It’s 2024 and we’re deep into the AI era. Every business in every industry has leveraged AI to automate manual processes that consume valuable time. Reviewing job applications is one of them.
This is problematic for students because modern technology, not humans, is now the gatekeeper to the world of work. Businesses are fast integrating applicant tracking systems (ATS) to aid them in the recruitment process – software that screens resumes based on a set of predefined criteria.
ATS-optimized resumes are mandatory for an application to come into contact with a human. Highly-qualified candidates may face rejection at the first step, purely because they haven’t optimized their resumes for the ATS system.
Moreover, this directly impacts universities, as alumni employment rates are closely tied to their reputation. Higher alumni employment figures not only improve QS Graduate Employability Rankings but can attract higher quality student applicants (Univariety, 2024).
Students prioritize colleges that can guarantee a clear pathway to employment, so it’s only natural that they will gravitate toward institutions with strong alumni employment rates.
Therefore, higher education institutions must shift their focus towards guiding students on how to beat the ATS software for a smooth transition into employment. Without this knowledge, students will struggle to escape the doldrums of unemployment, and colleges may see a decline in their alumni employment rates, ultimately affecting their reputation and future enrollment.
In this blog, we put ATS under the microscope, analyze how it works, and give you the essential strategies to help your students optimize their resumes and improve their chances of landing interviews.
