How to Improve Your ATS Score

Many employers use Applicant Tracking Systems, often called ATS, to help organise and review job applications.

These systems can scan CVs for relevant information such as skills, experience, job titles and keywords before a recruiter reviews the application.

A strong ATS score does not guarantee an interview, but a poorly structured CV can make it harder for your experience to be recognised properly.

Here are some practical ways to improve how your CV performs.

1. Use Clear Section Headings

Applicant Tracking Systems need to understand the structure of your CV.

Use simple, familiar headings such as:

• Professional Summary

• Work Experience

• Education

• Skills

• Certifications

• Achievements

Avoid unusual section names that may make it harder for the system to understand where important information is located.

Clear structure also makes your CV easier for recruiters to read.

2. Match Relevant Keywords

Job descriptions often contain the skills, tools and experience an employer is looking for.

If those terms are genuinely relevant to your experience, make sure they appear naturally in your CV.

For example, if a vacancy repeatedly mentions:

• Project management

• Customer service

• Microsoft Excel

• Stakeholder communication

• Sales targets

and you genuinely have that experience, those terms should be reflected in your CV.

Do not copy keywords you cannot support with real experience.

The aim is relevance, not keyword stuffing.

3. Keep Your Formatting Simple

A visually impressive CV is not always an ATS-friendly CV.

Complex layouts can sometimes make information harder to interpret.

Be careful with:

• Multiple columns

• Large tables

• Text boxes

• Unusual symbols

• Important information inside graphics

• Overly decorative designs

A clean and professional layout is usually safer.

Your CV should look good to a person while still being easy for software to process.

4. Use Recognisable Job Titles

Creative job titles can sometimes create confusion.

If your official title was unusual, consider whether a clearer description can help explain the role.

For example:

Customer Happiness Hero

may be clearer as:

Customer Service Representative

You should never misrepresent your position, but you can make sure the wording helps employers understand what the role involved.

5. Include Skills in Context

A long list of keywords is not enough.

Where possible, demonstrate your skills inside your work experience.

Instead of simply listing:

Sales

you could write:

Managed inbound sales enquiries and consistently worked toward monthly conversion targets.

This gives the ATS relevant terminology while also giving the recruiter evidence of how you used the skill.

6. Avoid Important Information in Headers and Footers

Some systems may not interpret headers and footers as reliably as the main body of a CV.

Keep important information such as your:

• Name

• Contact details

• Main skills

• Work experience

• Qualifications

inside the main document content wherever possible.

Do not hide essential information in decorative page elements.

7. Use Consistent Dates and Formatting

Consistency makes your CV easier to understand.

Use the same format for dates throughout your employment history.

For example:

January 2024 – August 2026

rather than switching between different formats throughout the document.

Also make sure job titles, employer names and dates are clearly separated.

This helps both ATS software and recruiters understand your career timeline.

8. Focus on Relevant Experience

More information does not always make a CV stronger.

If older or unrelated experience takes up too much space, your most relevant skills may become harder to identify.

Give more attention to the experience that best supports the roles you are currently targeting.

Your CV should help an employer quickly understand why your background is relevant.

9. Use Common File Formats

Always check the employer’s instructions before uploading your CV.

Common formats include:

• PDF

• DOCX

If the employer requests a specific format, use it.

The goal is to make sure your CV can be opened and interpreted correctly without losing important information.

10. Do Not Optimise Only for the ATS

This is one of the biggest mistakes job seekers can make.

Your CV still needs to be read by a real person.

A CV filled with repeated keywords but weak evidence, unclear achievements or poor writing is unlikely to impress a recruiter.

The strongest CVs work for both:

the system that processes the application and the person who eventually reads it.

How Biqet Can Help You Understand Your ATS Performance

Biqet analyses your CV as part of your personalised career diagnosis.

Your career dashboard can help you understand areas relating to ATS compatibility, recruiter readiness, CV strength and your wider career profile.

This gives you a clearer view of potential weaknesses before you continue sending applications.

Instead of guessing whether your CV is working, you can identify areas that may need attention and make more informed improvements.

Final Thoughts

Improving your ATS score is not about trying to trick recruitment software.

It is about making your experience clear, relevant and easy to understand.

Use straightforward formatting, include genuine job-related keywords and provide evidence of your skills and achievements.

Most importantly, remember that your CV still needs to persuade a recruiter once it reaches them.

Make it easy for the ATS to understand you and easy for the recruiter to see your value.