A CV for a Gulf employer has two readers: the application software that reads it first, and the recruiter who searches and reads it afterwards. Several employers we list take applications through an applicant tracking system (ATS), and one ATS vendor, Greenhouse, documents exactly what stops its CV reader from working: files over 2.5MB, CVs saved as images, columns, text boxes, graphics and photos, and contact details placed in headers or footers. So keep the file plain, put every fact the job’s eligibility depends on (nationality, graduation year, GPA, experience) where both readers can see it, and leave out anything the employer did not ask for.
This guide separates what is documented, with sources checked on 4 October 2026, from what is our advice, which is labelled.
What happens to your CV in an ATS
Several of the employers we have verified run their applications on an ATS. First Abu Dhabi Bank and Emirates NBD post their graduate schemes on Oracle’s recruiting cloud, Careem uses Greenhouse and Lean Technologies uses Ashby. When you upload a CV, the system tries to read it and fill the application fields for you; this is called parsing.
Greenhouse’s own support documentation is the clearest public description we found of how parsing fails. It says Greenhouse “can’t parse resumes larger than 2.5MB”, and lists these causes of an unsuccessful parse:
- a CV uploaded as an image rather than a document such as a .docx or .pdf;
- graphics, photos or word art;
- complex tables, headers and footers, and columned layouts;
- name and contact details placed in a header, footer or text box;
- spaces between letters, unclear section organisation, incomplete job titles, and company names without identifying words such as Inc., Co., LTD or LLC.
When parsing fails in Greenhouse, the candidate’s details have to be entered into the fields by hand. Greenhouse also lets recruiters run a full-text search of the CVs stored in the system for keywords. Other systems are built differently and their vendors publish less, so we do not claim the same behaviour for Oracle, Ashby or others; the safe course is a CV that any of them can read. What matters is not how the CV looks on your screen but that the system reads it without errors, that a recruiter finds it when searching, and that it makes sense within a minute of being opened.
Format: a file any system can read
- Save as .docx or a text-based .pdf, under 2.5MB. Never upload a scan or a photo of your CV.
- Use one column, with plain section headings: Profile, Experience, Education, Skills, Languages.
- Put your name, phone number, email and city in the body of the page, at the top, not in the header or a text box.
- Write full job titles and each company’s full name as it appears on your contract or payslip, not a nickname or abbreviation.
- Use a standard font with no letter spacing, no icons and no skill bars.
After uploading, read every field the system filled in and correct it before you submit, especially dates, job titles and employer names, which later searches and filters rely on.
What to include
The facts your eligibility depends on
Gulf graduate schemes screen on hard rules, and your CV should make each one easy to confirm:
- Nationality, when the job is limited to nationals. FAB’s Management Trainee Program is for UAE nationals; Saudi Arabia’s Tamheer requires Saudi nationality.
- Graduation year and GPA, when the posting sets them. FAB’s Management Trainee Program asks for graduation between 2023 and 2026 and a GPA of 3.7 or higher.
- Experience in months, with start and end dates. Limits can run both ways: Tamheer requires no more than one year of prior work experience, while the World Bank’s Young Professionals Program asks for 2 to 6 years.
- Your degree and field in the posting’s own words. Emirates NBD’s graduate trainee role in Internal Shariah Control asks for a bachelor’s in Shari’ah or Law; if that is your degree, write it that way.
- Languages and level. The World Bank states that “an excellent command of spoken and written English is mandatory”.
The words the posting uses
Because recruiters can search stored CVs for keywords, a skill you have but describe in different words may not be found. Use the job title, tools and qualifications as the posting names them, where they truthfully describe you.
Advice: write one achievement line per role with a number you can defend in an interview, such as the size of a project or a result. A list of duties tells the recruiter what the job was, not what you did in it.
What to leave out
- Photos, logos and graphics. Greenhouse lists them as a cause of failed parsing. If an employer wants a photo, follow the instructions on its application form.
- Identity documents. Never paste ID numbers or attach passport copies to a CV you send around. Upload documents only to the employer’s own application system, and only when it asks.
- Anything you cannot prove. National portals check: Saudi Arabia’s Jadarat requires you to verify your qualifications before you can apply for public-sector jobs, and fills some profile data automatically from official sources such as Nafath.
Advice: leave out personal details the posting does not ask for, such as marital status, and keep the CV to what supports this application. Add a detail when the posting makes it relevant, as with nationality for a nationals-only scheme.
English, Arabic or both
Write the CV in the language the posting is written in, unless it asks for another. The World Bank requires excellent English; Jadarat works in Arabic and English. Advice: if you keep both versions, make sure the dates, titles and grades match exactly.
Final checks before you submit
- File type .docx or text .pdf, under 2.5MB.
- Contact details in the body, not the header.
- Every eligibility fact the posting names is on the first page.
- Auto-filled fields checked and corrected.
- You are on the employer’s own application page. Apply on the employer’s official page via careermena.com.
A real employer does not ask you to pay to be hired. An “offer” that asks you to pay for a visa, a medical check, training or “processing” is a warning sign. Listings are always free; we never ask for documents or payment to apply. If you would like a second pair of eyes on your own CV, we offer an optional paid review on our Services page; it has no effect on which jobs we list.
