I asked ChatGPT to write resume, including mine. Here's what happened. (2023)

Whatever you thinkArtificial intelligence(AI) is coming for your business or not, it is here to stay. And the most active of all AIs is ChatGPT. Although it is capable of many things, should ChatGPT write your resume?

Consider the compelling results of ChatGPT. Recruittest the documents generated by ChatGPTand revealed that they were given interviews. ANDone votefound that out of 1,000 job seekers, 46% say they use ChatGPT to write theirproprietary lettersIresumes. Of these, 78% say they got an interview and 59% say they were hired. Additionally, nearly 70% of job seekers report a higher response rate from companies when they use ChatGPT to help with their application.

But does that mean ChatGPT is the right choice for you and your resume? Could be. We conducted a series of experiments and put ChatGPT to the test writing and rewriting resumes.

• What is ChatGPT and what is it for?
• Using ChatGPT to write your resume
• Using the paid version of ChatGPT to write your resume
• Using ChatGPT to write the right resume
• Do you need ChatGPT to write your CV?

What is ChatGPT and what is it for?

ChatGPT is built onnatural language processing(NLP). In short, the bot is trained to understand text as humans understand it. It "learns" by using datasets or large amounts of information that "teach" artificial intelligence how to recognize patterns. From that training, the AI ​​learns how to make a response that seems relatively lifelike and, in most cases, reasonable.

>>MERE: What is machine learning?

Using ChatGPT to write your resume

Using ChatGPT consists of two parts: query and output. A prompt is where you ask ChatGPT your question and the result is an answer. For our first round of testing, we gave ChatGPT some basic instructions: Write a resume to X. Here's what we got.

Entry Level Software Developer:

Introductory Financial Analyst:

The deck of the pirate ship:

Overall, these resumes are just OK. The main problem is that they are generally nothing more than a job seeker's job summary. None of these resumes describe how the candidate used their skills and abilities or what the positive outcome was.

>>MERE:How to write a CV

For example, a software developer's resume says: "Improved application performance by implementing efficient data processing algorithms.” That’s a good thing to point out to a potential employer, but it doesn’t explain how much performance has improved.

The same goes for a pirate sailor's CV. It lists specific skills, such as sword fighting, raiding, and treasure hunting, but it doesn't say anythinghowthe sailor used these skills orWhyit means something to the captain or the rest of the crew.

These resumes also include things that areit is no longer necessary. A software resume includes the phrase "references available upon request," a financial analyst resume includes a street and address, and a seaman resume includes all references with names and phone numbers.

There's nothing wrong with including them, but they take up valuable real estate on a short document. It is better to include information about your skills and achievements than to mention that you have themprofessional referencesready to go.

But the biggest problem with these resumes is that they are completely made up iehallucinations. ChatGPT invented work histories, job assignments, diplomas, certificates and references!

Query problem

All of these resumes are short, but we're willing to take the blame for that. We gave ChatGPT very broad instructions, which probably led to the hallucinations. Chat GPT was forced to fill in the blanks and predict what a financial analyst or seaman CV would look like. And since ChatGPT had to make broad guesses, it couldn't be more specific than "improved performance".

This is a common experience. Bonnie Dilber, Recruiting Manager at Zapier says, "When I originally asked ChatGPT to write a resume list, it didn't include any metrics."

Using the paid version of ChatGPT to write your resume

When ChatGPT-4 came out, we wondered how much the bot had improved. Would it produce better resumes worth the $20/month investment?

GPT-4 Resume Writing Experiment #1

Our first request was for a starting CVfinancial analyst. Here's what GPT-4 produced:

This is a very long resume full of hallucinations. It took about five screenshots to capture everything, compared to two screenshots from the previous version. When we pasted the output into a Google Doc and formatted it (Arialfont, size 11), was just over three pages long. It still includes things you don't need on your resume, like your full address, "references available upon request," and a goal.

>>MERE: ​​How long should a CV be in 2022?

GPT-4 placed the education section before the experience section. While not wrong, you are generally putting education ahead of experiencecurriculum vitae (CV). Recruiters are usually more interested in your skills and abilities than where you went to school.

