Interviewing for graphic design roles requires candidates to showcase their ability to think and execute creatively, assess and overcome challenges, work in teams and by themselves, perform commercially, and use logical thinking.
It’s a melting pot of skills that requires a thorough understanding of the graphic designer role and how to answer the questions recruiters will ask. This article covers 20 of the most common and challenging graphic design interview questions, including why they’re used, what their purpose is, and sample answers for each.
1. “When was the first time you realized you wanted to work in graphic design?”
This question is often used at the start of interviews to help the recruiter understand your motivation for graphic design and, therefore, your potential longevity in the role. It can also be used to assess your cultural fit to the organization as well as learn more about your educational achievements.
SAMPLE ANSWER
I have always yearned to be a graphic designer since my school years. I loved art and became engrossed in creating posters from scratch. I realized I had an analytical side to my personality and found that being able to combine creativity with functionality came easily to me. That was when I began to research the profession.
2. “What is your creative process?”
Creativity is a challenging skill to assess, and this question, therefore, allows recruiters to understand your thought process. It might also help them understand how candidates might add to the organization’s creative philosophy.
SAMPLE ANSWER
I nurture a structured approach to creative thinking and find this supports me in conceptualizing ideas freely. I begin by thoroughly understanding the client’s vision and seek clarification where needed. I brainstorm themes and visual styles, draft out options, and seek feedback before refining them. I spend quality time finalizing the design and ensuring a polished delivery.
3. “What design programs are you most comfortable with?”
This question is often used by graphic design recruiters to assess your technical skills, specifically in relation to graphic design software, which is an important part of the job. Recruiters might choose to align this information with the programs their organization uses.
SAMPLE ANSWER
I am comfortable with a wide range of design programs. I gravitate naturally to Adobe Creative Suite, especially Photoshop, Illustrator and InDesign. I love designing apps and tend to use Adobe XD for this purpose. I keep up to date with all these programs, and they collectively enable me to handle a wide variety of tasks extremely well.
4. “How would you handle negative client feedback on one of your designs?”
Client relationship management is key for many graphic design roles. This question aims to assess candidates’ ability to manage tricky client situations, how they can recover them and turn them into positives or win–win outcomes.
SAMPLE ANSWER
I prioritize listening to the client first to understand their perspective, as well as asking probing questions to learn more. I assure the client that I am capable of and committed to making necessary revisions, and as I do so, I take on board their suggestions while providing professional advice on the best way forward.
5. “What do you like the most about working in graphic design?”
This question seeks to understand your level of passion for graphic design. Here, you can express your love for the profession. The question might also enable recruiters to assess your alignment with organizational values.
SAMPLE ANSWER
I am naturally drawn to the opportunity and freedom to bring clients’ visions to life. This plays to my strengths of thinking creatively and allows me to solve complex problems to create lasting solutions and memories. To this end, I am also energized by how no two days are the same in graphic design, and that there are so many ways to learn, and new things to discover with every project.
6. “What are some essential qualities of a great graphic designer?”
Recruiters will ask this question to see how well you know the graphic design role and to gauge your awareness of the skills and qualities needed to do well in this profession. Be sure to evidence your own qualities when you answer this question.
SAMPLE ANSWER
I would say that graphic design needs to combine four main areas of ability, which are creativity, technical prowess, top-notch communication skills, and an ability to solve problems. If these areas are well-balanced and continuously nurtured, graphic designers can create meaningful work for clients that tick the right boxes and resonate with the wider audience.
7. “Tell me about your strengths and weaknesses.”
This commonly asked question helps recruiters understand where you are with your professional skills as a graphic designer. Ensure you evidence how you leverage your strengths and how you’re working on your weaknesses.
SAMPLE ANSWER
In terms of strengths, I am effective in balancing thinking outside the box with analytical skills, being able to analyze challenges, and coming up with original solutions to them. In terms of development areas, I sometimes have a challenge delegating work, as I want to take on more responsibility and trust myself to do this. I am working in new teams and being coached on how to develop this area.
