Scoring rubric

Every rule the community policy scores, with its weight, what it reads, when it passes and the fix. Engine 0.11.0.

Engine 0.11.0, policy ats-v2+7c1a4fd7, 35 rules. This page is built from policyRubric(DEFAULT_POLICY) when the docs are built, so it always matches the installed engine. Call policyRubric(policy) yourself to get the same table for a policy of your own.

Score. Each rule that applies can lose its weight. The readiness score is the share of the applicable weight kept, 0–100. A rule whose evidence is absent (page geometry for pasted text, a posting for the copied-posting check) is left out of both the report and the score.
Deductions. Integrity rules (−n pts) come off the finished score in points and are never part of the weighing: an honest resume scores exactly as if they did not exist.
Determinism. The same input, reference date (now), engine version and policy fingerprint always give the same report. Every report carries engine.version and engine.policy.
Writing rules read English only. For a resume in another language they drop out instead of judging it on English words.

See Scoring and the rubric for how the score is put together.

Integrity

6 rules, up to 115 points deducted in all.

Rule	Severity	Reads	Weight	Passes when	Fix
`ats-v2.integrity.promptInjection`	error	injectionPhrases	−30 pts	No instructions aimed at an AI screener.	Remove it. Recruiters and screening tools treat instructions to an AI as manipulation, and many reject the application on sight.
`ats-v2.integrity.hiddenText`	error	hiddenTextChars	−30 pts	No hidden text.	Remove hidden text. White or tiny text and text behind an image is read by the ATS and treated as keyword stuffing once a recruiter sees it.
`ats-v2.integrity.copiedPosting`	error	copiedPostingRatio	−25 pts	The resume is not a copy of the posting.	Describe your own experience. A pasted posting is caught the moment a recruiter reads the resume.
`ats-v2.integrity.invisibleCharacters`	warning	invisibleCharacters	−10 pts	No invisible characters.	Remove zero-width and other invisible characters; retype any word they split.
`ats-v2.integrity.homoglyphs`	warning	homoglyphWords	−10 pts	No look-alike letters from other alphabets.	Retype those words: they look right but no search matches them.
`ats-v2.integrity.keywordStuffing`	warning	stuffedTerms	−10 pts	No keyword stuffing.	Name each skill where you used it. Repetition does not raise a match score in a modern ATS, and recruiters read it as stuffing.

Parsing

5 rules, 68 points of weight.

Rule	Severity	Reads	Weight	Passes when	Fix
`ats-v2.parse.text`	error	at least 50 words	20	Recovered {n} words of text.	Save the resume as a text-based PDF rather than a scan or an image.
`ats-v2.parse.imageOnly`	error	imageOnlyPages	15	Every page has a text layer.	Export the resume as a text PDF rather than scanning it or saving it as an image.
`ats-v2.parse.roles`	error	rolesDetected	15	{n} roles were recovered from the work history.	Give each job a line with the title, the employer, and a date range.
`ats-v2.parse.roleCompleteness`	warning	roleCompleteness	10	{pct}% of recovered roles have a title, an employer and a start date.	Make sure every job lists a title, an employer, and a date range.
`ats-v2.parse.contact`	warning	contactCompleteness	8	{pct}% of the expected contact fields were recovered.	Include a name, an email address, and a phone number as plain text.

Contact & links

3 rules, 20 points of weight.

Rule	Severity	Reads	Weight	Passes when	Fix
`ats-v2.contact.email`	error	a pattern, in the document	12	An email address was found.	Add an email address at the top of the first page, as plain text in the body rather than in a page header.
`ats-v2.contact.position`	warning	contact details in the first 25%	6	Contact details appear near the top of the document.	Put the email address and phone number at the top of the first page, in the body of the document rather than in a page header, which many ATS parsers skip.
`ats-v2.privacy.dateOfBirth`	info	dateOfBirthStated	2	No date of birth is stated.	Leave your date of birth off unless the country you are applying in expects it.

