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10 Proven Ways to Improve Your ATS Resume Score Quickly

By Editorial Team

17th October 2025
5 Mins
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How to Improve Your ATS Resume Score Quickly

When you check resume score, the ATS will help to ensure that it gets noticed by the recruiters and also gets through the automated screenings. Follow these proven steps:


Step 1: Add Keywords from Job Description


Step 2: Create Your Resume in Word, Not Canva


Step 3: Tailor Your Resume for Each Job


Step 4: Use Action Verbs and Add Quantifications


Step 5: Highlight Relevant Skills and Certifications


Step 6: Optimize Job Titles and Experience Sections


Step 7: Keep Your Resume Concise and Clear


Step 8: Use ResuScan to Evaluate Your Resume


Step 9: Avoid Common ATS Mistakes


Step 10: Continuously Update and Refine Your Resume


If you follow these steps, then you will be able to produce an ATS friendly resume that is highly optimized and consequently has a better chance of getting through the ATS and getting you the interview opportunities.

How To Quickly Improve Your ATS Resume Score

1) Add Keywords from Job Description

Getting the right resume keywords is a key factor for improving your ATS resume checker score and getting seen by the recruiters. Applicant Tracking Systems scans the resumes for the keywords and phrases that coincide with the job description. When you do “check my resume score,” and the resume is missing these terms, it might get filtered out anyway just because of the automatic filtering, irrespective of how qualified you are. 


Effective keyword usage:


  • Job descriptions analysis: Skills, duties, and qualifications that are mentioned repeatedly, pick them out.


  • Making it a natural part of the text: Summing up, skills, and experience are the sections where you can type out the keywords, but do not stuff.


  • Soft and hard skills: Along with the technical skills, include the soft skills like communication that are mentioned in the JD.


  • Using tools for help: mployee.me’s Resume Keywords tool helps you analyze your resume and job description for the purpose of pointing out the keywords that are absent or unnecessary.


  • For every application: The resume needs to be tweaked for each role to reflect the most relevant keywords.


The Resume Keywords tool by mployee.me provides ATS optimization, assisting you in customizing your resume for each job, saving hours of manual effort, and thereby increasing your chances of securing interviews. By wisely inserting keywords all through your resume, you make sure that it not only goes through ATS scanning but also has a good appeal to the recruiters.

2) Create Your Resume in Word, Not Canva

Proper formatting is essential when it comes to making an ATS friendly resume. Even the best resumes with great experience and skills might not get through the scanning process if the formatting creates problems in the whole process of information parsing by the software.


Following are the major formatting tips for ATS optimization:


  • Use standard fonts: Standard fonts like Arial, Calibri, or Times New Roman makes your resume ATS-Friendly.


  • No images or graphics: Logos, photos, and charts are beyond the interpretation of ATS software.


  • Headings that are simple: Label sections very clearly with the names “Experience,” “Education,” and “Skills,” as appropriate thereby aiding parsing.


  • Uniform bullet points: Be consistent with bullet styles, and indentation for clarity.


  • File types that are correct: Prevent any parsing issues by submitting in .docx or ATS compatible pdf.


Also, the alignment, spacing, and sequential display of experience is a great support to both ATS and recruiters when they are scanning your resume. A clean, well-structured resume enhances both automated parsing and recruiter readability which is necessary for an ATS resume checker score to be raised.

3) Tailor Your Resume for Each Job

By adapting your CV for each individual position, you not only enhance its score via ATS but also make it more likely that recruiters perceive you as a perfect fit. The different positions point out distinct skills and qualifications, thus, a one-size-fits-all CV might get rejected by ATS.


Ways to tailor your resume:


  • Matching skills to the job description: Stress the relevant hard and soft skills.


  • Modifying summary and objective: Give the role and the company the prevailing voice in your opening statement.


  • Shuffling relevant experience: Talk about your important achievements first.


  • Applying keywords strategically: Seamlessly incorporate terms from the job listing.


  • Quantifying results: Prove your accomplishments are in line with job duties.


The process of customizing your resume makes it certain that both ATS and recruiters will recognize your suitability for the position. One can utilize tools like Resume Keywords by mployee.me to pinpoint the keywords that are missing or redundant which would save time and also boost the chances of getting interviews. 


A CV that is correctly altered not only gets more exposure but also becomes more pertinent and ATS-friendly thus, appealing in terms of overall effectiveness.

4) Use Action Verbs and Add Quantifications

The application of action verbs lends a more lively and quantifiable character to your resume, thus getting a better score in the ATS. They make your contributions more apparent and your success to be seen by both the ATS and the employers.


Action verbs usage tips:


  • Strong verbs at the beginning of bullet points: Example - Managed, Led, Implemented, Designed.


  • Results quantified: “sales raised by 20%” or “errors reduced by 30%.”


  • Usage with keywords: Merge verbs with the skills from the job description.


  • Impact shown: Concentrate on achievements rather than responsibilities.


  • Different verbs: Make your resume interesting by not repeating the same words.


Powerful action verbs make your resume even more attractive as they assist it to die passed by ATS and at the same time, they can be heard by the hiring managers. They indicate the achievements that can be measured when you do “check my resume” and consequently, the ATS friendly resume score is increased.

5) Highlight Relevant Skills and Certification

Tailored skills and certifications are so important that it could be argued to be the most effective measure you could take to your ATS score for resume improvement. ATS has the capability of scanning both technical and soft skills among others in resumes, thus through strategic listing you can ensure that your qualifications are acknowledged. Employers’ credibility and expertise are demonstrated by the holding of certifications thus increasing the likelihood of getting through screenings.


How to skillfully highlight your abilities and certifications:


  • Distinct section: Establish a “Skills & Certifications” compartment for easy scanning.


