Sample shortlist · candidates written by us, real screener output
Graphic Designer
This is what every search delivers: finalists screened against the brief, each with a score, screening notes, structured answers, and a graded work sample. These sample candidates were written by us and run through the real screener — the scores and notes are its unedited output, not a mock-up.
The brief they were screened against
Role: Graphic Designer · Band: $850–1,600/mo
Must-haves: production design inside an existing brand system, Figma proficient, articulates design decisions clearly, handles vague client feedback constructively
Nice to have: motion/animation basics, Adobe Illustrator or Photoshop, social ad variants, email template design
Scored by the same rubric the production screener runs on real applicants (graphic-designer, claude-sonnet-4-6), on 2026-09-21. Nothing below was edited afterwards — including where it went against a candidate. The rubric and weights are published.
Sofia A.
SCREEN 84/100Screening notes
Strongest evidence: 2.5 years inside a DTC skincare brand's Figma-first system at 15-25 deliverables/week is exactly the production-at-volume signal this role needs, and the work-sample annotation is unusually rigorous — named typeface tradeoffs (Canela vs. Libre Baskerville with a specific reason: x-height legibility in Stories format), a documented colour deviation tied to a visible temperature mismatch in photography, and a self-critique about timing the licensing conversation earlier. The scenario answer avoids the generic 'ask for clarification' boilerplate by giving three specific diagnostic questions and demonstrating awareness of brief-vs-execution drift — the framing around naming a direction change explicitly before revision 4 is the kind of judgment that prevents brand inconsistency at rollout. Biggest concern: no actual portfolio link or image is present, so work-sample score rests entirely on the written annotation; if the visual output is mediocre the annotation quality becomes table-stakes process description rather than evidence of design skill, and the claim cannot be verified here. Verdict: advances to interview with a mandatory portfolio review gate — if the visual work matches the articulacy of the written rationale, this is a strong hire at the stated rate.
Experience
4 years as a graphic designer, the last 2.5 at a US-based DTC skincare brand (Figma-first, mostly Figma and Illustrator). I worked inside their brand system every day: social ads, email headers, packaging mockups, and landing page sections. Volume was high — 15 to 25 deliverables a week — and the brief was often just a content block and a deadline. Before that I was at a Manila studio doing brand identity and print work. I am strongest on static digital: social, email, and web. I have done basic After Effects animation but I do not claim to be a motion designer.
Scenario answer
When a client says 'it doesn't feel premium' after the third revision, the first thing I do is stop guessing and start asking. Not 'what do you mean' — that just gets me 'I'll know it when I see it' — but specific diagnostic questions: 1. 'Can you show me a reference that does feel premium to you — from any brand, doesn't have to be ours?' This is the fastest way to calibrate. Premium means something different to a skincare brand than to a logistics company. 2. 'Is the issue the typography, the colour use, or the overall composition?' If they can answer one of those, I am already halfway there. 3. 'Looking at the two previous revisions, which came closest?' Narrowing direction from the delta is faster than restarting from a vague brief. Then the fourth revision, built on what I heard: - If the references they share are all tight whitespace, clean serifs, and muted palettes: I reduce visual noise, increase whitespace, move from the current display font to something with more optical weight. - If they showed me bold/dark/editorial: I push contrast and type scale in the other direction. - In either case I annotate the file: 'whitespace increased 40% from R3, moved from Outfit to Canela Display for the headline, muted the background from #F5F5F5 to #FAFAF8.' Named decisions are harder to reject vaguely. If their feedback contradicts the original brief — the brief says 'approachable and warm' and they are now pointing at cold editorial references — I name it explicitly: 'The reference you shared is a different direction than the original brief. Before the fourth revision I want to confirm we are updating the brief, not just this execution, so the rest of the asset set is consistent.' I would not make that change silently and then find out at the brand rollout that half the assets still look 'approachable and warm'.