Structure

3 rules, 28 points of weight.

Rule	Severity	Reads	Weight	Passes when	Fix
`ats-v2.structure.experience`	error	a experience heading	12	An experience section heading was found.	Add a heading reading 'Experience' above the work history.
`ats-v2.structure.education`	warning	a education heading	8	An education section heading was found.	Add a heading reading 'Education' above the qualifications.
`ats-v2.structure.skills`	warning	a skills heading	8	A skills section heading was found.	Add a heading reading 'Skills' above the skills list.

Evidence

5 rules, 29 points of weight.

Rule	Severity	Reads	Weight	Passes when	Fix
`ats-v2.content.metrics`	warning	metricsRatio	10	{pct}% of content lines carry a number.	Quantify outcomes: amounts, percentages, timeframes, headcounts.
`ats-v2.content.verbs`	warning	actionVerbRatio	8	{pct}% of bullets name an action you took.	Make each bullet say what you did, with an action word ("Led", "Built", "Cut"), rather than what the job was.
`ats-v2.content.buzzwords`	info	buzzwordCount	5	Little filler language.	Replace filler phrases with a specific thing you did.
`ats-v2.content.timeline`	info	timelineIssues	3	The dates in the work history are consistent.	Check the dates: a role cannot start after today, and an end date left off makes jobs overlap.
`ats-v2.content.skillEvidence`	info	unsupportedSkills	3	Most listed skills are backed by the work they were used in.	Name each key skill in the role or project where you used it, not only in the list.

Format risk

5 rules, 45 points of weight.

Rule	Severity	Reads	Weight	Passes when	Fix
`ats-v2.format.length`	warning	wordCount	10	The resume is {n} words, a reasonable length.	Keep the resume between about 200 and 1,500 words: one or two pages.
`ats-v2.format.letterSpacing`	warning	letterSpacedLines	8	Headings extract as whole words.	Remove the letter spacing (tracking) from section headings so they extract as words.
`ats-v2.format.columns`	error	columnRatio	15	The document reads as a single column.	Use a single-column layout; columns extract in a scrambled order.
`ats-v2.format.tables`	warning	tableCount	10	No ruled tables were found.	Replace tables with plain paragraphs and bullets.
`ats-v2.format.photo`	info	imageCount	2	No photo was found.	Leave the photo off unless the country you are applying in expects one.

Writing

8 rules, 12 points of weight.

Rule	Severity	Reads	Weight	Passes when	Fix
`ats-v2.writing.firstPerson`	info	firstPersonLines (en only)	2	No bullet speaks in the first person.	Leave out "I", "my" and "we": open each bullet with what you did ("Led the payments team").
`ats-v2.writing.passiveVoice`	info	passiveVoiceRatio (en only)	2	Most bullets are in the active voice.	Say who acted: "Rebuilt the payments service in Go", not "The payments service was rebuilt".
`ats-v2.writing.weakOpeners`	warning	weakOpeners (en only)	2	Bullets open with an action rather than a duty.	Replace "Responsible for", "Worked on" and the like with the verb for what you did, and say what came of it.
`ats-v2.writing.tense`	info	tenseMismatches (en only)	2	Past roles are written in the past tense.	Write roles you have left in the past tense ("Led", not "Lead"). The role you hold now can use either.
`ats-v2.writing.bulletLength`	info	longBullets (en only)	1	No bullet runs past two lines.	Keep each bullet to one or two lines, one action and its result; split a longer one in two.
`ats-v2.writing.bulletsPerRole`	info	bulletsPerRole (en only)	1	Each role has a readable number of bullets.	Give each role two to eight bullets: enough to show what you did, few enough to read.
`ats-v2.writing.repeatedOpeners`	info	repeatedOpeners (en only)	1	Bullets in a row open with different words.	Vary the opening verbs, so each bullet reads as its own result rather than one duty repeated.
`ats-v2.writing.dateFormats`	info	dateFormats (en only)	1	Role dates are written one way throughout.	Write every date the same way, such as "Jan 2020 – Mar 2023".

