How to Pass the ATS Every Time

You apply for a job that fits you perfectly. You have the qualification, the experience, the drive. And then… nothing. No call, no email, not even a rejection. For most South African job seekers applying online today, the reason is simple and frustrating: a computer screened you out before a person ever opened your CV.

That computer is called an Applicant Tracking System, or ATS. Almost every large employer in South Africa uses one: the banks, the retailers, Eskom, Sasol, government departments and the big recruitment agencies. This guide explains what an ATS actually does, why good candidates get filtered out, and exactly how to build a CV that sails through to a human recruiter.

What is an ATS, really?

An Applicant Tracking System is software that receives, sorts, and ranks job applications automatically. When you upload your CV to a careers portal, the ATS reads it, pulls out your details (name, contact, skills, work history, qualifications), and stores them in a database. Recruiters then search that database the way you'd search Google, by typing keywords like "financial accountant Sandton SAICA".

If your CV contains the words the recruiter searches for, you appear. If it doesn't, you're invisible, even if you're perfect for the role. The ATS isn't judging your character. It's matching text. That's the whole game, and once you understand it, you can win it.

Why good candidates get rejected

People assume rejection means they weren't qualified. Often it means their CV was unreadable to the machine. The most common reasons a strong candidate never gets seen:

• The CV is a designed graphic. Beautiful templates with columns, icons and photos confuse the ATS, which reads the text in the wrong order or not at all.
• Key info is in a header, footer or image. Many systems ignore these areas. If your phone number is only in the header, it can vanish.
• The keywords don't match the advert. You wrote "looked after money for the company" when the advert said "financial management".
• The file type is wrong. A CV saved as an image or an unusual format can't be parsed.
• Tables and text boxes. A neat skills table often scrambles when the ATS extracts the text.

The 8 rules of an ATS-friendly CV

1. Use a simple, single-column layout

One column, top to bottom. No sidebars, no text boxes. The ATS reads left to right, top to bottom. Give it a document that flows that way. Save your creativity for the interview.

2. Save as a .docx or a text-based PDF

A Word (.docx) file is safest. If a PDF is required, make sure it's a real text PDF. If you can't highlight the words with your mouse, neither can the ATS.

3. Mirror the words in the job advert

The single most powerful step. Use the advert's exact language where it's true for you. If it asks for "stakeholder management", "reconciliations" or "SAICA articles" and you've done those things, use those exact words. Don't paraphrase.

4. Use standard section headings

Use plain headings the ATS recognises: Personal Details, Professional Summary, Work Experience, Education, Skills. Avoid clever titles like "My Journey". The machine doesn't know what they mean.

5. Put contact details in the body, not the header

Type your name, phone, email and city as normal text at the top, not in the document's header/footer. Include your city and province (e.g. "Polokwane, Limpopo") because recruiters filter by location.

6. Spell out abbreviations at least once

Write both forms: "Basic Conditions of Employment Act (BCEA)", "South African Institute of Chartered Accountants (SAICA)", "National Qualifications Framework (NQF) Level 6". That way you match whichever the recruiter types.

7. Use a clean font and normal bullets

Arial, Calibri, Helvetica or Times New Roman at 10 to 12pt. Use simple round bullets (•), not ticks, arrows or emojis, which can turn into strange characters when the text is extracted.

8. Don't hide keywords in white text

The old trick of pasting keywords in white font is caught instantly by modern systems and recruiters, and it gets you blacklisted. Match keywords with real experience instead.

A simple structure that works

If you're not sure how to lay it out, this order is clean and ATS-safe:

1. Name and contact details (as normal text)
2. Professional summary: 2 to 3 lines with your key title and skills
3. Work experience: most recent first, with role, employer, dates and bullet points of what you did and achieved
4. Education: qualifications with institution and year
5. Skills: a plain list using the advert's terms

A quick 5-minute check before you apply

• Try to select all the text with your mouse. If parts won't highlight, they're images. Fix them.
• Copy everything into a plain document. If it comes out jumbled, your layout is too complex.
• Circle 8 to 10 key phrases in the advert. Check each appears in your CV where it's true for you.
• Confirm your name, phone, email and city are normal text at the top.
• Save as Firstname-Surname-CV.docx: clear, professional, easy to find later.

Questions people ask

This guide is written by OnboardingSA to help South African job seekers. Rules and forms change, so always follow the official advert and the employer's own instructions. Browse current jobs →