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 Director, Card Pricing

Upgrade · San Francisco; Wilmington

Upgrade helps customers move in the right direction with affordable and responsible financial products. Since 2017, we’ve helped over 7.5 million customers access over $42 billion in consumer credit. With a relentless focus on improving our customers' financial well-being, we build products that put more money in their pocket and support their journey toward a better financial future. We’re backed by some of the most prominent technology investors and were most recently valued at $7.3B.

We’re consistently recognized for our collaborative and inclusive culture. Most recently, we were named one of the World’s Top Fintech Companies by CNBC, Best Places to Work by Built In, Best Places to Work by the San Francisco Business Times, America’s Greatest Workplaces by Newsweek, Best Startup Employer by Forbes, and Healthiest Employers by Phoenix Business Journal. 

We’re looking for new team members who get excited about designing and delivering new and better products. Come join us and help build a better financial future for millions of people.

About the Role:

We're seeking a hands-on Senior Director, Card Pricing to lead pricing strategy on our Card business team. In this role, you'll drive our thinking across lifecycle pricing for our card products, develop and implement consistent pricing frameworks, and manage strong controls and documentation. You will use in-market results and business judgement to identify enhancements and optimizations, partner cross-functionally to advocate for changes, and communicate results to a broad set of stakeholders. Your work will develop our approach to pricing in Card, advance our ability to competitively serve customers, and ensure predictable and strong returns from our Card product. 

 

This role will be based in our Wilmington,Delaware or San Francisco, CA office in a hybrid capacity.


What You’ll Do:

  • Design, implement, and manage pricing frameworks across the card lifecycle
  • Manage yield across new and existing accounts
  • Design and implement card-act compliant pricing infrastructure and policies
  • Develop new pricing approaches/strategies for innovative payment and lending features that enhance customer usage and portfolio profitability 
  • Conduct tests and analyze results to challenge assumptions and continuously refine our approach
  • Ensure accurate execution through robust controls and clear documentation
  • Translate complex data into actionable high-impact strategies 
  • Present findings and recommendations to leadership and stakeholders, including maintaining a pricing agenda and roadmap
  • Bring innovative and original ideas to tackle novel questions in the Card space
  • Partner cross-functionally across marketing, product, credit, finance, and more

 

What We Look For:

  • 7+ years of experience in consumer finance, consulting, or other data-driven backgrounds 
  • Deep experience with consumer financial product pricing, particularly credit cards
  • Strong proficiency in SQL, Excel

 

What We Offer You: 

  • Competitive salary and stock option plan
  • 100% paid coverage of medical, dental and vision insurance 
  • Flexible PTO
  • Competitive 401(k) 
  • Opportunities for professional growth and development 
  • Paid parental leave
  • Health & wellness initiatives

We are an equal opportunity employer and value diversity at our company. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, color, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, age, marital status, veteran status, or disability status.

Upgrade does not accept unsolicited resumes from staffing agencies, search firms, or any third parties. Any resume submitted to any employee of Upgrade without a prior written agreement in place will be considered the property of Upgrade, and Upgrade will not be obligated to pay any referral or placement fee. Agencies must obtain advance written approval from Upgrade's Talent Acquisition department to submit resumes and only in conjunction with a valid, fully executed agreement. English is required for all positions, as it involves interacting with staff at Upgrade's offices worldwide.

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