Score. Each rule that applies can lose its weight. The readiness score is the share of the applicable weight kept, 0–100. A rule whose evidence is absent (page geometry for pasted text, a posting for the copied-posting check) is left out of both the report and the score.
Deductions. Integrity rules (−n pts) come off the finished score in points and are never part of the weighing: an honest resume scores exactly as if they did not exist.
Determinism. The same input, reference date (now), engine version and policy fingerprint always give the same report. Every report carries engine.version and engine.policy.
Writing rules read English only. For a resume in another language they drop out instead of judging it on English words.

See Scoring and the rubric for how the score is put together.

Integrity

6 rules, up to 115 points deducted in all.

Rule	Severity	Reads	Weight	Passes when	Fix
`ats-v2.integrity.promptInjection`	error	injectionPhrases	−30 pts	No instructions aimed at an AI screener.	Remove it. Recruiters and screening tools treat instructions to an AI as manipulation, and many reject the application on sight.
`ats-v2.integrity.hiddenText`	error	hiddenTextChars	−30 pts	No hidden text.	Remove hidden text. White or tiny text and text behind an image is read by the ATS and treated as keyword stuffing once a recruiter sees it.
`ats-v2.integrity.copiedPosting`	error	copiedPostingRatio	−25 pts	The resume is not a copy of the posting.	Describe your own experience. A pasted posting is caught the moment a recruiter reads the resume.
`ats-v2.integrity.invisibleCharacters`	warning	invisibleCharacters	−10 pts	No invisible characters.	Remove zero-width and other invisible characters; retype any word they split.
`ats-v2.integrity.homoglyphs`	warning	homoglyphWords	−10 pts	No look-alike letters from other alphabets.	Retype those words: they look right but no search matches them.
`ats-v2.integrity.keywordStuffing`	warning	stuffedTerms	−10 pts	No keyword stuffing.	Name each skill where you used it. Repetition does not raise a match score in a modern ATS, and recruiters read it as stuffing.

Parsing

5 rules, 68 points of weight.

Rule	Severity	Reads	Weight	Passes when	Fix
`ats-v2.parse.text`	error	at least 50 words	20	Recovered {n} words of text.	Save the resume as a text-based PDF rather than a scan or an image.
`ats-v2.parse.imageOnly`	error	imageOnlyPages	15	Every page has a text layer.	Export the resume as a text PDF rather than scanning it or saving it as an image.
`ats-v2.parse.roles`	error	rolesDetected	15	{n} roles were recovered from the work history.	Give each job a line with the title, the employer, and a date range.
`ats-v2.parse.roleCompleteness`	warning	roleCompleteness	10	{pct}% of recovered roles have a title, an employer and a start date.	Make sure every job lists a title, an employer, and a date range.
`ats-v2.parse.contact`	warning	contactCompleteness	8	{pct}% of the expected contact fields were recovered.	Include a name, an email address, and a phone number as plain text.

Contact & links

3 rules, 20 points of weight.

Rule	Severity	Reads	Weight	Passes when	Fix
`ats-v2.contact.email`	error	a pattern, in the document	12	An email address was found.	Add an email address at the top of the first page, as plain text in the body rather than in a page header.
`ats-v2.contact.position`	warning	contact details in the first 25%	6	Contact details appear near the top of the document.	Put the email address and phone number at the top of the first page, in the body of the document rather than in a page header, which many ATS parsers skip.
`ats-v2.privacy.dateOfBirth`	info	dateOfBirthStated	2	No date of birth is stated.	Leave your date of birth off unless the country you are applying in expects it.

Structure

3 rules, 28 points of weight.

Rule	Severity	Reads	Weight	Passes when	Fix
`ats-v2.structure.experience`	error	a experience heading	12	An experience section heading was found.	Add a heading reading 'Experience' above the work history.
`ats-v2.structure.education`	warning	a education heading	8	An education section heading was found.	Add a heading reading 'Education' above the qualifications.
`ats-v2.structure.skills`	warning	a skills heading	8	A skills section heading was found.	Add a heading reading 'Skills' above the skills list.

