Even well-qualified candidates lose opportunities because of avoidable ATS formatting mistakes. Here are the 10 most costly mistakes Indian job seekers make, each with a specific fix.
1. Using tables and columns for layout — ATS reads content linearly and may jumble table content. Fix: Use a single-column layout with simple line breaks. 2. Missing keywords from the job description — The #1 reason for low ATS scores. Fix: Extract keywords from the JD and naturally incorporate them into your resume. 3. Creative section headings — 'My Professional Journey' instead of 'Work Experience' confuses ATS parsers. Fix: Use standard headings: Summary, Experience, Education, Skills, Certifications.
4. Putting contact info only in headers/footers — Many ATS systems skip document headers and footers entirely. Fix: Put your name, phone, email, and LinkedIn URL in the main document body. 5. Wrong file format — Submitting .pages, .odt, or scanned PDFs. Fix: Always use text-based PDF or DOCX. 6. Using text boxes — Text inside text boxes is often invisible to ATS. Fix: Type directly on the page without text boxes.
7. Skill rating bars and infographics — 'Python: ████░░ 80%' is meaningless to ATS and wastes space. Fix: List skills in plain text. 8. White text keyword stuffing — Hiding keywords in white text was a hack that modern ATS systems detect and penalize. Fix: Include keywords naturally in visible content. 9. Missing or vague job titles — 'Developer' instead of 'Senior Full Stack Developer' loses keyword specificity. Fix: Use complete, specific job titles matching industry standards. 10. Inconsistent date formats — Mixing 'Jan 2024,' '2024-01,' and '01/2024' confuses ATS date parsing. Fix: Use one consistent format throughout (e.g., 'Mon YYYY').