Criteria and Sub-Criteria Explained
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HireSalt evaluates candidates across 7 categories with 33 sub-criteria. Five categories are weighted by default and you can adjust each weight to match what matters most for your role. The other two are shown for context and carry no weight until you give them one.
The 7 Categories
- Skills Match — How well the skills on the resume line up with what the role asks for.
- Experience — Years of experience, seniority level, industry relevance.
- Education — Degree level, field of study, certifications.
- Semantic Fit — Whether the work described reads like the work in the job description, beyond keyword overlap.
- Stability & Trajectory — How coherent the career arc is: tenure against role norms, explainable gaps and the kinds of moves made.
- Practicalities — Logistics such as location, availability, salary expectations and work authorization. Informational: zero weight by default.
- Engagement Profile — How the candidate engages with their work: collaboration, discretionary domain investment and stated motivations. Informational: zero weight by default.
The 33 Sub-Criteria
Each category breaks down into sub-criteria. Each sub-criterion gets its own score and a short note from the AI saying what it found and what it missed. All of them are switched on by default.
Skills Match
Required Skills Coverage; Preferred Skills Coverage; Hard Skills Depth; Soft Skills Alignment; Domain/Industry Vocabulary.
Experience
Years of Experience; Role & Title Relevance; Seniority Level Match; Career Progression; Industry Experience; Achievements & Quantified Impact; Recency of Relevant Experience.
Education
Degree Level Match; Field of Study Relevance; Certifications & Credentials; Continuous Learning.
Semantic Fit
Context Matching; Intent Recognition; Skill Implementation; Problem Solving Ability; Transferable Skills.
Practicalities
Location / Remote Fit; Availability & Notice Period; Salary Alignment; Work Authorization.
Engagement Profile
Collaboration & Mentorship; Discretionary Domain Investment; Stated Motivations & Purpose; Work-Style Preferences.
Stability & Trajectory
Tenure vs Role Norm; Move Type Coherence; Gap Pattern & Explainability; Trajectory Narrative Consistency.
AI-drafted and custom criteria
When you add a job description, the AI also drafts criteria specific to the role, and you can add your own. Each of those sets is averaged on its own, and the final score blends it with the standard categories by the split shown in the criteria editor.
Adjusting Weights
On the job's Scoring Setup tab, open the Scoring Criteria section. Use the sliders to increase or decrease the weight of each category. The total weight always sums to 100%.