5 Ways to Optimise Your Resume for ATS Systems

In today's competitive job market, your resume needs to work twice as hard. Most recruiters now use Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS) to filter applications, which means your document needs to pass through this digital gatekeeper before a human ever sees it.

What exactly is an ATS?

An ATS is software that scans your resume for keywords, formats, and relevant experience. If your document isn't optimised, it could be rejected automatically—even if you're the perfect candidate. According to recent research, 75% of resumes never reach a human recruiter due to poor ATS optimisation.

1. Use Clear Formatting and Standard Fonts

❌ Avoid: Fancy fonts, graphics, tables, and unusual formatting. These elements confuse ATS software and can cause your resume to be unreadable.

✅ Do this instead: Use simple fonts like Arial, Calibri, or Times New Roman. Stick to standard bullet points and straightforward section headings. Keep your resume to one or two pages.

2. Incorporate Keywords from the Job Description

The ATS is looking for specific keywords that match the role. If a job posting mentions "project management," "stakeholder communication," and "budget forecasting," your resume should too—if these skills genuinely apply to you.

Pro tip: Create a list of keywords from the job description and naturally weave them throughout your work experience and skills section. This increases your chances of passing the ATS filter and standing out to recruiters using platforms like LinkedIn and Indeed.

3. Keep Your Resume Structure Simple

ATS systems prefer straightforward layouts. Use these standard sections in this order:

• Contact information (name, phone number, email, location)
• Professional summary or objective (optional, but useful)
• Work experience
• Education
• Skills
• Certifications (if relevant)

Avoid creative sections or unconventional ordering, as this confuses the software.

4. Tailor Your Resume for Each Application

This is critical. Rather than sending the same generic resume to every employer, take 15 minutes to customise it for each role. Adjust your professional summary, highlight relevant projects, and emphasise the skills that matter most for that specific position.

If you're applying for a role requiring strong analytical abilities, make sure those keywords appear early in your resume.

5. Save in the Right Format

💾 Best practice: Save your resume as a .docx or PDF file (check the job posting for specifications). Avoid .pages, .odt, or other obscure formats that ATS systems may struggle to read.

Important: If uploading to a platform like Indeed or LinkedIn, paste your content into their text fields rather than uploading a document when given the option. This ensures nothing gets lost in translation.

The Bottom Line

An ATS-optimised resume doesn't need to be boring—it just needs to be clear, keyword-rich, and strategically structured. By following these five steps, you'll increase your chances of making it past the initial screening and landing an interview.

Remember: The best resume is one that both machines and humans can appreciate. Optimise for the technology, but write for the recruiter.

🎯 Data scientist vs data analyst: two roles, two different resumes

In today's data-driven UK and US job markets, data scientist and data analyst profiles are among the most in-demand roles. According to LinkedIn's Jobs Report, these positions consistently rank in the top hiring categories across Fortune 500 companies, fast-growing tech startups, and mid-market firms. Yet many candidates make the mistake of applying with a generic resume that fails to highlight their specific technical competencies.

The first step is to clearly distinguish between the two roles. The data analyst focuses on analysing and visualising existing data to support business decision-making. The data scientist takes it further: building predictive models, leveraging machine learning, and handling massive datasets. These differences must be immediately apparent when a hiring manager first glances at your data scientist resume or data analyst resume.

A recruiter at companies like Deloitte, HSBC, or a scaling tech firm will spend an average of six seconds scanning your resume before deciding whether to read it in full. Every section, every keyword matters.

📋 Essential sections for a high-impact data science resume

A strong data science resume template is far more than a list of technical tools. It should tell a compelling story that connects your technical abilities to measurable outcomes. Here are the sections you need to get right:

Professional summary

Start with a three to four-line summary that clearly establishes your expertise. Include your years of experience, your key industries (finance, healthcare, retail, etc.) and your unique value. Skip vague statements like "passionate about data" — instead, use concrete language such as "Data Scientist with 4 years' experience in NLP and predictive modelling within banking."