Work sample
WORK SAMPLE — a product launch social set (4 posts) for the skincare brand THREE SPECIFIC DECISIONS I MADE: 1. TYPEFACE — I used Canela Display for the hero headline and Neue Haas Grotesk for body copy. Canela has an editorial, slightly old-money quality from its bracketed serifs and high contrast — exactly the 'premium skincare' signal the brand was going for — while Neue Haas keeps the supporting text clean and legible at small sizes on mobile. I tried the more obvious choice (Libre Baskerville) first but the x-height was too small to read well in an Instagram story format, which is why I went to Canela. If I were doing it again I would check the web font licence earlier; Canela is not on Google Fonts and the licensing conversation with the client took a week we did not budget. 2. LAYOUT — I used a 60/40 split between a full-bleed product photo and the text zone rather than a centred layout. The decision was driven by how the products photograph: the brand's hero shots always have negative space in the upper-left corner, so the text placement falls naturally into a composited space rather than over the product. Centred text was fighting with the photography. The 60/40 also gives me a consistent grid across all four posts even when the product shape changes. 3. COLOUR CHOICE — I pulled the campaign accent colour (#C8A882, a warm sand) directly from the product packaging rather than from the brand colour guide, which lists a cooler beige. The packaging sits in the photo. Matching the guide colour would have created a visible temperature mismatch between the product in the image and the graphic elements around it. I documented this deviation in the handoff file. What I would change: set this expectation earlier in the brief rather than explaining it in the handoff, because the creative director questioned it before I could show the side-by-side.
Reni T.
SCREEN 83/100Screening notes
The scenario answer is genuinely strong — the candidate identifies 'premium' as an information problem, proposes a concrete reference-comparison method, distinguishes element-level from composition-level fixes, and closes with the brief-conflict escalation without being asked; that is structured reasoning, not boilerplate. The work sample names actual typefaces (Playfair Display, DM Sans, Raleway), a specific hex code (#2D5016), and a real Instagram grid rationale for the left-alignment decision, then closes with a self-critical note about scope management — specificity and self-awareness that are rare at this level. Experience section is solid but the weakest part: '6–8 active clients' and '24–48 hour turnaround' are useful numbers, yet there are no named clients or industries to corroborate the US-client claim, and no mention of volume metrics (posts per week, campaign sizes) that would confirm the 'ships at volume' must-have. Biggest concern is the unverified US-client work and the absence of a visible portfolio link — the written work sample is unusually good, which slightly raises the question of whether it was AI-assisted; a live portfolio and a brief screen call would resolve both. Verdict: advance to interview; the scenario and work-sample answers place this candidate clearly above the modal band and the salary ask of $1,050 sits comfortably mid-range.
Experience
3 years as a graphic designer at a Bali-based creative agency working on social media and digital advertising for regional and US-based clients. I design mostly in Figma, handle social post variants, email graphics, and occasional landing page sections. I have worked on 6–8 active clients at a time and I am used to a fast turnaround — usually 24 to 48 hours per deliverable. My strongest skills are layout and typography; I am comfortable working inside an established brand guide and I ask for one before starting.
Scenario answer
Getting 'it doesn't feel premium' on the third revision is frustrating but it is also an information problem, not a taste problem. 'Premium' has no shared meaning until someone shows me what it means to them. My first move is to ask for a reference — something from outside our work that they would call premium. Once I have that, I compare it to what I submitted and the gap is usually visible: they are pointing at something with tight whitespace and restrained colour and what I gave them has a busier layout, or they want bolder and I went minimal. Second question: is the issue at the element level or the composition level? If it is the typeface or the colour specifically, I can swap those and show a quick revision. If it is the whole composition, I need more time and I say so. For the fourth revision I would make deliberate, named changes — not 'made it more premium' in a comment, but 'reduced the elements on the page from 8 to 5, replaced the rounded typeface with Garamond, dropped the background gradient.' Named changes are easier for a client to respond to concretely than 'I updated the feel'. If the new direction contradicts the brief — they showed me a reference that is clearly editorial and dark and the brief said 'friendly and approachable' — I would flag it in writing before doing the revision: 'This reference takes us in a different direction from the brief. Do you want to update the brief or keep the original direction?' I would not choose for them, but I would not silently make a change that affects every other asset in the project either.
