How modern ATS systems parse a resume
Most ATS pipelines convert your PDF or DOCX into structured JSON: contact, work history, skills, education. Anything the parser can't classify is dropped.
In 2026, AI-powered ATS (Greenhouse, Workday, Lever) also score semantic match — not just keywords — but exact keyword matches still dominate ranking.
The 7 mistakes that get you auto-rejected
- Tables, columns, or text inside images (parsers drop them silently)
- Custom fonts that don't embed (text becomes glyphs the parser can't read)
- Headers and footers with your name (some parsers ignore these entirely)
- Acronyms without spell-outs ("PM" alone misses "Product Manager" searches)
- Job-title creativity ("Code Ninja" loses to "Software Engineer")
- Skill ratings, charts, or graphs (visual, not parseable)
- Unusual file types (always send PDF or DOCX, never PAGES or RTF)
Run LegendCV's ATS Scanner
Paste your resume and target job description into LegendCV's ATS Scanner. You'll get a score, missing keywords, and concrete rewrites in under 30 seconds.