Using AI To Develop And Edit Resumes And Cover Letters

Creating a resume that includes all the unique skills and experience you want to show to potential employers can be challenging. A resume is your first opportunity to demonstrate that you possess the education, transferable skills and industry specific skills and knowledge to successfully do the job or internship to which you are applying. AI can help you have a better understanding of what to include on your resume and how to align your experiences with the requirements listed in the position description.
It can be tempting to use AI to create all your resume content, but instead you should focus on using AI to improve, sharpen, and edit what you have written yourself. Additionally, AI tools can be used to generate ideas about what experiences to include and how to organize them on your resume to paint the most detailed, comprehensive picture of your experience and qualifications. Overall, you want any written materials that you submit to an employer to convey your voice, personality, and enthusiasm for the position.

Where to Start
Path 1: You have never written a resume and don’t know where to begin.
Here are prompts that will help you begin developing the structure and formatting of your resume:

• Prompt Example 1: Create a clean, professional resume structure for an (insert major here) college sophomore with little to no work experience. Include sections, formatting tips, and what content should go in each section.
• Prompt Example 2: Walk me step-by-step through building a resume from scratch. I am a college student in my third year studying (insert major or area of interest). Provide headings, bullet point examples, and formatting guidance for each section. Make sure that the sections and examples would fit on one page.
• Prompt Example 3: Create a resume template for a sophomore (insert major here) student that emphasizes skills, coursework, and academic projects instead of work experience. Include example bullet points. I have taken classes and built projects in (major courses) at Rutgers University.

Path 2: You have developed a resume, but you would like your experiences to be written more clearly and want suggestions for how to edit your content.
A key factor in using AI to assist you with resume development and editing is providing the AI with all the necessary information it needs to provide the best, most accurate response. When you write a resume, you are writing it for a specific purpose and audience, and you need to provide that information; AI cannot read your mind or guess what your goals are!
The prompts below will guide you in asking the right question and providing the information necessary to align your resume with the requirements of the role you are seeking.

Prompt Example 1: You are an experienced recruiter at an [insert industry] company who is hiring an entry-level [insert job title]. Based off the job description below, offer 5 suggestions to enhance this resume based on the needs and expectations for this role.

• Highlight transferable skills of [insert skill] and [insert skill] in my resume.
• I am interested in the field of Marketing; what are five jobs in the field, and what are the three top skills needed for each of the jobs?
• What are the ten skills in highest career demand over the next ten years?
• What skills are most important for becoming an accountant? Please list the skills and highlight the best ways to develop those skills.
• Please list three ways I can become a better public speaker.