8. “Describe a time when you motivated yourself to get an important piece of work done.”
This is a behavioral question, and a good way to answer it is to use the STAR method, which involves sharing a situation, task, action and result from your professional experience. This particular question assesses your ability to work productively by yourself.
SAMPLE ANSWER
I was tasked to develop a series of geographically diverse advertisements for one client. Their budget was tight, and I was the only one assigned to this. I coped by breaking down the project and structured my day to achieve blocks of work. I set up my working space with mood boards to visualize the project, which was completed on time and received with overwhelming satisfaction by the client.
9. “Tell me about a time when you worked as part of a team to complete an important project.”
This is another behavioral question, which requires another specific and meaningful example. In this situation, you’re being asked to evidence your ability to work well in teams.
SAMPLE ANSWER
Our agency was given a huge piece of work by a grocery store chain, to update their entire visual identity. I needed to communicate with various teams to ensure a consistent message. I held brainstorming sessions and ensured open communication that meant every team was aligned to one goal. We used project management tools to organize work. The new identity was exceptionally well-received.
10. “Give me an example of a tight deadline you had and how you got the work done on time.”
Another behavioral question, this one assesses your time management skills. Working to tight or multiple deadlines is a critical part of any graphic design role, so be sure to choose a great example to share.
SAMPLE ANSWER
We received a client who had switched to my firm at the last minute due to their dissatisfaction with their usual agency. They had a tight deadline, which I responded to by utilizing templates from previous projects where I could, and adapting them to fit the client’s brief. I communicated with the client in real time, rather than waiting for meetings. The client was pleased with the quality of work, and it was all completed on time.
11. “Tell me about a graphic design project that went wrong, and how did you learn from the mistakes?”
Any graphic designer knows that no project runs entirely according to plan, and that mistakes are made along the way. This behavioral question assesses your response to mistakes and how you can turn them into positives.
SAMPLE ANSWER
I once had a client who was not clear with their expectations, and this led to several misunderstandings as the project progressed. I took time to re-establish clear communication and set goals going forward, ultimately leading to the project being completed to the client’s satisfaction. I learned that I need to be proactive and clear in establishing communication norms and never assume what the client wants.
12. “How do you measure the success of your graphic design projects?”
This is a tricky question aimed at assessing a graphic designer’s analytical ability, which might not come naturally to some people. You’ll need to run through how you think strategically and use analytics to quantify what you do.
SAMPLE ANSWER
Firstly, I seek to gather qualitative client feedback to identify areas for improvement. I map this against previously agreed objectives to see if goals were achieved. When I work on commercial projects, I seek to understand my budget and resources. This enables me to understand the return on investment. I also have designed questionnaires to measure quantitative feedback on my projects and ensure I follow up with clients on the scores and how they can be increased.
13. “How would you improve our brand’s logo?”
Another tricky question, partly because you’ll need to critique the very organization you’re applying for! You’ll also need to think up a graphic design strategy on the spot, so do all you can to research the organization’s logo and values in advance.
SAMPLE ANSWER
Firstly, I would seek to keep elements of your logo that reflect your rich history and values of creativity and care. I would then gather feedback from internal and external stakeholders about what can be leveraged. I would evaluate this feedback against principles like simplicity, versatility and relevance, making subtle but impactful changes. I would submit this for evaluation to you, and make adjustments as needed.
14. “What’s your unique selling point?”
This question is designed to get you bragging! It’s used by recruiters to see what you might bring to the organization, what you do differently and whether this aligns with what they do.
SAMPLE ANSWER
My USP is defined by my exceptional ability to blend thinking outside of the box with strong analytical ability and an innate capability to think commercially for the greater benefit of my organization. By understanding my client’s goals, putting a creative slant on these, and weighing up the commercial pros and cons, I bring a uniquely well-rounded approach to graphic design.
15. “Tell me about a time when you presented work to a client.”
This behavioral question is used by recruiters to assess your presentation skills. If you can’t think of a bona fide presentation example, think about ad hoc client conversations or “elevator pitches” instead.
