A Chinese UX portfolio typically opens with a company overview, a timeline, and a list of team members and their departments. US hiring managers scan this and see noise. They want to know, in the first glance: 'What was the problem? What did you do? What moved the needle?' If you keep the Chinese format, you are competing with US-native candidates who lead with a one-line summary like 'Redesigned checkout flow, reducing cart abandonment by 22% in 3 months.'
Chinese portfolios often list your title with a level number (e.g., 'UX Designer, P7'), the number of direct reports, and the department's place in the org chart. US portfolios drop this entirely. Your job is to translate your position into a functional role ('Senior Product Designer' or 'UX Lead'), then describe the outcome of your work — not your standing in the company.
Before (Chinese format): 'Project: E-Commerce App Redesign. Team: 12 designers across 3 departments. I was the P5 interaction designer reporting to the product manager. We delivered the new homepage in Q3.'
After (US format): 'Led interaction design for an e-commerce app homepage redesign. Identified that 40% of users dropped off at the search results page. Designed a card-based layout with persistent filters and real-time previews. Shipped in 3 months, reduced bounce rate by 15% and increased product page views by 28%.'
This checklist ensures every project speaks US recruiter language. Copy-paste this and apply it to each case study before uploading to your portfolio site.
US portfolios open with a hero shot of the project, not a company hierarchy. Remove any page that starts 'This project was for Alibaba's e-commerce division.' Instead, start with a headline like 'Reducing shopping cart abandonment for a major e-commerce platform.'
Chinese portfolios often include 8–12 projects to show breadth. US hiring managers want 3–4 deep case studies. Choose the 3 projects with the clearest results — even if they are not the most technically complex. You can always link to a full Behance or Dribbble portfolio in the footer.
'Interaction Designer' in China might mean 'Visual designer who also does wireframes.' In the US, use 'UX Designer' or 'Product Designer' if you do end-to-end work. If you specialized in motion or wireframes, use 'Motion Designer' or 'UX Architect.' Never list Chinese grade levels (P4, P5, P6, T3, etc.) — they are meaningless to US recruiters.
Chinese resumes often use passive voice: 'The design was iterated based on feedback.' US style is active: 'I iterated the design based on user feedback.' Write in first person. Cut every sentence that starts with 'It was...' or 'This project was...'
Almost all US companies use an Applicant Tracking System (ATS) to parse resumes. ATS cannot read text inside images, infographics, or columns. If your portfolio PDF includes a screenshot of a user flow diagram with no alt text, the ATS sees nothing. Always include a plain-text summary of each project below your visual. Keep your resume as a single-column .docx or .pdf with standard fonts (Arial, Calibri, Helvetica) — no tables, no text boxes, no graphics.
Below is a minimal template you can adapt. It strips all Chinese-specific elements and focuses on what US recruiters demand.
Header: [Your Name] | [City, State] | [Phone Number] | [LinkedIn URL] | [Portfolio URL]
Summary (2 lines max): 'UX Designer with 5 years of experience designing consumer apps for 10M+ users. Skilled in user research, interaction design, and cross-functional leadership. Seeking product design roles at growth-stage tech companies.'
Experience (Project-based, not company-title-based): Senior Product Designer | [Company Name] | 2021–2024
Skills: User Research | Wireframing & Prototyping (Figma, Sketch) | User Journey Mapping | A/B Testing | Design Systems | Data-Driven Decision Making
Education: Bachelor of Design, [University Name], [Year]
Note: If you have a master's degree from a Chinese university, list it without translation — just use the English name ('Master of Arts in Interaction Design') and the year. Do not list GPA unless it is 3.5+ on a 4.0 scale (if needed, convert using the standard 100-point to 4.0 scale: 90–100 = 4.0, 80–89 = 3.0, etc.).
Yes. Use the company's official English registration name (e.g., 'Alibaba Group' not 'Taobao'). If it is a smaller firm, add a one-line description: 'A 200-person fintech startup serving 1M users in China.'
Do not list them. Chinese certifications (CET-6, NCRE) mean nothing to US recruiters and clutter the page. Instead, demonstrate English proficiency naturally: list 'Fluent in English and Mandarin' in your summary, and ensure your portfolio writing has no grammatical errors.
Only if you have 8+ years of experience and the second page is a single, deep case study. For early- to mid-career (0–6 years), one page is the US standard. Use your portfolio website (e.g., Behance, Squarespace) for full case studies; the resume PDF should summarize each project in 2–3 bullets.
No. Use the official English name of your university as listed on its international website (e.g., 'Tsinghua University' not 'Qinghua Daxue'). If your university has no English name, use Pinyin and add the city: 'Zhejiang University (Hangzhou, China).'
To instantly check if your current Chinese-origin resume passes basic US ATS formatting rules, use the free PrismResume checker at https://prismresume.com/chinese-resume-to-english — no sign-up needed, just paste and scan.
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