How to Get Your Resume Past Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS)

You applied for a job you were perfect for and never heard back. One possible reason: no human ever saw your resume. Many medium and large employers use an Applicant Tracking System (ATS) to collect, sort and search applications. If the software cannot read your resume properly, or it does not match the words a recruiter searches for, your application can sink to the bottom of the pile.

The good news is that making your resume ATS-friendly is mostly about clarity, and the same changes also make it easier for humans to read.

What an ATS actually does

An ATS is a database for hiring. It typically:

• Parses your resume, pulling out your name, contact details, job titles, employers, dates, education and skills into structured fields.
• Stores your application so recruiters can search it later.
• Ranks or filters candidates, often by matching keywords from the job description or by knockout questions such as "Do you have the right to work in this country?"

Contrary to popular myths, most systems do not automatically "reject" you for a missing word. But recruiters search the database using keywords, so if your resume does not contain the terms they search for, you simply will not appear in their results.

Formatting rules that keep you readable

• Use a simple, single-column layout. Two-column designs, text boxes and tables can scramble the order of your information when parsed.
• Use standard section headings: Summary, Work Experience, Education, Skills, Certifications. Creative headings like "My Journey" may not be recognised.
• Keep contact details in the main body, not in the header or footer, which some systems skip.
• Use common fonts such as Arial, Calibri or Times New Roman at 10–12 pt.
• Avoid images, icons, charts and skill bars. Software cannot read a graphic that says you are "80% proficient in Excel".
• Save as .docx or a text-based PDF unless the employer specifies otherwise. A PDF exported from Word or Google Docs is usually fine; a scanned image of your resume is not.
• Write dates consistently, for example "Mar 2022 – Present".

How to choose the right keywords

Keywords are the skills, tools, qualifications and job titles the employer cares about. Here is a quick way to find them:

1. Copy the job description into a document.
2. Highlight hard skills (for example "financial modelling", "SQL", "forklift licence"), tools and software, certifications and the exact job title.
3. Note which terms appear more than once or in the "requirements" section. These matter most.
4. Check which of these you genuinely have, then make sure they appear in your resume using the same wording.

For example, if the ad says "customer relationship management (CRM)", include both the full phrase and the abbreviation. If it says "project coordination" and your resume says "organised projects", adjust the wording to match.

Where to put keywords

• Summary: two or three lines that include the job title and your top skills.
• Skills section: a clean list of relevant hard skills and tools.
• Experience bullets: the most convincing place, because the keyword appears next to proof. "Built weekly sales dashboards in Power BI" beats a lone "Power BI" in a list.

Don't try to trick the system

Some guides suggest pasting the job description in white text or stuffing keywords dozens of times. Don't. Recruiters see the parsed text, and keyword stuffing looks obvious and dishonest. Only list skills you can discuss confidently in an interview.

Test your resume before you send it

• Copy and paste test: copy all the text from your PDF into a plain text editor. If it comes out jumbled or missing sections, an ATS may struggle too.
• Check the application preview: many job portals show the fields they extracted from your resume. Correct any errors before submitting.
• Compare against the job ad: make sure the five or six most important requirements are clearly visible.

ATS-friendly resume checklist

• Single column, standard headings, no tables or text boxes
• Contact details in the body, not the header
• Exact job title and key skills from the ad included naturally
• Keywords backed by achievements in your bullet points
• Saved as .docx or text-based PDF with a clear file name

Tailoring your resume for each application takes ten to fifteen minutes, but it is the single most effective way to make sure the right people actually see it.