SAMPLE ANSWER
Once, I needed to present a branding revamp for a social media company. In the presentation, I set the stage, reminded the client of the brief and presented to them our ideas for the revamp. I encouraged questions and input, which resulted in a constructive discussion and mutual agreement on the revamp. I received great feedback for how I took the lead on this presentation.
16. “How do you work with administrative departments like accounting or legal?”
Graphic design might be a creative role, but it will also involve lots of time handling administrative work. This question is used by recruiters to understand how you do this, and it can also be used to assess your stakeholder management capabilities.
SAMPLE ANSWER
For me, I view administrative departments as an essential function for me to be able to deliver great projects for my clients. To this end, I ensure I have regular one-to-ones with individuals from these departments to explain my goals, learn about their priorities and seek to find win–win solutions. I take special care to work with finance to understand costs and budgets to ensure a return on investment for my work.
17. “How do you handle creative blocks?”
Creative blocks happen to all graphic designers, and in fast-paced organizations with deadlines and demanding stakeholders, this question allows recruiters to assess how you overcome hurdles to creative thinking.
SAMPLE ANSWER
Creative blocks are inevitable, but I try not to let them panic me. I pride myself on sustaining a healthy work–life balance, meaning I can walk away and take a break when I get stuck. I surround myself with mood boards and inspiration, which helps me come up with new approaches where needed. I also enjoy learning about different graphic design skills and techniques, which enables me to work on tough projects in a variety of ways.
18. “Describe a time when you encountered resistance to one of your ideas, and how you managed this.”
This question might appear similar to the feedback question above, but it’s more focused on assessing your ability to sell ideas and influence stakeholders to your way of thinking. This is an important skill that can sell work to clients.
SAMPLE ANSWER
I was designing a logo for a client and chose a bold color scheme that they questioned in a briefing. I sought to listen to them and understand their concerns before providing rationale based on technical theory and examples of my previous work. Ultimately, we reached consensus through constructive, honest dialogue. The client ended up with a logo they loved, and I was able to stick to my design and creative philosophy.
19. “Please critique a famous marketing campaign or logo, and tell us what you would have done differently.”
This is a question to get your creative juices flowing, and it’s used by recruiters to see how you can turn established ideas and brands into something more. Preparation and brand awareness is key to this question.
SAMPLE ANSWER
I will choose Twitter’s rebranding to X. Whereas I understand the reasons behind this change, especially with regard to a bold, new direction, given the change of ownership and alignment to Elon Musk’s other X ventures, the logo wasn’t pulled through to other areas of the website, such as the handle and name, which remained popularly known as Twitter.
I would have spent more time creating a story and general graphic design plan that supported the new logo. This would include creating a powerful narrative and preparing X’s loyal user base for the change, as well as the story and reasoning behind it.
20. “Do you have any questions for us?”
As a graphic designer, you need to feel at home in the organization and professionally content in order to remain creative, so use this prompt to clarify any questions you have about the role.
SAMPLE ANSWER
Some questions you might wish to ask include:
- “How does your organization foster creativity?”
- “What do you enjoy most about working for this company?”
- “What does a typical day look like in this role?”
- “What does success look like in this role within the first year?”
- “What are some challenges faced by the company, and based on your thoughts about me as a candidate, how can I contribute to overcoming these?”
Final thoughts
Graphic design interview questions are aimed to assess the wide variety of skills and abilities that you, as a graphic design candidate, need to showcase. They’ll cover a range of areas, from cultural fit to ad hoc assessment of technical skills and thinking, as well as gauging your future capabilities based on past performance.
Prepare examples of your graphic design experience based on the job description, and consider using ChatGPT interview prompts to ready yourself for the interview. Follow these tips, and you’ll walk into any graphic design interview well-prepared and able to respond to any question that comes your way.
What other questions have you been asked in a graphic design job interview? Let us know in the comments section below!
This article is a complete update of an earlier version originally published on May 23, 2019.