Evidence

5 rules, 29 points of weight.

Rule	Severity	Reads	Weight	Passes when	Fix
`ats-v2.content.metrics`	warning	metricsRatio	10	{pct}% of content lines carry a number.	Quantify outcomes: amounts, percentages, timeframes, headcounts.
`ats-v2.content.verbs`	warning	actionVerbRatio	8	{pct}% of bullets name an action you took.	Make each bullet say what you did, with an action word ("Led", "Built", "Cut"), rather than what the job was.
`ats-v2.content.buzzwords`	info	buzzwordCount	5	Little filler language.	Replace filler phrases with a specific thing you did.
`ats-v2.content.timeline`	info	timelineIssues	3	The dates in the work history are consistent.	Check the dates: a role cannot start after today, and an end date left off makes jobs overlap.
`ats-v2.content.skillEvidence`	info	unsupportedSkills	3	Most listed skills are backed by the work they were used in.	Name each key skill in the role or project where you used it, not only in the list.

Format risk

5 rules, 45 points of weight.

Rule	Severity	Reads	Weight	Passes when	Fix
`ats-v2.format.length`	warning	wordCount	10	The resume is {n} words, a reasonable length.	Keep the resume between about 200 and 1,500 words: one or two pages.
`ats-v2.format.letterSpacing`	warning	letterSpacedLines	8	Headings extract as whole words.	Remove the letter spacing (tracking) from section headings so they extract as words.
`ats-v2.format.columns`	error	columnRatio	15	The document reads as a single column.	Use a single-column layout; columns extract in a scrambled order.
`ats-v2.format.tables`	warning	tableCount	10	No ruled tables were found.	Replace tables with plain paragraphs and bullets.
`ats-v2.format.photo`	info	imageCount	2	No photo was found.	Leave the photo off unless the country you are applying in expects one.

Writing

8 rules, 12 points of weight.

Rule	Severity	Reads	Weight	Passes when	Fix
`ats-v2.writing.firstPerson`	info	firstPersonLines (en only)	2	No bullet speaks in the first person.	Leave out "I", "my" and "we": open each bullet with what you did ("Led the payments team").
`ats-v2.writing.passiveVoice`	info	passiveVoiceRatio (en only)	2	Most bullets are in the active voice.	Say who acted: "Rebuilt the payments service in Go", not "The payments service was rebuilt".
`ats-v2.writing.weakOpeners`	warning	weakOpeners (en only)	2	Bullets open with an action rather than a duty.	Replace "Responsible for", "Worked on" and the like with the verb for what you did, and say what came of it.
`ats-v2.writing.tense`	info	tenseMismatches (en only)	2	Past roles are written in the past tense.	Write roles you have left in the past tense ("Led", not "Lead"). The role you hold now can use either.
`ats-v2.writing.bulletLength`	info	longBullets (en only)	1	No bullet runs past two lines.	Keep each bullet to one or two lines, one action and its result; split a longer one in two.
`ats-v2.writing.bulletsPerRole`	info	bulletsPerRole (en only)	1	Each role has a readable number of bullets.	Give each role two to eight bullets: enough to show what you did, few enough to read.
`ats-v2.writing.repeatedOpeners`	info	repeatedOpeners (en only)	1	Bullets in a row open with different words.	Vary the opening verbs, so each bullet reads as its own result rather than one duty repeated.
`ats-v2.writing.dateFormats`	info	dateFormats (en only)	1	Role dates are written one way throughout.	Write every date the same way, such as "Jan 2020 – Mar 2023".

Integrity

Parsing

Contact & links

Structure

Evidence

Format risk

Writing

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Preparing your experience

Scoring rubric

Integrity

Parsing

Contact & links

Structure

Evidence

Format risk

Writing

On this page