  • Utilize keywords: Share skills with the words from the job ad.


  • Mix hard and soft skills: Specify both tech skills and people skills.


  • Certifications: Mention accreditation relatable to the job offered besides including certifications.


  • Keep it fresh: At regular intervals erase obsolete skills and incorporate the latest ones.


An excellently organized skills section enhances ATS reading and makes your resume more attractive to recruiters, thus leading to an increase in ATS friendly resume score.

6) Optimize Job Titles and Experience Sections

Proper job titles and experience layout allow ATS to recognize your work history and qualifications during the “check my resume” process. Usage of ordinary titles and well-arranged sections increases the legibility for both the automatic systems and the recruiters.


Optimization tips:


  • Stick to conventional job titles: Don't use fun titles that ATS might not get.


  • Uniform formatting: Ensure that the company names, places, and dates are the same everywhere.


  • Celebrate successes: Instead of duties, talk about measurable results.


  • Use keywords: Pick relevant words from the job opening.


  • Go for the bullet points: Make the accomplishments short and easy to scan.


Tailored job titles and experience segments guarantee that your resume not only gets through ATS filters but also unveils your qualifications in a clear-cut manner.

7) Keep Your Resume Concise and Clear

An ATS (automated tracking system) friendly resume is basically a well-written and succinct resume and such a resume done properly makes clearing ATS screening more likely and at the same time it enables the recruiters to easily recognize your strengths.


Tips for clarity:


  • Limit length: One to two pages is the best.


  • Use short bullet points: Concentrate on achievements rather than writing in length.


  • Take off unimportant information: Do not include past experience that is irrelevant or outdated.


  • Organized layout: Use headings, spacing, and formatting in a uniform way.


  • Priority to key achievements: Present first the results that have the greatest impact.


A concise and clear resume increases your chances of passing ATS screenings while making it easy for recruiters to see why you are a strong fit.

8) Use ResuScan to Evaluate Your Resume

ResuScan facilitates a great deal in terms of ATS support for the unemployed. It can thus be said that respective resumes will get across Applicant Tracking Systems with ease as it analyzes and rates resumes on factors that list more than 40.


How ResuScan helps:


  • Resume scanner: Fast and easy review of your resume on ATS compatibility.


  • ATS checker: Get to know the points where your resume might not pass through the automated screening.


  • Resume mistakes: Find problems related to formatting, absence of certain parts or weak keywords.


  • Check resume score: Strive for more than 80% to get more recruiters’ attention.


  • Resume keywords: Use action verbs, quantify results, and include terms that are relevant and favorable for ATS’ search.


Having ResuScan is like having a personal career consultant. It will bring out your weaknesses and help you correct them through data-focused enhancements thus making your ATS-optimized resume more powerful and increasing your chances of landing interviews.

9) Avoid Common ATS Mistakes

Your ATS resume checker score may be significantly reduced due to small mistakes. In addition, if you avoid the mistakes that are common, then your resume can be read correctly by automated systems.


Mistakes that are common to avoid: 


  • Using images or graphics: Visual elements are not read by ATS.


  • Complex formatting: ATS rejects tables, headers, or columns.


  • Keyword stuffing: Readability of a document is reduced by overloading it with keywords.


  • Incorrect file types: Only .docx or PDF approved by ATS should be used.


  • Typos or spelling errors: Even small errors can stop keyword recognition.


Increasing the readability of your resume for ATS and recruiters will improve your chances of passing screenings and being noticed by avoiding these mistakes.

10) Continuously Update and Refine Your Resume

Regular updates keep your resume relevant and competitive. Continuously refining your resume ensures it reflects your latest skills, achievements, and job trends, boosting your ATS resume checker score.


Tips for ongoing improvement:


  • Update skills and accomplishments: Include recent achievements, projects, and certifications.


  • Adjust keywords: Incorporate new terms from current job postings.


  • Refine formatting: Ensure your resume remains ATS-friendly.


  • Use tools: Leverage ResuScan and Resume Keywords by mployee.me for data-driven updates.


  • Review regularly: Make iterative improvements to stay competitive in job searches.


A continuously updated resume improves your chances of passing ATS screenings, remaining relevant to recruiters, and landing interviews.

Key Takeaways

Your ATS resume score improvement guarantees that your resume will not only pass the screenings but also catch the attention of recruiters.


  • Correctly use the resume keywords to match your resume with the job descriptions. 


  • Formatting should consist of standard fonts, simple headings, and ATS-friendly file types.


  • Every job requires the same effort in terms of the resume. It should be prioritized through skills and achievements that are relevant to the job.


  • Strong action verbs and measurable results should be included in bullet points.


  • Relevant skills and certifications should be made prominent and matched with keywords.


  • Check resume score with tools like ResuScan and Resume Keywords by mployee.me.


  • Do not make mistakes that ATS would reject such as using images, complicated formatting, and overusing keywords.


Once these strategies are followed, you will get an ATS friendly resume that not only is visible but also has the high likelihood of passing automated screenings. So when you do “check my resume,” it will show a higher score and consequently will get your chances of landing interviews.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do I increase my ATS resume score?

To increase your ATS resume score, it’s essential to incorporate relevant keywords found in the job description, present your resume in a simple manner using standard fonts and distinct headings and make a different one for every job application. Moreover, pinpoint main skills, professional certifications, and accomplishments along with their respective numbers, choose powerful verbs and refrain from using any graphics or intricate tables. The use of tools such as ResuScan and Resume Keywords by mployee.me will enable you to assess your resume score and also carry out proper optimization.

How to get 90+ ATS score?

Is a 70% ATS score good?

How to beat ATS resume?

Do Canva resumes pass ATS?

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