Free · 333 terms · 10 roles
The words recruiters actually type into the search box
Not a list of buzzwords to sprinkle in. The real terms, by role, grouped by whether each one is a hard filter, a search term or a credential, because those three behave completely differently.
Read this before the lists
Use a term only if it is true of you. That is the whole rule. A keyword you cannot defend in an interview costs you the interview you already won, which is worse than the one you might not have got. Hidden white text shows up in the extracted text, so the reader sees exactly what you tried.
And missing terms do not get you rejected. They keep you out of the recruiter’s search results, which means you are absent rather than turned down. The rejection statistic everybody quotes is from a 2012 sales pitch.
Software Engineer
Full guide for this role →Languages and runtimes
Recruiters search these literally. Name the ones you would be happy to be questioned on.
- Python
- Java
- JavaScript
- TypeScript
- Go
- C++
- C#
- Ruby
- Rust
- Kotlin
- Swift
- PHP
- Node.js
Frameworks and libraries
A posting asking for React rarely shortlists a resume that only says front end.
- React
- Next.js
- Angular
- Vue
- Django
- Flask
- Spring Boot
- .NET
- Rails
- Express
- FastAPI
Infrastructure and tooling
The second most searched group after languages, and the one most often left off.
- AWS
- Azure
- GCP
- Docker
- Kubernetes
- Terraform
- CI/CD
- Jenkins
- GitHub Actions
- Linux
- Git
Data and messaging
Name the specific store. SQL and Postgres are not interchangeable to a search box.
- PostgreSQL
- MySQL
- MongoDB
- Redis
- Kafka
- Elasticsearch
- GraphQL
- REST API
- gRPC
Practice
Weaker on their own. They work when attached to something you actually built.
- microservices
- distributed systems
- system design
- unit testing
- code review
- Agile
- Scrum
- TDD
Product Manager
Full guide for this role →Domain
The hardest filter in product hiring. If your experience is payments, that word belongs near the top.
- B2B SaaS
- fintech
- payments
- marketplace
- healthtech
- e-commerce
- enterprise
- consumer
- platform
- API products
The work
Searched, but every candidate has them. They sort nobody on their own.
- product roadmap
- discovery
- user research
- A/B testing
- experimentation
- go-to-market
- product-led growth
- stakeholder management
Tools
Named directly in a surprising number of postings.
- Jira
- Amplitude
- Mixpanel
- Figma
- Looker
- Productboard
- SQL
- Google Analytics
Outcome words
These only work with a number beside them.
- activation
- retention
- churn
- conversion rate
- ARR
- NPS
- North Star metric
Data Analyst
Full guide for this role →The non-negotiable
The single most searched term for this role. If it is buried at the bottom, move it.
- SQL
BI and visualisation
Postings are literal here: a Power BI role often will not shortlist a Tableau-only resume.
- Tableau
- Power BI
- Looker
- Qlik
- Google Data Studio
- Excel
- Google Sheets
Languages and libraries
Name the libraries, not just the language. They are searched separately.
- Python
- R
- pandas
- NumPy
- dbt
- Spark
- SAS
Warehouse and pipeline
Increasingly in the posting rather than the nice-to-haves.
- Snowflake
- BigQuery
- Redshift
- Airflow
- ETL
- data modelling
- data warehouse
Method
Useful where the role is closer to analytics than reporting.
- A/B testing
- regression
- forecasting
- cohort analysis
- statistical significance
- hypothesis testing
Registered Nurse
Full guide for this role →Registration, which is a hard filter
Usually screened on the form before anybody opens the document. Spell it out exactly.
- RN licence
- NMC registration
- AHPRA registration
- state licensure
- compact licence
- DataFlow
Certifications
Missing ones are a genuine automatic filter in healthcare, not a soft negative.
- BLS
- ACLS
- PALS
- NRP
- CCRN
- TNCC
- NIHSS
Specialty
What actually distinguishes two nurses with the same title.
- ICU
- ER
- med-surg
- telemetry
- paediatrics
- NICU
- oncology
- theatre
- perioperative
- cardiac
Systems
Named in postings more often than people expect.
- Epic
- Cerner
- Meditech
- EMR
- EHR
The work
Pair with the number: a ratio and a bed count say more than any of these alone.
- patient assessment
- care planning
- medication administration
- triage
- preceptor
- patient ratio
- infection control
Project Manager
Full guide for this role →Certification
Often a hard requirement. If you hold one it belongs near your name, not in a footer.
- PMP
- PRINCE2
- CSM
- PMI-ACP
- SAFe
- ITIL
- Six Sigma
Method
Say which one the work actually ran in. Listing all four signals nothing.
- Agile
- Waterfall
- Scrum
- Kanban
- hybrid delivery
Tools
Frequently named in the posting itself.
- Jira
- MS Project
- Asana
- Smartsheet
- Confluence
- Monday.com
- Trello
Scope
What sorts project managers. Each of these needs a figure.
- budget management
- risk management
- stakeholder management
- resource planning
- vendor management
- RAID log
- change control
Business Analyst
Full guide for this role →The work
BA means five different jobs. These say which one you do.
- requirements gathering
- process mapping
- gap analysis
- user stories
- BRD
- FRD
- UAT
- as-is to-be
Technical
The terms that separate a BA who can self-serve from one who files a ticket.