Technical skills section

This is the core of your data science resume. Organise your skills into clear categories:

• Languages: Python, R, SQL, Scala
• Machine Learning & AI: scikit-learn, TensorFlow, PyTorch, XGBoost
• Visualisation: Tableau, Power BI, Matplotlib, Seaborn
• Big Data & Cloud: Spark, Hadoop, AWS, Google Cloud, Azure
• Databases: PostgreSQL, MongoDB, Redshift

If you're a data analyst, emphasise advanced Excel, Power BI, SQL and your ability to tell stories with data. For a data scientist role, highlight machine learning algorithms and model deployment expertise.

Professional experience — results-driven

Every role should include at least one quantified metric. For example: "Built a churn prediction model that reduced customer attrition by 18% in six months" or "Automated BI reporting, saving the marketing team 12 hours per week." These numbers speak directly to hiring managers and ATS systems alike.

✅ Optimise Your Resume for ATS: The Essential Rules

In the UK and US, most large enterprises and recruitment firms use ATS (Applicant Tracking System) software to filter applications before a human reviews them. Whether you're applying through Indeed, LinkedIn, or directly on a company's careers page, your data analyst resume or data scientist resume must pass this automated screening first.

« A resume not optimised for ATS has little chance of reaching a recruiter's eyes, even if the candidate is exceptional. »

Here are the fundamental rules for an ATS-compatible resume:

• Use exact keywords taken directly from job postings: if the listing mentions "machine learning" and "Python", these terms must appear in your resume.
• Avoid complex tables and multi-column layouts: many ATS systems struggle to parse them and may scramble your content.
• Stick to standard section headings: "Professional Experience", "Skills", "Education".
• Submit your resume as a PDF (unless otherwise stated) with a clearly named file: FirstName_LastName_Resume_DataScientist.pdf.
• Tailor your resume for each role: a customised resume significantly boosts your chances of landing an interview.

The structure of your data science resume template must balance visual clarity for human readers with technical readability for algorithms. This dual objective is challenging to achieve with standard word processors alone.

💡 Showcasing Personal Projects and Continuous Learning

In data roles, certifications and personal projects carry as much weight as traditional degrees. UK and US employers, particularly in tech companies, scale-ups, and fast-growing firms, highly value your ability to self-teach and apply knowledge in real-world scenarios.

Industry-Recognised Certifications

• Google Professional Data Engineer or Data Analyst
• Microsoft Azure Data Scientist Associate (DP-100)
• IBM Data Science Professional Certificate
• Coursera, DataCamp, or Udacity certificates (widely respected by employers)

Highlighting Your GitHub and Kaggle Profile

Include your GitHub profile with a direct link in the header of your resume. Briefly describe two or three significant projects: their objective, technologies used, and outcomes achieved. A strong Kaggle ranking or contributions to open-source projects provide concrete evidence of your skills—something few candidates think to highlight.

Don't overlook your professional English proficiency either: in data science, technical documentation, conferences, and publications are predominantly in English. A B2 level minimum is often expected, even for permanent roles based in the UK or US.

🚀 Structure Your Resume by Experience Level

Your resume format should evolve as your career progresses. An entry-level data professional has different priorities than a senior with ten years of experience.

Entry-level (0-3 years)

Highlight your education (degree in computer science, statistics, engineering, etc.), internships, graduate placements, and especially academic or personal projects. A six-month internship at a London fintech or a predictive analytics project using publicly available datasets can make all the difference. Compensate for limited professional experience by showcasing the breadth and depth of your technical skills.

Mid-level (3-7 years)

Professional experience takes centre stage. Each role should demonstrate clear progression: increased responsibility, more complex projects, and ideally some team leadership or mentoring experience. Show that you can not only build models but also communicate insights effectively to non-technical stakeholders.

Senior (7+ years)

At this stage, your resume should reflect strategic impact: high-value projects, data architecture decisions, team or department leadership, and deep industry expertise. Limit yourself to the last fifteen years of experience and remove obsolete skills that would unnecessarily clutter your profile.

Regardless of seniority, your data scientist resume should remain clean, well-spaced, and professional. One page for entry-level candidates, maximum two pages for experienced professionals.

Want to create a data analyst resume or data scientist resume that catches recruiters' attention and passes ATS filters? Rise & Hire supports you with optimised templates designed specifically for data roles. In minutes, generate a professional, well-structured resume tailored to UK and US market standards — and give your application the edge it deserves.