Describe the Ideal Candidate in three words
TRUE TO THEMSELVES
How important is your CV, compared to your portfolio? Both are important as they work in different ways.
The CV gives a sense of the choices a person has made through their career, how they may have changed direction many times or been very clear and consistent in their approach perhaps. This is a great insight into the personality behind the CV — are they decisive and set on a single pathway or more pragmatic and open to being led in different directions?
A CV should be a simple map and not overloaded with detail on every moment of your working life. It’s really important that it looks clear, well laid out, free of spelling mistakes and typos and is easy to navigate. It is the first example of your design skills and will be judged in the same way as your folio.
How important is it for you to see personal work? Personal work is always great to see. It can be a really useful way of exploring areas of design that you may have not have been able to in your professional work/day job. It can help a designer to give a really true description of who they are creatively, how they see the world and what makes them unique.
What's the worst thing that you can do in an interview? Turn up late, without a portfolio. Look bored. Show no passion for your work or the company you are interviewing with. Reel off negative things about your past employer. Answer your mobile and have a chat. Have no eye contact with the person you are talking to... I could go on!
Is it possible to do too many internships? I think it is. It’s great to do a handful of internships having just graduated, as it gives such a fantastic insight into the workings of different studios. This in turn means you can make a really informed decision about which studios are most appropriate for you. However, too many internships can signal that you have not made a connection anywhere and suggests a problem!
What’s the one thing a potential employee can do that will impress you? Well, on behalf of the design studios that I work with as clients, I would say: “Understand your creative heart and communicate clearly what you have to offer my design business”.