetti.
Accent colour
Interface
UI/UX design
Screen purple with a tidy, faint dot grid.
Accent colour
Architecture
Architects
Minimal graphite with fine rules and serif type.
Accent colour
Interior
Interior design
Cosy walnut brown on cream paper.
Accent colour
Graphic and UI/UX design CVs: portfolio placement, tool lists and how polished to make it
For designers, the CV is the first piece of work an employer sees, but the portfolio is what decides. An art director or design lead clicks the Behance link before finishing the second line of your experience. Việc Hot has 6 design CV templates for graphic design, UI/UX and 3D modelling, with the portfolio link placed at the top of the page. The sections below cover what recruiters look at first, what a portfolio should contain, how to list tools by discipline and how polished the CV should be.
What designer recruiters look at first
The portfolio link first, then the CV. In the CV, they look at how you handle margins, type, grid and white space; a CV that is off its grid or uses three fonts fails the test from the start. Next comes your discipline (print, digital, UI/UX, motion, 3D), the settings you have worked in (agency, in-house, freelance), and for UI/UX, your process: whether you do user research, run tests and work with developers. Tools come last, because everyone lists Figma and Photoshop.
Where the portfolio goes and what it should include
Put the link right under your name, next to your email address: Behance or Dribbble for graphic design, a personal website or Figma for UI/UX, Vimeo or YouTube for motion, ArtStation for 3D. Keep the portfolio to five to eight projects, each with context, your role, the process and the result; one project that tells the whole story is worth more than twenty beautiful images without a word of explanation.
Listing tools by discipline
| Discipline | Tools | Also mention |
|---|---|---|
| Graphics, print, packaging | ToolsAdobe Illustrator, Photoshop, InDesign | Also mentionCMYK colour, bleed, working with printers |
| Digital imagery, social media | ToolsPhotoshop, Illustrator, Figma, Canva, CapCut | Also mentionBrand identity systems |
| UI/UX, digital products | ToolsFigma, FigJam, Sketch, Zeplin, Maze, Hotjar | Also mentionDesign systems, prototypes, user testing |
| Motion, video | ToolsAfter Effects, Premiere Pro, Blender | Also mentionShowreel, storyboards |
| 3D modelling, interiors | ToolsBlender, Cinema 4D, 3ds Max, SketchUp, V-Ray | Also mentionRendering, visualisation |
List AI tools such as Midjourney or Adobe Firefly only if you use them in a real workflow and can say at which stage. Drop percentage bars and replace them with work you have made with each tool.
In a design CV, write experience by project and result
Two projects, two disciplines, one formula
UI/UX: Redesigned the checkout flow for a food delivery app (6-person product team, lead product designer): interviewed 12 users, built a prototype in Figma and ran 3 rounds of testing; the order completion rate rose from 61% to 74% two months after release.
Graphic design: Brand identity for an 8-store coffee chain (lead designer, working directly with the brand owner): logo, packaging, menus, signage; completed in 6 weeks and rolled out consistently across the 8 stores and the social media pages.
Freelancers should group their work by project, stating the number of projects a year and the types of client; record the freelance period as one continuous position.
How polished a design CV should be
A good-looking design CV is one that shows restraint: one typeface family in two or three weights, a clear grid, one accent colour and deliberate white space. Recruiters want to see taste, not a display of every technique you know on a single A4 page. A portrait photo is optional. Write it in English when applying to international agencies or for remote work with foreign clients; keep it to one page.
When applying through a large company's recruitment portal, also send a one-column version, because screening software cannot read text inside images or two-column layouts. On Việc Hot, the content is filled in from your profile, so switching to an ATS-friendly template costs you nothing.
Common mistakes in design CVs
- No portfolio link, or a broken one.
- Body text at 7 to 8 pt to make the page look airy.
- Effects, backgrounds and patterns that obscure the content.
- Team projects that do not say which part you did.
Frequently asked questions
You can, as long as you stay restrained. Starting from a template and adjusting the grid, type and colour to your taste is usually faster and leads to fewer mistakes; recruiters judge you on your portfolio.
Course projects and self-set briefs (redesigning a familiar app, an identity for an imaginary coffee shop), with the process and the reasoning behind each decision. Three projects that tell the full story are enough for a junior position.
Write "Freelance designer" as one position with a continuous timeline, and state the number of projects a year, the types of client and three representative projects with results.
It is optional. If you include one, keep it small, on a plain background and within the grid; many designers use a signature or a personal logo instead, which is also accepted.