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 CRA

Thermo Fisher Scientific · Remote, Milano

Work Schedule

Other

Environmental Conditions

Office

Job Description

At PPD, part of Thermo Fisher Scientific, you’ll discover meaningful work that makes a positive impact on a global scale. Join our colleagues in bringing our Mission to life - enabling our customers to make the world healthier, cleaner and safer. We provide our teams with the resources needed to achieve individual career goals while taking science a step beyond through research, development and delivery of life-changing therapies. With clinical trials conducted in 100+ countries and ongoing development of novel frameworks for clinical research through our PPD clinical research portfolio, our work spans laboratory, digital and decentralized clinical trial services. Your determination to deliver quality and accuracy will improve health outcomes that people and communities depend on – now and in the future.

This is a great opportunity for experienced Senior CRA's currently working within the life science sector for pharmaceutical companies, biotech companies or CRO's to work with a world-leading CRO across multiple sponsors, various protocols and therapy areas.

These roles can be performed remotely for CRA's based close to our clinical 'hubs': Milan, Bologna, Florence, Rome and Naples. Travel requirement will be national across Italy.

Essential Functions:

  • Monitors investigator sites with a risk-based monitoring approach: applies root cause analysis (RCA), critical thinking and problem-solving skills to identify site processes failure and corrective/preventive actions to bring the site into compliance and decrease risks.
  • Ensures data accuracy through SDR, SDV and CRF review as applicable through on-site and remote monitoring activities.
  • Assess investigational product through physical inventory and records review.
  • Documents observations in reports and letters according to timelines using approved business writing standards.
  • Escalates observed deficiencies and issues to clinical management expeditiously and follows all issues through to resolution. May need to maintain regular contact between monitoring visits with investigative sites to confirm that the protocol is being followed, that previously identified issues are being resolved and that the data is being recorded in a timely manner.
  • Participates in the investigator payment process. Ensures a shared responsibility with other project team members on issues/findings resolution. Investigates and follows-up on findings as applicable.
  • Participates in investigator meetings as necessary. Identifies potential investigators in collaboration with the client company to ensure the acceptability of qualified investigative sites.
  • Initiates clinical trial sites according to the relevant procedures to ensure compliance with the protocol and regulatory and ICH GCP obligations, making recommendations where warranted. Performs trial close out and retrieval of trial materials.
  • Ensures that required essential documents are complete and in place, according to ICH-GCP and applicable regulations. Conducts on-site file reviews as per project specifications.
  • Provides trial status tracking and progress update reports to the Clinical Team Manager (CTM) as required. Ensures study systems are updated per agreed study conventions (e.g. Clinical Trial Management System).
  • Contributes to the project team by assisting in preparation of project publications/tools and sharing ideas/suggestions with team members.
  • Contributes to other project work and initiatives for process improvement, as required.

Education and Experience:

  • University degree in a science related field
  • CRA Qualified as per the Ministerial Decree dated 15/11/2011 and at least 3 years of independent monitoring experience in clinical development phases II-IV
  • Understanding of ICH-GCP, EU and FDA requirements
  • Fluency in English and in Italian
  • Valid Driver's License

Knowledge, Skills and Abilities:

  • Proven clinical monitoring skills
  • Demonstrated understanding of medical/therapeutic area knowledge and medical terminology
  • Demonstrated ability to attain and maintain a working knowledge of ICH GCPs, applicable regulations and procedural documents
  • Well-developed critical thinking skills, including but not limited to: critical mindset, in-depth investigation for appropriate root cause analysis and problem solving
  • Ability to manage Risk Based Monitoring concepts and processes
  • Good oral and written communication skills, with the ability to communicate effectively with medical personnel
  • Ability to maintain customer focus through the utilization of good listening skills, attention to detail and the ability to perceive customers’ underlying issues
  • Good organizational and time management skills
  • Effective interpersonal skills
  • Attention to detail
  • Ability to remain flexible and adaptable in a wide range of scenarios
  • Ability to work in a team or independently as require
  • Good computer skills: solid knowledge of Microsoft Office and the ability to learn appropriate software

As well as being rewarded a competitive salary, we have an extensive benefits package based around the health and well-being of our employees. We have a flexible working culture, where PPD truly value a work-life balance. We’ve grown sustainably year on year but continue to offer a collaborative environment, with teams of colleagues eager to share expertise and have fun together. We are a global organization but with a local feel.

Our 4i Values:

Integrity – Innovation – Intensity – Involvement

If you resonate with our 4i values above, and ultimately wish to accelerate the delivery of safe and effective therapeutics for some of the world’s most urgent health needs, submit your application – we’d love to hear from you!