How to Use ChatGPT for Your Resume and Cover Letter
Updating your resume for every job is tedious, and a cover letter from a blank page is worse. ChatGPT can speed up both by tightening your wording, matching your experience to a job posting, and giving you a first draft. It can’t replace you, though, because employers want to see your real experience. New to the tool? Start with our beginner’s guide to ChatGPT.
Before you start: protect your privacy
Leave out your Social Security number, date of birth, home address, and any ID numbers. You don’t need them for drafting, and you can add contact details afterward.
Step 1: Gather your raw material
Open a document and list your jobs, dates, responsibilities, and any results you can put a number on, like “trained 5 new hires” or “cut wait times by 20%.” The more real detail you give ChatGPT, the better the output.
Step 2: Tailor your resume to the job
Career centers consistently advise tailoring your resume to each posting, using keywords from the job description without copying whole phrases. ChatGPT is good at spotting those keywords. Try this:
“Here is a job description: [paste]. Here is my current resume: [paste]. List the top 8 skills and keywords from the job description, and tell me which ones my resume already shows and which are missing.”
Step 3: Improve your bullet points
“Rewrite these resume bullet points to start with strong action verbs and focus on results. Don’t add any facts I haven’t given you: [paste bullets].”
That last sentence matters. AI will sometimes invent achievements, and you’d be the one answering questions about them in an interview.
Step 4: Draft a cover letter
“Write a first draft of a cover letter, 250 to 350 words, for the [job title] role at [company]. Use my resume and the job description below. Keep the tone friendly and professional. Resume: [paste]. Job description: [paste].”
Step 5: Make it sound like you
- Add a personal detail. Mention why you want this company, or a specific project you admire.
- Cut generic phrases. Delete anything that could be in any letter, like “I am a hard-working team player.”
- Read it out loud. If it doesn’t sound like you, rewrite it.
- Check every fact, including dates, titles, and numbers.
Will employers know you used AI?
Some employers use AI-detection tools, and detectors aren’t foolproof. Some job postings also say not to use AI, so read the application instructions first. The safest approach is to use ChatGPT for structure and polish, then make the final version your own.
Quick checklist before you hit send
- Tailored to this specific job
- Every fact is true
- No private info you didn’t mean to share
- Spelling and grammar double-checked, with a tool like Grammarly
- Saved as a PDF, with a clear file name like “Firstname-Lastname-Resume”
Helpful resources
- Duke’s guide to tailoring your resume
- Boise State’s resume guide
- The Muse: How to use ChatGPT for your resume
- Boston University: A cover letter that sounds like you
Keep going
Internal link: 10 Easy AI Prompts to Save Time at Work
Internal link: 7 Best Free AI Tools for Beginners
