Automatic Rejection For Your Job Application Heres Why - ZipJob

Automatic Rejection For Your Job Application Heres Why Spread the loveSo youve put all that time and effort into tailoring your resume for a position and  you receive an instant rejection email or notification. Something along the lines of  thank you for applying, we  regret to inform you thatWhat causes your job application to be automatically rejected? There could be a number of reasons as to why the resume was rejected in such a short period of time which well cover in this post.Reason # 1  Resume Not Formatted For ATSMost companies today use an ATS (Applicant Tracking System) which automatically screens a resume before its ever seen by a human. The software is designed to scan a resume and determine whether the candidate is a good match for the position. The candidates the ATS feels are a good match are sent forward to a hiring manager.  Approximately 75% of resumes are rejected by an ATS and many times its because the resume isnt formatted correctly.Okay, so how do you format a resume for an ATS?The first thing you need to do is us e a Microsoft Word document and not a PDF. A Word document is easily read  while a PDF may be problematic for some ATS.You also need to use a standard resume format and avoid fancy colors, designs and graphics. These things cant be read by an ATS and when that happens, its usually rejected.We have a free resume review which shows you how your resume performs in an ATS. You can click here to get your free resume review.Reason # 2 Not Keyword OptimizedMaking sure your resume could be read by an ATS is the easy part, you then need to ensure you have the proper keywords to score high. The ATS looks for keywords that are related to position to determine whether youre a good match for the position.For example:If a position requires knowledge of Excel and Quickbooks make sure you have those terms on there along with other relevant keywords. A core competencies  or skills section is the perfect place to utilize keywords and easily swap them in and out when tailoring your resume to differ ent positions.The content on your resume should also  be relevant to the position. For Example: If you apply to an accounting position and submit a two page resume on your experience as a waiter, its likely to be flagged by an ATS.Reason # 3 Youre Under or Over  QualifiedAnother possible reason for automatic rejection could be that youre either under or over qualified for the position.Read the descriptions carefully to see whether the job is worth applying to. Yes, in some cases you should still apply to jobs where you meet most, but not all the qualifications.There is also a chance that youre over qualified for a position but its not easy determine as thats  usually not listed in the job  posting.For example:A hiring manager could tell the ATS to automatically reject those with over 10 years of experience. In this case, anyone with over 10 years of experience could be automatically rejected.Closing ThoughtsAn automatic job application rejection email could be hard to deal with. Th e best thing to do is to ensure your resume gets past ATS and is properly keyword optimized to perform well. You should also read the job description carefully to see if its a position youre actually qualified for. Dont let an immediate resume rejection get you down it happens to the best of us. Stay positive and keep applying! Automatic Rejection For Your Job Application Heres Why Spread the loveSo youve put all that time and effort into tailoring your resume for a position and  you receive an instant rejection email or notification. Something along the lines of  thank you for applying, we  regret to inform you thatWhat causes your job application to be automatically rejected? There could be a number of reasons as to why the resume was rejected in such a short period of time which well cover in this post.Reason # 1  Resume Not Formatted For ATSMost companies today use an ATS (Applicant Tracking System) which automatically screens a resume before its ever seen by a human. The software is designed to scan a resume and determine whether the candidate is a good match for the position. The candidates the ATS feels are a good match are sent forward to a hiring manager.  Approximately 75% of resumes are rejected by an ATS and many times its because the resume isnt formatted correctly.Okay, so how do you format a resume for an ATS?The first thing you need to do is us e a Microsoft Word document and not a PDF. A Word document is easily read  while a PDF may be problematic for some ATS.You also need to use a standard resume format and avoid fancy colors, designs and graphics. These things cant be read by an ATS and when that happens, its usually rejected.We have a free resume review which shows you how your resume performs in an ATS. You can click here to get your free resume review.Reason # 2 Not Keyword OptimizedMaking sure your resume could be read by an ATS is the easy part, you then need to ensure you have the proper keywords to score high. The ATS looks for keywords that are related to position to determine whether youre a good match for the position.For example:If a position requires knowledge of Excel and Quickbooks make sure you have those terms on there along with other relevant keywords. A core competencies  or skills section is the perfect place to utilize keywords and easily swap them in and out when tailoring your resume to differ ent positions.The content on your resume should also  be relevant to the position. For Example: If you apply to an accounting position and submit a two page resume on your experience as a waiter, its likely to be flagged by an ATS.Reason # 3 Youre Under or Over  QualifiedAnother possible reason for automatic rejection could be that youre either under or over qualified for the position.Read the descriptions carefully to see whether the job is worth applying to. Yes, in some cases you should still apply to jobs where you meet most, but not all the qualifications.There is also a chance that youre over qualified for a position but its not easy determine as thats  usually not listed in the job  posting.For example:A hiring manager could tell the ATS to automatically reject those with over 10 years of experience. In this case, anyone with over 10 years of experience could be automatically rejected.Closing ThoughtsAn automatic job application rejection email could be hard to deal with. Th e best thing to do is to ensure your resume gets past ATS and is properly keyword optimized to perform well. You should also read the job description carefully to see if its a position youre actually qualified for. Dont let an immediate resume rejection get you down it happens to the best of us. Stay positive and keep applying!