Resume Keywords That Beat ATS Systems in Any Industry.

This is where you incorporate the technical and soft skills mentioned in the job description. Depending on the role, some skills may have more weightage than others. So, read the job description carefully to decide which ones to prioritize. For example, “Business Development”, “CRM Implementation”, “Content Marketing”, “Screenplay Writing”, etc.

Incorporating your achievements as bullet points can be an excellent way to include ATS resume keywords. You can easily fit in keywords with statements like “Led a cross-functional team to identify the reasons for declining C-Sat scores and recommended process changes” or “improved sales by 30% through email marketing campaigns”.

MS Word (.docx) and PDF (.pdf) are two of the most ATS-compatible file types out there. If you are using a resume template, ensure you can download in these formats to make sure there are no blind spots. Email yourself a copy of your resume and download the attachment to double-check before using it for job applications.

In most cases, ATS will first screen your resume by job title. The key is to use the exact same job title from the job description. For example,” Project Manager” or “Senior Business Analyst II”. Any deviations could result in rejection.

Avoid using tables, colors, graphics, or page breaks. These can interfere with the optical character scanning technology used by ATS resume scanners. In some cases, they may not able to read entire sections of your resume.

No matter the role or industry you’re in, it is best to use standard fonts like Arial, Roboto, or Calibri. Using designer fonts can impact your ATS scanning patterns and increase the chances of rejection.

If the employer requires a Junior Data Analyst with experience in SQL and data visualization, your resume summary must include those exact keywords. Integrate as many keywords as possible in this section to increase your chances of passing ATS screening.

Tailor this section of your resume to include job-specific qualifications and certificates. This can increase your resume’s ATS score—just double-check for spelling mistakes or capitalization errors, as they can prevent ATS from parsing your information correctly.

Typical certificates to add include “AWS Certified Solutions Architect, “Six Sigma Green Belt”, etc.

Rather than using a traditional chronological resume, choose the ‘functional’ resume layout—it starts off with the Skills Section, followed by the Education and Skills sections respectively. This can increase your ATS resume score and can make it easier for recruiters to see the value you bring.

When listing your experience or skills, start each bullet point with an action-oriented verb. Next, describe the problem you helped solve, the approach you took, and the outcome you achieved. This format allows you to place ATS resume keywords naturally and provides sufficient context to the interviewer.

Using keywords out of context is not only confusing for the interviewers, but it can also call your professional credibility into question. Each keyword should be used no more than 2-3 times as naturally as possible.

Design elements like icons, tables, and even background color can affect ATS parsing. This can potentially result in rejection for no other reason than a technical limitation. Stick to a standard white background, standard fonts, and icons. Avoid the use of page breaks or multiple page margins in the same document.

Generic resumes are likely to be rejected—they are not ATS-compliant and show a lack of professionalism. Tailoring your resume for job-specific keywords is easier than ever, thanks to online resume builders. Many of them come with useful features like AI keyword suggestions, ATS resume templates, and spell checkers. This means you can customize your resume for any number of applications much faster than ever before.