Australian ATS Guide — How to Build an ATS-Friendly Australian Resume

Australian employers use Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS) at higher rates than NZ employers — particularly in government, large corporates, and the finance and healthcare sectors. Understanding how Australian ATS platforms work is essential for getting your resume seen by a human.

The Big Four AU ATS Platforms

• PageUp: Used by Commonwealth, state and territory government agencies, universities, and large corporates. Very strict on formatting — single column, no tables, plain Word documents preferred.
• JobAdder: Popular with Australian recruitment agencies. Handles standard formats well.
• Workday: Used by multinationals with AU operations. Clean single-column DOCX recommended.
• SmartRecruiters: Growing use in AU tech companies. Handles modern PDF well but single column preferred.

AU ATS Formatting Rules

• Single column layout only
• No tables, no text boxes, no graphics
• Standard section headings (Professional Summary, Work Experience, Education, Skills)
• Calibri or Arial font at 10–12pt
• File format: DOCX preferred by PageUp; PDF acceptable for most others
• File name: FirstName-LastName-Resume.docx

AU ATS Keyword Strategy

Keyword alignment can matter in ATS and recruiter-search workflows. For AU roles, extract 8–12 keywords from the job description and include them explicitly in your skills section. Use the exact language from the ad — do not paraphrase. PageUp government positions often specify selection criteria explicitly — address each one directly in your application.