Why am I applying for roles but hearing nothing back?

If you’re sending out applications and hearing… nothing, it’s frustrating. And it can start to feel personal. The reality is often much more boring (and fixable): your CV may not be getting through the system.

Many UK employers use an Applicant Tracking System (ATS) to collect and sort applications. Before a recruiter reads anything, the ATS tries to extract your details — job titles, employers, dates, skills, and then match them to the role. If your CV doesn’t parse properly, it can be scored poorly or even land in the “needs review” pile that never gets reviewed.

Here's how a PDF can quietly sabotage you.

PDFs aren’t all equal

A simple Word-generated PDF is usually readable. But PDFs exported from design tools (like Canva) often include columns, text boxes, icons, and layered elements. To an ATS, that can scramble the reading order. Your experience might appear out of sequence, your job titles may separate from the employers, and keywords can disappear entirely.

So while your CV looks great on screen, the system may be seeing something like:

“2019-2022 … London … Microsoft Excel …”
(without the job title or company connected to it)

Keyword matching only works if your text is readable

Even if you tailor your CV, the ATS can’t match you to the job description if it can’t reliably “see” your skills and experience. That’s one reason you can apply for roles you’re clearly qualified for and still get silence.

What to do instead

You don’t need to ditch your content, you need to change the format:

• Submit a clean .docx where possible (many ATS parse Word far better than PDF).
• Use a single-column layout and standard headings (Work Experience, Education, Skills).
• Avoid tables, text boxes, icons, headers/footers, charts, and progress bars.
• Keep skills and tools as plain text, using the same wording as the job advert.

If you love your current PDF design, consider converting it into an ATS-friendly Word document. That way, the system can actually read what you’ve worked hard to write — and you give yourself a fair shot at being seen.