Traditional Resume vs. Modern Creative Resume: Which is More ATS Friendly?
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When crafting a resume, job seekers often face the dilemma of choosing between a traditional resume and a modern, creative one. While modern resumes can be visually appealing and help you stand out in creative fields, traditional resumes are generally more ATS-friendly. Here’s an in-depth look at why traditional resumes tend to be better suited for passing through Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS).
Understanding Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS)
Applicant Tracking Systems are software applications used by employers to streamline the hiring process. They scan, parse, and rank resumes based on specific keywords, qualifications, and formatting. The primary function of an ATS is to filter out resumes that don’t meet the criteria set by the employer, ensuring that only the most relevant candidates are considered.
Traditional Resumes: The ATS-Friendly Choice
Simple Formatting
Traditional resumes use clean, straightforward formatting that ATS can easily read. They typically include:
Standard fonts (e.g., Arial, Times New Roman)
Clear headings and subheadings
Bullet points for lists
Consistent layout
Plain Text
Traditional resumes avoid using complex design elements such as images, graphics, and charts, which can confuse ATS. They focus on text-based content, ensuring that all information is easily parsed by the system.
Structured Information
The structure of traditional resumes follows a predictable pattern, making it easy for ATS to extract relevant information. Common sections include:
Professional Summary or Objective
Education
Skills
Certifications and Awards
Modern Resumes: The Challenges with ATS
Design Elements
Modern resumes often incorporate various design elements like info-graphics, custom fonts, colors, and icons. While these can make a resume stand out to human eyes, they can be ⦁ problematic for ATS . The software might struggle to interpret non-standard fonts or extract text from images and graphics.
Layout Complexity
Creative resumes may use unconventional layouts, such as multi-column formats, that can disrupt the linear scanning process of ATS. Information placed in text boxes or sidebars might be missed or jumbled.
Risk of Missing Keywords
In the pursuit of a unique design, candidates might overlook the importance of including relevant keywords from the job description. ATS relies heavily on these keywords to rank candidates, and their absence can lead to a resume being filtered out.
Example Comparison
Traditional Resume:
Modern Resume:
While the modern resume looks impressive, elements like graphics, non-standard fonts, and a two-column layout may not be processed correctly by ATS, potentially causing important information to be missed.
Conclusion
For most job seekers, especially those applying to larger companies that utilize ATS, a traditional resume is the safer and more effective choice. It ensures that your qualifications are accurately captured and evaluated by the system, increasing your chances of moving on to the next stage of the hiring process. However, if you are applying for a role in a creative field and you know your resume will be reviewed by a human, a modern creative resume can help you stand out. In such cases, it might be beneficial to create two versions of your resume: one traditional and one creative.
By understanding the strengths and limitations of both traditional and modern creative resumes, you can make an informed decision that best showcases your skills and experiences while aligning with the employer’s hiring process.
Frequently asked questions
It’s best to keep design elements minimal in a traditional resume. Stick to simple formatting to ensure ATS can accurately read your resume.
Review the job description and incorporate relevant keywords naturally into your professional summary, work experience, and skills sections.
Consider creating a traditional resume for ATS and a creative version to bring to interviews or for applications where you know a human will review your resume.
In most cases, it’s best to avoid including a photo, as it can lead to unconscious bias and isn’t necessary for ATS.
Use tools like Jobscan or Resume Worded to scan your resume and see how well it aligns with ATS requirements.
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