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Illustrator resume template
A clean starting structure with example content grounded in what illustrators actually do day to day, not generic filler. Download and replace the bracketed placeholders with your own details.
Which resume format should you use?
Reverse chronological
You have a steady work history. This is the format almost every recruiter and ATS expects by default.
Functional
You're changing fields or have gaps in your employment. Leads with skills rather than a job-by-job timeline.
Combination
You're early career or have worked consistently but for only a few employers. Blends a skills summary with a shorter chronological history.
This template uses the reverse chronological format: the one most illustrators should default to, since most Australian recruiters and ATS software expect it.
Professional summary
Illustrator with experience turning client briefs into finished artwork across editorial, commercial, and entertainment projects. Comfortable moving between traditional media and digital tools to develop concept sketches through to final delivery. Known for meeting deadlines while managing feedback rounds from designers, publishers, and clients.
Key skills
- Concept sketching and storyboarding
- Digital illustration and digital painting
- Visual design and composition
- Client brief interpretation
- Creative software production
- Content creation and writing
- Time and deadline management
- Client relationships and advisory
Experience: example bullet points
- Developed concept sketches and storyboards from client briefs, presenting multiple direction options before moving to final artwork
- Produced finished illustrations in Adobe Photoshop and Illustrator, Procreate, and traditional media to meet publisher and agency specifications
- Revised artwork across several feedback rounds while keeping projects on schedule and within scope
- Managed concurrent project timelines for multiple clients, delivering all work to agreed specification and deadline
- Maintained an updated portfolio and pitched illustration work to new clients, securing repeat commissions
Education
Typical pathway is a Bachelor degree in illustration, visual arts, or design (around half of illustrators hold one), with a Diploma or Advanced Diploma in graphic design or illustration as a common alternate route; a strong self-directed portfolio matters as much as the credential.
Keywords an ATS is likely to scan for
Applicant tracking systems match your resume against terms in the job ad before a person ever sees it. Only include the ones that actually apply to your experience, but if a term below matches something you've done, use the same wording the job ad uses.
- freelance illustrator
- concept art
- editorial illustration
- digital illustration
- storyboarding
- children's book illustration
- Adobe Creative Suite
- Procreate
- Clip Studio Paint
- CorelDRAW
- client brief
- portfolio
- ABN sole trader
- copyright licensing
- Australian Copyright Council
- stock illustration
Getting past ATS screening
- Match the specific skills, certifications and terms used in the job ad, not just your own wording for the same thing.
- Keep formatting simple: no tables, text boxes, columns, headers/footers or graphics. Parsers frequently drop content placed in these.
- Submit as .docx or PDF unless the job ad specifies otherwise.
- Use standard section headings (Experience, Education, Skills) rather than creative alternatives.
- List your core skills and technical competencies in their own section so a keyword scan can find them instantly.
This is a starting point, not a guarantee of interviews. Tailor every bullet point to your own real experience and the specific job ad.