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 .

Senior Sponsored Research Administrator

Northcarolina · Raleigh, NC, US

The Senior Sponsored Research Administrator position is responsible for compliance reviews, creating systems to help streamline sponsored award processes, and as a backup to post-award and pre-award administration of contract and grant awards with a portfolio of over $45M in awards for FY25 over 250 subawards. This position is considered a subject matter expert (SME) in pre and post award research administration for the UNCSO, UNC System Campuses, private universities, and non-profit entities and will make independent decisions or provide solutions on compliance concerns, reviewing compliance for subawards, creating systems in Smartsheet or DocuSign to streamline processes, support for audit requests, and other post award sponsored program items. Full knowledge of all University of North Carolina System (UNCS) policies, state, local and federal polices/regulations are required for this position including the federal 2 CFR 200 also known as Uniform Guidance. The ability to train others at the UNCSO, UNC campuses, and other external entities on the processes for compliance for state and federal sponsored awards. Position will be responsible for resolving most of the compliance concerns and creating the necessary process for streamlining sponsored award processes. Oversight and participation of the changes in ConnectCarolina for the sponsored programs team is required. Communicating effectively to all customers at the UNCS and other entities along with comprehensive written ability is required. Compliance requirements must be met on a continual basis to minimize risk to the UNCS. This position interacts with a variety of staff members including senior leaders, project managers, and support personnel in the development of proposals, management of sponsored awards as well as ensuring compliance with the policies and procedures of the award. Position is considered high level and will need to communicate with officials from the federal, state, and local governments sometimes making decision quickly. Position serves as one of the authorized organizational representatives required to submit proposals to the federal government and other agencies. This position will be a backup to the post-award and pre award position ensuring that all items are submitted and reviewed on time.
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