AI refers to systems designed to mimic human cognitive functions like learning and problem-solving. When it comes to your job search and career development, generative AI and other AI tools can be powerful in several ways.

AI Disclosures

• AI is a tool, not a replacement: Don’t solely rely on AI-generated content. Always personalize your resume and cover letter with your unique voice and achievements.
• Proofread and edit: AI suggestions are a starting point, not a final product. Proofread and edit everything carefully before submitting your application. It is very apparent when materials are solely AI created and are often thrown out if there is no editing.
• Target specific roles: Different tools specialize in different industries or roles. Choose one that aligns with your career goals.
• Be mindful of ethics: Avoid tools that make false claims about your experience or qualifications.
• Evaluate Bias: AI pulls data from the internet as a whole, be wary that some of this information may be biased or not representative of every person.
• Protect Privacy: Be selective with the information that you share with AI. Understand how your data is being stored, used, and secured by reviewing the data privacy policy page of the tool that you are using. Never include personal information like names or addresses.
• Review with human advice: Meet with a career coach to better understand how to ethically use AI in the career search. AI is a complement to human guidance, not a replacement for it.

Sample Prompts

• Upload a job description and say: “Please identify the top 5 skills from this job posting that I should highlight on my resume.”
• “Rewrite the following bullet point to make it more results-focused and begin with a strong action verb: [paste bullet point].”
• “Here is my resume and here is a job description. Suggest 3 changes that would better align my resume with the job requirements.”
• “Please convert this academic project description into a resume bullet point with action + what I did + outcome: [paste project details].”
• “List common Applicant Tracking System (ATS) keywords in this job description that I should integrate into my resume.”
• “Make this cover letter paragraph more specific by tying my skills to the company’s mission: [paste paragraph + job description].”

Sample Prompts

• “Based on this job description, generate 5 common interview questions I might be asked.”
• “Create 5 behavioral interview questions from this posting and suggest strong sample responses: [paste job description].”
• “Provide 3 variations of how I could answer ‘Tell me about yourself’ as a [major/year/student with X experience].”
• “Generate 5 practice questions for a phone screen for this role: [paste job description].”
• “Suggest follow-up questions I could ask the interviewer to show interest in the position: [paste job description].”

Tell AI About Yourself

Before interacting with generative AI, provide it with relevant information about yourself. This may include your resume, work experience, skills, and any other details that are important to your queries.

Keep In Mind the Key Components to Effective Prompts

• Specificity: Detailed and specific prompts typically yield more accurate and relevant results
• Open Endedness: Open-ended prompts may result in a wider range of outputs
• Syntax/Structure: The choice of words and the arrangement of concepts can greatly affect the output
• Iterative Feedback: The user’s responses to initial outputs can be used to adjust prompts for better subsequent results
• Creativity: Creative or unconventional prompts can push the boundaries of generative AI
• Length: Longer prompts can provide more context, which may help the AI in generating more coherent content

Examples of Effective Prompts