Cohesyve · Practice for candidates
Going for a Graphic Designer role? Find out how you'd actually score.
Run a Graphic Designer simulation built the same way employers build theirs, and get a full report showing exactly where you lost marks — before it counts.
5
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scored report every run
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5 free assessments a month · No card required · Pro from $16/mo
Overview
Design assessments have moved away from open portfolio review toward a scoped, time-boxed task with a written rationale attached. You are given a brief, some constraints and a set of assets, and asked to produce work plus an explanation of the decisions behind it. Employers do this because a portfolio shows a polished end state and says nothing about how you got there or what you would do to a deadline. This page covers what the tasks contain and how they are scored.
Why employers assess this role
Portfolio work is often collaborative, art-directed or heavily refined over weeks, and there is no reliable way to see which decisions were yours. A short brief under a timer shows your typographic and layout judgement directly, and the rationale shows whether the choices were deliberate.
What gets tested
The format
Duration
60–120 minutes
Question types
- Scoped design or layout task from a brief
- Written rationale for the decisions made
- Critique of supplied creative
- Adaptation of one design across formats
Levels
Entry · Mid · Senior
What you'll be asked to do
Produce a design from a brief
A defined deliverable with real constraints — supplied copy, a brand palette, a format. Under-specified briefs are common, and assessors watch what you do about the gaps.
- •Lay out a single-page piece using supplied copy and brand assets
- •Design a set of social assets from one campaign idea
- •Produce a simple identity application within an existing brand system
Work inside a brand system
Existing guidelines and a new deliverable. Strong candidates use the system and extend it consistently; weaker ones either ignore it or apply it so literally the work has no shape.
- •Create a new asset type the guidelines do not currently cover
- •Fix a supplied piece that breaks the brand system in several places
- •Adapt a design for a format the existing templates do not fit
Adapt across formats
One design taken to different ratios and sizes. This is where hierarchy problems become obvious, because a layout that only works at one size usually had no hierarchy to begin with.
- •Take a landscape design to a square and a vertical format
- •Produce a version legible at small size on a phone
- •Adapt a print layout for screen without simply rescaling it
Explain your decisions
A short written rationale, now standard in most design assessments. It is where deliberate work separates from work that happened to look acceptable.
- •Explain the typographic hierarchy you chose and what it makes the viewer read first
- •Say what you changed about the supplied copy or brief, and why
- •State what you would do differently with another day on the task
Cohesyve for candidates
Practise a Graphic Designer assessment before the real one
Run the same AI job simulations companies use to evaluate applicants. You get a scored report showing where you're strong and where you're not, plus what to work on.
Sample tasks — and what strong looks like
Lay out a single-page piece using supplied copy, a brand palette and one photograph.
EntryWhat strong looks like: A clear reading order, restrained type choices, generous and deliberate spacing, and an image treatment that supports the message. Weak submissions centre everything, use several typefaces and weights with no system, and leave inconsistent margins that suggest the layout was assembled rather than designed.
Take one campaign design and adapt it to three formats, including one very small.
MidWhat strong looks like: Rebuilds the hierarchy for each ratio, dropping secondary elements where they will not survive the size, and keeps the recognisable idea intact. Weak adaptations rescale the original, so the small version has unreadable type and the vertical one has awkward empty space.
Critique a supplied piece of creative and set out what you would change and in what order.
MidWhat strong looks like: Names specific, prioritised problems tied to what the work has to achieve — a hierarchy that hides the main message, contrast that fails at size, spacing that groups the wrong elements. Weak critiques express personal preference about the typeface or say the piece feels cluttered without saying which relationships cause it.
Create a new asset type the brand guidelines do not cover, and justify how you extended the system.
SeniorWhat strong looks like: Identifies the underlying rules of the system rather than copying its existing outputs, extends them consistently, and states which decisions are new and would need sign-off. Weak submissions either break the system without acknowledging it or reproduce an existing template that does not suit the format.
How to prepare
- #1
Practise a full brief under a timer, including the rationale, because the written section is routinely left until there are five minutes remaining.
- #2
Rehearse typographic hierarchy deliberately: take a block of copy and lay it out three ways, each with a different intended reading order.
- #3
Work on adapting one design across ratios and sizes, since this exposes hierarchy weaknesses faster than any other exercise.
- #4
Practise critiquing existing creative in specific, prioritised terms rather than in terms of preference.
- #5
Get comfortable stating your assumptions about an incomplete brief in writing, as assessors treat unstated guesses as a failure to interrogate the brief.
- #6
Set up your working files so the submission is tidy — named layers, consistent spacing, an export that opens cleanly. Presentation of the file itself is noticed.
Common mistakes
Spending most of the time on visual polish and leaving no time for the written rationale.
Using several typefaces and weights with no consistent system behind them.
Inconsistent spacing and margins that make a competent layout read as careless.
Ignoring a supplied brand system, or applying it so literally that the work has no hierarchy.
Rescaling a design across formats instead of rebuilding the hierarchy for each one.
Presenting the work with no explanation, so every good decision looks like an accident.
How it's scored
| Criterion | What strong looks like |
|---|---|
| Hierarchy and layout | A deliberate reading order, with the most important element winning attention at every size the work is used at. |
| Typographic craft | Restrained type choices, consistent scale and spacing, and attention to detail such as line length and alignment. |
| Brief interpretation | The work answers what was asked, and any ambiguity is resolved with a stated assumption rather than a silent guess. |
| System consistency | Brand rules are understood and extended coherently, with new decisions identified as new. |
| Rationale | A short, concrete explanation of the decisions and the trade-offs, showing the work was designed rather than arrived at. |
Frequently Asked Questions
Does a design assessment replace my portfolio?
No — it usually sits alongside it. The portfolio shows range and finish over time; the assessment shows how you work to a brief and a deadline without art direction.
Which software am I expected to use?
Normally your own. Most briefs are tool-agnostic and ask for a flat export, though some employers state a preference if the team works in a specific file format day to day.
How finished does the work need to be?
Considered rather than polished. A well-resolved layout with a clear rationale generally scores above a highly rendered piece with unexplained decisions and inconsistent spacing.
How much should the written rationale cover?
A few short paragraphs. The hierarchy you chose, the assumptions you made about the brief, and what you would do with more time. Assessors read it closely, so it is worth protecting the time for it.
Is it worth practising one before the real thing?
It is, particularly for pacing. Cohesyve runs five free scored assessments a month, so you can find out whether you are losing marks on hierarchy, on brief interpretation or simply on never reaching the rationale.
Practise another role
Cohesyve · Practice for candidates
Practise a Graphic Designer assessment now — free.
Five scored assessments a month, a full report on every run, and a learning pathway built from what you got wrong. No card required.
5
free assessments a month
$0
no card required
Full
scored report every run
Every
question type included
5 free assessments a month · No card required · Pro from $16/mo
For hiring teams
Hiring for a Graphic Designer role? See how your applicants perform before you spend interview time.