Robots “Get” Robots: How ChatGPT can help you Customize Your Resume & Land an Interview

Samantha was frustrated with her job search. She had applied for dozens of positions but had yet to receive a single interview.

When I asked if she had been tailoring her resume for each job description, she looked at me with a blank stare.

The answer was obviously, “No.”

I took a minute to explain how tailoring the resume was essential for both applicant tracking systems (ATS) and recruiters.

I told her that ATS are algorithms that parse resumes for specific keywords provided by recruiters to help them with candidate screening.

I also emphasized that recruiters prioritize resumes that scream, “The specific skills you’re looking for? I’ve got them!”

When I was finished talking, I noticed that Samantha looked even more annoyed.

“I’m applying for 20 jobs a week. How can I possibly change the resume for each one?”

“Have you heard of ChatGPT?” I asked.

Her sour face immediately transformed at the mention of everybody’s new best (robot) friend.

“Of course I have! I use it a lot now,” she replied.

“Well, you can use it for this, too!” I told her.

I explained the process:

Step 1: Give ChatGPT your resume.

This step is easy. Just type, “This is my resume,” paste in your resume, and click “send.” ChatGPT will automatically analyze it for you.

Step 2: Copy and paste a job description into ChatGPT.

Ask ChatGPT, “What key skills does this job require?” Paste in the job description and click the send button.

Step 3: Ask ChatGPT to articulate where your resume could better align with the job description.

You can use questions like:

· “How does my resume align with this job description?”

· “What additional information should I provide to the recruiter in my resume to show I have the skills needed for this job?”

· “What quantifiable achievements could I provide?”

· “What information could I omit?”

These questions will prompt ChatGPT to provide you with useful ideas on adapting your resume for the job description.

Step 4: Tailor your resume.

Using the information from ChatGPT, tailor your resume to the specific job requirements. Make sure to use the same language and terminology in the job description. This will make it easier for the ATS to identify you as a good fit for the job.

Step 5: Rinse and repeat.

Repeat this process for every job you apply for. This may sound time-consuming, but it’s worth the effort. Adapting your resume to each job description will increase your chances of getting noticed by the ATS and ultimately landing the job.

“Collaborating” with ChatGPT can make adapting your resume to different job descriptions efficient and fun.

Before ChatGPT, I used to teach people to paste the job description into an editable document, highlight the keywords, implement the most prominent keywords in the “Skills” section of their resume, and then review the rest of the resume to update and align it.

This is still a helpful process, but because ChatGPT is a robot, its perspective might more closely align with the ATS algorithms than a human’s.

*NOTE: Depending on which version of ChatGPT you’re using, results may vary. Also, I’ve noticed ChatGPT sometimes changes its output within one session. For this reason, I’m constantly fine-tuning my prompts to get the best results.

In other words, robots “get” robots.

As for Samantha, using ChatGPT enabled her to swiftly identify the specific skills and keywords in each job description.

She tailored her resume accordingly and started to see results.

Within a few weeks, she landed her first job interview and ultimately got the job. 😊