Many employers (especially larger companies) use Applicant Tracking Systems (ATSs) to manage the huge amount of candidates that apply for roles online. An ATS is a system that scans resumes and matches them against criteria (mostly keywords) defined by the employer.

There is a common misconception that the ATS automatically rejects applicants, which is mostly not true! The system will only auto-reject you if you don’t meet some specific criteria - location, years of experience, etc.

This is why it is extremely important that your CV is in a format these systems can understand. Always submit your CV as a .pdf.

Recruiters search these systems for specific keywords based on the job description. Think of it as a Google search, but for CVs. So if you don’t have the right keywords on your CV, it doesn’t show up in the search result.

These systems must recognise your CV as strong to get it in front of a recruiter.

Practice preparing your CV to be successful for each application rather than sending out the same CV to every company. As well as understanding the principles of ATS, there are some free tools you can use to practice and improve your CV.

Learn more here: https://www.indeed.com/career-advice/resumes-cover-letters/ats-resume

• https://resumeworded.com/ - This gives you a score for your CV using an ATS and shows you where you can improve. You can re-upload your CV to see the impact of your changes.
• https://app.jobscan.co/ - This has a limited number of uses for free but allows you to compare a specific job description against your CV. Use this to help you understand how they compare the job description to your CV.

You should treat your CV & Cover Letters as you would code. Keep iterating until it works for you!