Is Your Résumé Failing To Land Job Interviews? Here's Why You Should Make It ATS Friendly
Scroll for 15 minutes on LinkedIn, and you'll know why ATS is the talk of the town. Most Fortune 500 companies rely on some form of ATS to streamline the hiring process.
By Devanshi Ahuja
Picture this. With stellar grades, mastered skills, work experience and glowing letters of recommendation, you craft the perfect résumé — clean colours, fancy fonts, a little graphic on the side. Maybe even your photo smiling in the corner. You hit ‘apply’. Days, weeks and months pass. But there are no signs of a reply.
Chances are, your résumé didn’t make it past the Applicant Tracking System, or ATS, an artificial intelligence-powered software program which functions much like a typical examiner, giving your résumé a score in its database, often out of 100.
Similar to a classic exam where a score of 80 and above is considered remarkable, the ATS is known for filtering the cream of the crop even before human eyes get to assess the document chronicling your vocational journey.
Scroll for 15 minutes on LinkedIn, and you will know why ATS is the talk of the town. In fact, 98% of the Fortune 500 companies rely on some form of ATS to streamline the hiring process, as per Jobscan.
This article delves into the nitty-gritty of ATS and how you can craft an ATS-friendly résumé.
What Is ATS And How Does It Work?
Employers are increasingly using ATS to process the overwhelming number of applications received for job openings.
It helps save time, stay organised and identify the most qualified candidates, without recruiters breaking a sweat to read every résumé manually.
When job seekers apply online, their résumés get loaded into the ATS database of the company. Recruiters then use keywords to search the database for the most desirable résumés.
Your Résumé May Be Visually Striking, But It Might Not Make The Cut
Here’s the catch. Even if you’re highly qualified, your résumé might not show up simply because it lacks the right keywords. The ATS cannot interpret context, making it a major drawback.
While many use graphic design apps like Canva, it must be noted that “most ATS software can't read information embedded in graphics”, Dr Kristy Taylor, career and executive coach, explained in a LinkedIn blog.
“Custom fonts, columns, and non-traditional layouts can cause the system to misread or ignore important content,” she noted.
Outsmarting The ATS: Steps To Optimise Your Résumé
1) Mention Your Exact Job Title
Recruiters search for candidates in the ATS using specific keywords, including the job title; for example, ‘Business Analyst’. If your résumé doesn’t include the specific title, it may not show up.
2) Add Skills Relevant To Job Description
The key to making your résumé ATS-friendly is to mirror the language used in the job description, honestly. Highlight the skills mentioned most frequently in the job listing which match your experience, and add these to your résumé exactly as they appear.
3) Format
A poorly formatted résumé makes it hard for ATS to scan through your information, even if it has the perfect skills and keywords.
It is recommended to avoid jargon and overly complicated wording while sticking to traditional headers like ‘Work Experience’ and ‘Education’.
To enhance readability, use a standard font such as Times New Roman, Arial, or Calibri and break up the text into bullet points. Graphics, images, charts or text boxes confuse the ATS.
Lastly, Avoid using special characters or symbols that the system might misinterpret.
Can AI Help?
However, it may get a bit tricky to analyse whether your résumé is truly optimised for the ATS.
Enter AI résumé builders. These tools scan through your curriculum vitae and provide a score showing how well the résumé matches the job requirements.
Some even go a step further, identifying relevant keywords, suggesting content and adjusting the formatting for better compatibility, to increase the probability of landing interviews.
Should You Use AI To Tweak Your Résumé? What HRs Say
Although using AI to create résumés was initially frowned upon by hiring managers, the sentiment appears to have slightly shifted in recent studies.
A 2024 survey of 500 HR managers by Zety revealed that more than one-third of them were likely to interview candidates who used AI to enhance their job application documents.
Interestingly, nearly 40% stated that AI usage did not affect their final decision.
However, many still believe otherwise.
Finally, note that AI often provides vague and generic responses and risks making your résumé sound like everyone else’s. While utilising AI to tweak your résumé and cover letter, always personalise the output, and ensure that it reflects your unique voice and style.
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