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 .

Employer Branding Intern (6-months)

Thales · Bucharest, Romania

Location: Bucharest Orhideea, Romania

Thales is a global technology leader trusted by governments, institutions, and enterprises to tackle their most demanding challenges. From quantum applications and artificial intelligence to cybersecurity and 6G innovation, our solutions empower critical decisions rooted in human intelligence. Operating at the forefront of defence and security, aerospace and space, cybersecurity and digital identity, we’re driven by a mission to build a future we can all trust.

 

In Romania, we are advancing innovation through software engineering, research and development, delivering solutions in key markets in which Thales Group operates. Our engineers design, develop and integrate solutions that impact global industries – from fully operational systems and subsystems for naval warfare and maritime security operations, to air traffic management systems, satellite-based solutions, tactical indoor simulations, identity and biometric technologies and more.

Primary purpose of the role:
Your goal will be to implement communication actions to meet the attractiveness challenges of our key countries in Europe such as Germany, Portugal, Romania and the UK, with some support occasionally for other countries when required.
You will work closely with the recruitment teams to support the employer branding efforts of the countries, as well as the different international communication departments.

Requirements:

• Studying (or recently graduated in) Communications, Marketing, Advertising or similar
• Interest in employer branding, recruitment marketing
• Ability to work in an international environment
• At ease with Social networks and latest trends
• Organization skills, curiosity, and creativity
• Fluency in English


Core mission and responsibilities:
1. Content Creation Support

  • Propose ideas for social media posts (LinkedIn, Instagram, Facebook)
  • Create simple visuals and/or videos for campaigns (using our internal tools)
  • Update and monitor the editorial calendar
  • Support employer branding campaigns (e.g.: collecting employee
  • testimonials, engaging volunteers for various projects)
  • Assist in editing and drafting texts for career pages, job boards etc.
  • Upload and update content in the CMS for various landing pages


2. Events & Special Projects

  • Provide logistical support for events
  • Create presentation materials (flyers, slides, posters)
  • Manage small administrative tasks (participant lists, communication with
  • agencies)
  • Plan the communications messages associated with our events


3. Learning & Shadowing

  • Participate in different meetings to understand the employer branding strategy
  • Shadow discussions with leadership and Talent Acquisition teams
  • Deliver a small individual project (e.g., designing and implementing a mini-communication campaign)

At Thales, we’re committed to fostering a workplace where respect, trust, collaboration, and passion drive everything we do. Here, you’ll feel empowered to bring your best self, thrive in a supportive culture, and love the work you do. Join us, and be part of a team reimagining technology to create solutions that truly make a difference – for a safer, greener, and more inclusive world.

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