Guides

How applying to jobs online really works

Tailoring a resume to a posting, what a match score measures, how an applicant tracking system reads your file, and what each big application form asks, step by step. Written by the people who build Jobapplier, about how it works today.

Your resume

• How to tailor your resume to a job descriptionTailor a resume to a job description without inventing anything: find the posting's required skills, put each missing one in the line whose work shows it, and keep the file ATS-readable.
• What a resume match score measures, and how to read oneA resume match score says how close your resume is to one job posting. Here is what it measures, what it cannot see, and how to use it to decide where to apply and what to tailor.
• Resume keywords: how to find the ones a job description asks forHow to pick the keywords a job description asks for, tell required from preferred, write them by their short names, and put them in your resume where a reader and an ATS both find them.
• How an ATS parses your resume, and how to make it readableWhat an applicant tracking system does with your resume file: how it pulls out text, sections, employers and dates, what breaks parsing, and the layout that reads cleanly every time.

The application

• How to write a cover letter for a specific jobA cover letter for one job posting: what it is for, a shape that works in three or four paragraphs, how to pick the proof, a short example, and how to send it in an application form's box or as a file.
• How to answer job application questionsHow to answer the questions on job application forms: work authorization and visa sponsorship, salary expectations, notice and start date, relocation, years of experience, how you heard about the job, voluntary self-identification and open questions.

Applying on an ATS

• How to apply for a job on WorkdayWhat a Workday application asks on each page, from the account to Review, what the Jobapplier extension fills for you, and which steps stay yours.
• How to apply for a job on GreenhouseWhat a Greenhouse application form asks, field by field, how to handle its resume upload, custom questions and voluntary self-identification, and what an autofill extension can and cannot do for you there.
• How to apply for a job on LeverHow a Lever application works: the posting page, the apply page, the resume parser that fills fields for you, the links and custom questions, and what to check before you submit.
• How to apply for a job on iCIMSWhat an iCIMS application asks, from the email page and its check to the last Submit, what the Jobapplier extension fills, and what stays yours.
• How to apply for a job on AshbyHow an Ashby application works: the Overview and Application tabs, the fields and custom questions, drafts, the limit some employers set on repeat applications, and what an autofill extension does there.
• How to apply for a job on SmartRecruitersWhat a SmartRecruiters application asks, from the site's check to the one-page form and its Submit, what the Jobapplier extension fills, and what stays yours.