Work sample
WORK SAMPLE — redesigning a social media kit for a coffee subscription brand THREE DESIGN DECISIONS: 1. TYPEFACE — I chose Playfair Display for headlines and DM Sans for body. Playfair has the editorial quality associated with premium food and beverage — contrast, sophistication, craft — while DM Sans keeps the body text readable at small sizes on mobile. The client's previous designer had used Raleway throughout, which gave everything the same visual weight. Mixing serif and sans-serif gave us hierarchy without needing to change sizes as dramatically, which helped on mobile formats where size differences are less readable. 2. LAYOUT — I shifted from a centred layout to a left-aligned system with a strong vertical margin. This came from looking at how the posts rendered in a grid on Instagram — centred layouts all look the same in a feed, while a consistent left-aligned system creates a visible brand signature when you see multiple posts together. I tested both on a mockup of the brand's actual grid before deciding. 3. COLOUR — I kept the brand green (#2D5016) but reduced its use from a background element to an accent. The original templates used the green as a full background on roughly half the posts, which made the feed look heavy. I moved it to borders, icons, and small type accents, which made the green feel intentional rather than dominant. What I would change in retrospect: I should have made this change as a suggestion in the brief stage rather than showing up to a revision with a fundamentally different colour usage — it worked, but it could have been a scope conversation.
Gabriel B.
SCREEN 62/100Screening notes
Strongest evidence is the scenario answer, which shows genuine process thinking — asking for reference examples, flagging brief drift, and naming specific design levers (whitespace, typography, colour restraint) rather than just promising to try harder; that's above average for this band. Work sample rationale is coherent and the self-critique is honest, but the decisions described (bold condensed font, black-red palette, centre-weighted layout) are entirely generic fitness-brand defaults with no evidence of working inside a pre-existing brand system or handling real constraints. The critical gap for this role is Figma: the candidate self-describes as slow there and leans on Canva, which is a hard friction point for a production role requiring brand-system discipline in Figma. Experience claims lack any numbers — no client count, no volume of assets shipped, no timelines — making it difficult to assess whether she can handle production velocity; 'clients generally like my work' is an adjective, not evidence.
Experience
2 years as a graphic designer, mostly freelance. I design social media posts, Facebook and Instagram ads, and email headers for small business clients in the Philippines and one US-based client. I am comfortable in Canva for quick work and Photoshop for more complex compositions. I am still learning Figma — I can use it but I am not as fast there as I am in Canva. I am good with colours and layouts, and my clients generally like my work on the first or second round.
Scenario answer
When a client says the design doesn't feel premium after the third revision, I would first apologise for not hitting the mark and ask them to show me an example of something they consider premium — a competitor, a brand they like, anything. This gives me a clear direction instead of guessing. I would also ask them to be more specific about what is missing — is it the colours, the fonts, the layout, or the overall look? Most of the time 'premium' means different things to different people, so I need to understand their specific vision. For the fourth revision I would look at the reference they gave me and try to match the qualities they highlighted. Usually premium design has more whitespace, more refined typography, and a more restrained colour palette — so I would adjust those elements based on what they showed me. If their feedback contradicts the original brief, I would be honest with them. I would say something like 'The reference you sent goes in a different direction than what we originally agreed on. Would you like to update the brief so I can make sure the rest of the project matches this new direction?' I always try to make the client happy and I am willing to revise as needed to get there.
Work sample
WORK SAMPLE — social media ads for a fitness supplement brand THREE DESIGN DECISIONS: 1. FONT — I chose a bold condensed font for the headline to communicate strength and energy, which matches the fitness supplement brand identity. The condensed style also allows longer text to fit on the banner without reducing the size too much. I paired it with a clean sans-serif for the body text to keep it readable. 2. COLOURS — I used the brand's black and red colours as the primary palette because they are associated with strength and performance. I kept the background clean to make the product image stand out, and used red as an accent for the call to action button to draw the eye to it. 3. LAYOUT — I placed the product prominently in the centre with the headline above and the CTA below. This follows a simple, clear hierarchy that guides the viewer from the product to the key message to the action. I kept the overall design clean and not too crowded so the product remains the focus. What I would change: I would try a version with more whitespace around the product to see if it feels more premium. The current version is good but looking at it now I think some of the elements are too close together.
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