Why Most Indian Resume Formats Fail ATS
A lot of Indian job seekers use one of three resume formats that ATS software struggles with.
Canva templates. Many Canva templates export text as images, and ATS parsers can't pull text out of an image. Large parts of your resume can disappear as far as the system is concerned. Two-column layouts. ATS parsers read left to right, top to bottom. Text in the second column gets merged into the first, and the result is too jumbled to match against keywords. Tables and text boxes. Many ATS parsers skip Word tables and text boxes entirely, so whatever you put inside them is lost.The ATS-Safe Resume Format
File format
Always submit a text-based PDF or a .DOCX file.
- Text-based PDF: what you get by saving a Word document or Google Doc as PDF
- DOCX: the safest choice for most ATS systems
- Never submit: an image PDF, a Canva export, a JPG or PNG, or a scanned document
To check whether your PDF is text-based, open it and try to select some text. If you can, it's ATS-safe. If you can't, it's image-based, so don't use it.
Layout
- Single column only
- No tables, text boxes or columns
- No headers or footers (ATS parsers skip them)
- No images, photos, logos or icons
- No coloured backgrounds or shading
Fonts
Use fonts every system recognises:
- Arial (recommended)
- Calibri
- Times New Roman
- Garamond
- Georgia
Use 10–12pt for body text and 14–16pt for your name.
Section order (optimised for ATS)
For experienced professionals:
1. Contact information
2. Professional summary
3. Work experience
4. Skills
5. Education
6. Certifications
For freshers:
1. Contact information
2. Professional summary
3. Skills
4. Education
5. Projects
6. Internships
7. Certifications
Section headings
Use these standard headings, since ATS systems are trained to recognise them:
- Work Experience (not "Career History" or "Professional Journey")
- Education (not "Academic Background")
- Skills (not "Expertise" or "Competencies")
- Certifications (not "Credentials")
- Projects (not "Portfolio")
Contact information
Put all your contact details in the main body, never in a document header or footer.
Include your full name, email, phone, city/state and LinkedIn URL.
Leave out your photo, date of birth, marital status, gender and Aadhaar number. Indian job applications don't need them, and they take up space.
Bullet points
- Start every experience bullet with a strong past-tense action verb
- Give every bullet at least one number (%, ₹, users, team size, time saved)
- Keep it to 5 bullets per role at most
- Write each bullet as one sentence, ideally under 20 words
Template Structure
`
FULL NAME
email@example.com | +91 9999999999 | City, State | linkedin.com/in/profile
PROFESSIONAL SUMMARY
2-3 sentences with target role keywords and top achievements.
SKILLS
Python | React.js | SQL | AWS | Docker | Agile | Stakeholder Management
WORK EXPERIENCE
Job Title | Company Name | Month Year – Month Year
- Bullet with metric and keyword from JD
- Bullet with metric and keyword from JD
- Bullet with metric and keyword from JD
EDUCATION
Degree Name | College Name | Year | CGPA: X.X
CERTIFICATIONS
Certification Name | Issuing Body | Year
`
Check Your Format Score
Before you apply anywhere, run your resume through ATSPass. The formatting section of your report tells you what's wrong with your current format and how to fix it.