Key Takeaways

  • 75% of U.S. employers use automated applicant tracking systems to screen resumes before a human reviews them (Harvard Business School & Accenture, 2021)
  • The most common ATS failures are missing keywords, incompatible formatting, and incorrect file types
  • ResumeGeni scores your resume across 8 parsing layers — modeled on the same steps enterprise ATS platforms like Workday, Greenhouse, and Taleo use to evaluate candidates

How ATS Resume Scoring Works

Applicant tracking systems parse your resume into structured data — extracting your name, contact info, work history, skills, and education — then score how well that data matches the job requirements. Many ATS rejections happen because the parser couldn't extract critical fields, not because the candidate wasn't qualified.

LayerWhat It ChecksWhy It Matters
Document extractionFile format, encoding, readabilityCorrupted or image-only PDFs fail immediately
Layout analysisTables, columns, headers, footersMulti-column layouts break field extraction
Section detectionExperience, education, skills headingsNon-standard headings cause sections to be missed
Field mappingName, email, phone, dates, titlesMissing contact info is a common cause of immediate rejection
Keyword matchingJob-specific terms, skills, certificationsKeyword overlap affects recruiter search visibility and ATS scoring
Chronology checkDate ordering, gap detectionReverse-chronological order is expected by most ATS
QuantificationMetrics, numbers, measurable outcomesQuantified achievements help human reviewers and some scoring models
Confidence scoringOverall parse quality and completenessLow-confidence parses get deprioritized in results

Frequently Asked Questions

Is ResumeGeni free?
Yes. ResumeGeni is currently in beta — ATS analysis, scoring, and initial improvement suggestions are free with no signup required. Full guidance and saved reports may require a free account.
What file formats are supported?
PDF, DOCX, DOC, TXT, RTF, ODT, and Apple Pages. PDF and DOCX are recommended for best ATS compatibility.
How is the ATS score calculated?
Your resume is processed through an 8-layer parsing pipeline that extracts structured data the same way enterprise ATS platforms do. The score reflects how completely and accurately your resume can be parsed, plus how well your content matches common ATS ranking criteria.
Can ATS read PDF resumes?
Yes, but not all PDFs are equal. Text-based PDFs parse well. Image-only PDFs (scanned documents) and PDFs with complex tables or multi-column layouts often fail ATS parsing. Our analyzer will flag these issues.
How do I improve my ATS score?
Focus on three areas: use a clean single-column format, include keywords from the job description naturally in your experience bullets, and ensure all sections (contact, experience, education, skills) use standard headings.

ATS Guides & Resources

Built by engineers with 12 years of experience building enterprise hiring technology at ZipRecruiter. Last updated .

AV Engineer (Contractor)

Instacart · San Francisco, CA

We're transforming the grocery industry

At Instacart, we invite the world to share love through food because we believe everyone should have access to the food they love and more time to enjoy it together. Where others see a simple need for grocery delivery, we see exciting complexity and endless opportunity to serve the varied needs of our community. We work to deliver an essential service that customers rely on to get their groceries and household goods, while also offering safe and flexible earnings opportunities to Instacart Personal Shoppers.

Instacart has become a lifeline for millions of people, and we’re building the team to help push our shopping cart forward. If you’re ready to do the best work of your life, come join our table.

Instacart is a Flex First team

There’s no one-size fits all approach to how we do our best work. Our employees have the flexibility to choose where they do their best work—whether it’s from home, an office, or your favorite coffee shop—while staying connected and building community through regular in-person events. Learn more about our flexible approach to where we work.

 

Overview

We are currently seeking an Audio Visual technician for our Instacart offices! This position is a flex role with a set schedule for days in the office and remote. This role will be responsible for providing stellar AV Support by maintaining and operating our conference room technologies for company-wide meetings and webinars! This is an amazing opportunity to work with the latest technology, grow, and have a big impact on the success of the product and the company.

The IT Operations and Services team consists of IT Support, IT AV, IT Logistics, and IT Executive Support. Together we ensure that the Support experience across Instacart is at the highest level. From the work the Support team does to provide a great user experience through user facing support.


About the Job

  • On-site as needed in local Instacart Office
  • Plan, design, and execute a full life cycle, end-to-end, strategic meetings, high-touch conferences, and virtual events based on compliance guidelines, and ensuring the proper resources are utilized.
  • Coordinates and produces onsite, virtual, and hybrid meetings to include research and selection of appropriate streaming platforms, and technology implementation.
  • Participate in daily operations meetings as well as weekly review with management and the AV team, as needed.Support and coordinate the logistics of on-site and remote corporate live events
  • Work with both internal and external stakeholders to ensure meetings are successful and follow the run of show, while maintaining high client satisfaction
  • Triage incoming event requests and document timely responses to stakeholders in Jira
  • Perform preventative maintenance: conduct sweeps of AV spaces daily to ensure rooms have full functionality
  • Assist executive staff with setting up required technology, confirm presentations display correctly, audio is functioning if necessary, and otherwise running technology for meetings as needed
  • Pay range for this position is $52/hour-$63/hour in San Francisco. 

 

About You

  • 2 years relevant experience in corporate live events and customer serviceProven experience planning large-scale events with a demonstrated ability to plan effectively, and the flexibility to handle the unexpected.
  • A self-starter with meticulous attention to detail and follow-through.
  • Strong team-building and people skills with the ability to develop professional relationships with staff and external partners through ongoing communications.
  • Expertise in Google Suite and virtual meeting tools such as Zoom and Google Meet; familiarity with event registration software (Bizzabo experience a plus), web-based platforms, and audio-visual equipment. 
  • Ability to establish priorities, work independently, successfully manage multiple projects
  • Excellent communication and documentation skills
View full listing