- SQL
- Excel
- Power BI
- Tableau
- Visio
- BPMN
- UML
- data analysis
Tools and platforms
Named directly in most enterprise postings.
- Jira
- Confluence
- Salesforce
- SAP
- ServiceNow
- Dynamics 365
Domain and regulation
Often the strongest single line on the document in Europe.
- GDPR
- PSD2
- Solvency II
- KYC
- AML
- Basel III
- HIPAA
- SOX
Accountant
Full guide for this role →Qualification
A hard filter, and part qualified is a different candidate from qualified. Say which.
- ACCA
- ACA
- CIMA
- CPA
- CA
- part qualified
- finalist
- AAT
Standards
Which you have worked under matters more than the qualification alone.
- IFRS
- US GAAP
- UK GAAP
- Ind AS
- FRS 102
Systems
Searched directly, and the one you know is a genuine differentiator.
- SAP
- Oracle
- NetSuite
- Xero
- QuickBooks
- Tally
- Sage
- Workday Financials
- Excel
The work
Pair with scale: entity count, turnover, how many days the close takes.
- month-end close
- reconciliation
- accounts payable
- accounts receivable
- general ledger
- audit
- variance analysis
- consolidation
- VAT
- GST
Marketing Manager
Full guide for this role →Channel
Managed marketing could mean eight jobs. Name the channels that were yours.
- paid social
- paid search
- SEO
- content marketing
- email marketing
- lifecycle marketing
- affiliate
- influencer
- ABM
Platforms
The most literally searched group in marketing.
- Google Ads
- Meta Ads
- LinkedIn Ads
- HubSpot
- Klaviyo
- Marketo
- Salesforce
- Mailchimp
- Braze
- GA4
Metrics
Marketing is judged on specificity. Every one of these needs a number.
- ROAS
- CAC
- LTV
- CPA
- CTR
- conversion rate
- MQL
- pipeline
- attribution
Context
B2B and B2C filter harder than most people realise.
- B2B
- B2C
- SaaS
- e-commerce
- D2C
- GDPR
- marketing automation
- budget ownership
Mechanical Engineer
Full guide for this role →CAD
Not interchangeable to a search box. Name yours.
- SolidWorks
- CATIA
- Creo
- NX
- Inventor
- AutoCAD
- Fusion 360
Analysis
Searched separately from CAD, and often the scarcer skill.
- FEA
- CFD
- ANSYS
- Abaqus
- MATLAB
- tolerance analysis
- thermal analysis
Standards
Working to a standard is a screening fact in most engineering postings.
- ASME
- ISO 9001
- GD&T
- Eurocode
- IS codes
- ASTM
- DFMEA
- PFMEA
Manufacturing
Name the processes you have actually designed for.
- injection moulding
- sheet metal
- CNC machining
- casting
- welding
- DFM
- additive manufacturing
- lean manufacturing
Graphic Designer
Full guide for this role →Tools
Figma has overtaken the Adobe suite in a lot of postings. List both if both are true.
- Figma
- Adobe Illustrator
- Photoshop
- InDesign
- After Effects
- Sketch
- Adobe XD
- Canva
- Blender
Discipline
Design is several jobs under one title. Say which one you practise.
- brand identity
- packaging design
- editorial design
- motion graphics
- UI design
- illustration
- typography
- art direction
Output
The terms that distinguish somebody who ships from somebody who concepts.
- design systems
- style guide
- print production
- prepress
- asset libraries
- responsive design
- accessibility
Context
A working portfolio link is worth more than every term above it.
- portfolio
- agency
- in-house
- B2C
- retail
- FMCG
- campaign
Questions people ask
- What are ATS keywords?
- The words a recruiter types into their applicant tracking system to find candidates, plus the fields the system filters on before anybody searches. They are not a secret vocabulary that unlocks a resume. They are the ordinary names of skills, tools, credentials and domains, and the only ones worth using are the ones that are true of you.
- Where do I put keywords on my resume?
- In sentences about real work, not in a block at the bottom. A skills list is fine and most resumes should have one, but a term that appears only there is weaker than the same term in a bullet describing something you did with it.
- Does keyword stuffing work?
- No, and it has two separate costs. White text and hidden keyword blocks are visible in the extracted text, so the person reading sees exactly what you did. And a term you cannot defend in an interview loses you the interview you already won.
- How many keywords should I use?
- Take the five or six central terms from the posting, cross off anything untrue, and make sure the rest appear naturally. Past that point you are doing work with no payoff, because no system ranks you higher for the twentieth term.
- Do applicant tracking systems reject resumes for missing keywords?
- Overwhelmingly they do not auto-reject at all. What missing terms actually cost you is appearing in the recruiter's search results, which means you are absent rather than rejected. The widely repeated claim that software bins three quarters of resumes traces to a sales pitch from 2012 with no study behind it.
Which of these is your resume missing?
Upload it and you get the terms your field expects and your document never says, alongside the parsed text and the lines worth rewriting.
Check mine free →Read next
- Keywords, without writing for a robotTen minutes per application, and where the limit is.
- Can an ATS tell your resume was written by AI?What the software can detect, and what the reader notices instead.
- What actually happens after you hit applyThe screening, the search, and where people really drop out.