Website critique & about my Deafness...

Hello

Website
I thought it's time to have some critique on my website. I've been looking for junior / graduate graphic design job for a year, with no success. Any feedback / advice would be greatly appreciated!

My portfolio website can be seen on: inspireme247.com

CV
Because I am profoundly Deaf, should I add a section on my CV about my Deafness? There already is a section called 'Additional Information' at the bottom, which can be seen on: inspireme247.com/CV.pdf

Let me know what you think about this.

I appreciate this is a big ask to look through my portfolio website and CV but if you have any tips, advice or criticisms on either item I would be very grateful!

Cheers,
Dean

 

I think in this current market where jobs are scarce and designers and so easy to come by, you really need to stand out from the crowd.

As one of my employer's used to say - is this the best piece of work you could create or is it just OK? Could it be better?

I think you should make more of a showcase of your work and your skills. What do you bring thats different, what makes them choose you over all the rest. You need to sell yourself a lot harder.

Try and do more projects (free, low-paid, personal) and talk about them more.

 

The plain background isn't too effective and the text could use a slightly different font that would still be easy to read and yet not boring or generic. Also, you could try giving more attention to the "jack of all trades" tagline, just to show some confidence that you really are one. Finally, you can make the sidebar and the links bigger and more interesting rather than plain text links.

 

If I hadn't read your post before clicking in the link, I'll have no idea what the site is all about at one glance. Instead of placing a logo in the sidebar, why not extend it and place as a header?
I agree with ilovedesign, "Jack of all trades" tagline won't impress your visitors/market. They want someone who is an expert of some field, say .. creatives. Why not show your creativeness by placing a tagline, stating your deafness and it's not a hindrance for creativity .. or something like that.
You can run a flash to showcase your sample sites, and place a content as an overview too. Good luck!