What an ATS actually does

An Applicant Tracking System (ATS) is software that scans and ranks resumes before a recruiter ever sees them, typically by matching keywords against the job description and checking whether the formatting can be parsed correctly. A resume that looks great to a human but confuses the ATS can get filtered out before anyone reads it — regardless of how qualified the candidate actually is.

Formatting mistakes that break ATS parsing

  • Tables and multi-column layouts — many ATS platforms read left-to-right, top-to-bottom, and scramble content placed in columns or tables.
  • Text inside images or graphics — a skills chart as an image is invisible to an ATS scanner.
  • Unusual fonts or heavy styling — stick to standard, readable fonts; decorative fonts can render as gibberish when parsed.
  • Headers/footers for contact info — some systems skip header/footer sections entirely, meaning your phone number or email might never get extracted.

What to actually include, especially with limited work experience

Fresh graduates often worry they don't have enough "experience" to fill a resume. In practice, ATS systems and recruiters both respond well to:

  • Relevant coursework, projects, and thesis work with a one-line outcome for each
  • Internships, even short ones, described with specific tasks and any measurable result
  • Certifications or online courses relevant to the target role
  • Skills section matching the exact terms used in the job posting (if the posting says "Excel," don't only write "spreadsheet software")

Matching keywords without keyword-stuffing

The goal isn't to repeat the job description word-for-word — that reads poorly to a human reviewer even if it scores well with the ATS. Instead, mirror the specific tools, skills, and terminology used in the posting naturally within your bullet points and skills section, so both the software and the recruiter recognize the match.

File format matters

Unless the job posting specifically asks for a different format, a standard PDF from a clean, single-column template is the safest choice — it preserves formatting across systems better than a Word document, while still being fully text-readable by most modern ATS platforms.

Building an ATS-safe resume without the guesswork

sedoc's Resume Builder uses single-column, text-based templates designed specifically to avoid the parsing issues above, so you can focus on the content instead of second-guessing the layout.