The skills section of this resume is divided into two categories, such as what you can work withfunctional CV. However, this takes up a lot. The section is “Skills” and is further divided into “Technical”, “Quantitative andAnalytical skills, I"Announcementand teamwork.” As you differentiate yourhard and soft skillsmay be useful to the reader, it is probably better to condense this section into something smaller or include it as part of the professional summary.

>>MERE: 7 types of CV: Which one is right for you?

The skills section also does not include measurable results. Review strongMicrosoft Excelskills (like pivot tables) is a smart idea. But you need to explain how you use your Excel skills at work or school. And it's better to tie your skills to a specific job or educational experience (like a project) whenever possible. This helps the reader understand where you learned the skills. Did you learn them on the job or on your own?

>>MERE:Learn Microsoft Excel skills.Read more about Goldman Sachs Excel Skills for Business Virtual Job Simulation.

GPT-4 Resume Writing Experiment #2

Of course, we couldn't do our experiment without looking for a pirate's resume:

Although this resume is shorter, it contains many of the concerns listed above. However, GPT-4 does a better job of explaining how a sailor uses his skills to benefit the entire crew compared to the previous version.

See the "Skills and Abilities" section. Although skills and abilities are listed, which you wouldn't normally do on a resume, look at number six: Caretaker Duties. This is neither a skill nor an ability. It's a job requirement and in the wrong section (or the section is mislabeled), but the resume explains how the sailor uses his skills and abilities to help the team:

Guardian duties:Sharp vision and attention to detail that ensures timely identification of potential threats or targets.

Although it's a little clunky, it's not bad. It's a decent example of quantifying your skills into measurable results. A better version could be:

Sharp vision and attention to detail:Ensure timely identification of potential threats or targets while on lookout.

The resume first highlights your skills, how you used your skills to help the team, and then lists the duties of the role.

Using ChatGPT to write aGenuineContinue

Asking GPT-4 to make a resume is fun. But none of our experiments are for real people, which explains the hallucinations.

So what happens when your listing consists of real information for a real person? Can you bring your CV into ChatGPT and improve it?

I tested my resume and asked ChatGPT to improve it.

How ChatGPT Rewrote My Resume

I entered parts of my CV into ChatGPT and asked him to improve the document.

The first thing I noticed was that ChatGPT wrote his entire resume in the past tense. It is fine with meEarlierpositions, but not mineRight nowone. I'm doing all those things right now!

But apart from the grammatical error, the transcripts were just OK.

Take this point for example. I have, "Produce content according to calendar deadlines." It's not great (I could do better), but it's true. ChatGPT changed it to "Managed Content Production Calendar." There's no doubt that it's an improvement, and it's exactly what I've been looking for from ChatGPT. But it's not true, not even a little bit, and I wouldn't feel comfortable bringing it up as part of a job application.

Improvement of ChatGPT-4 improvements

But again, the blame lies with me. I gave ChatGPT a very general query. So I tried to study my posts to see if I could improve the ChatGPT improvements.

I asked ChatGPT to rewrite this point. I chose it because it's short and doesn't include any metrics or explain the importance of locating and interviewing subject matter experts:

This is pretty good. That's a bit of an exaggeration, but it's a fair assessment of the process. It does a good job of explaining how I reach out to experts and why I interview them for articles. My only complaint is that it's too long to list and will need some trimming before it's on my resume.

After some experimentation, I've come to the conclusion that part of the problem with relying on ChatGPT for resume writing is that it seems to make assumptions based on input. For example, I asked him to write a point about my SEO writing:

This is both true and false. I seamlessly integrate the targeted keyword and use internal links. However, the ChatGPT rework also describes how I use on-page SEO techniques such as meta phrases and header tags, and how I perform "extensive keyword research."

While these activities are part of effective SEO writing, I did not do any of them in that particular role. I think ChatGPT made assumptions based on my inclusion of "SEO". So I asked him to try again, only this time I specified which aspects of SEO to ignore:

This is a little better. It takes away the hallucinations of what I was doing in that role. However, I would probably delete the other part of the bullet. I didn't have access to metrics and can't confirm if my SEO copy improved rankings, increased traffic, or improved visibility and content visibility (but I hope so!).

Do you need ChatGPT to write your CV?

Overall, these results were decent but not spectacular. It took a few tries to get a result that didn't exaggerate or inflate what I was doing, and even more attempts to get ChatGPT to not include things I wasn't doing at all. Given how much time I spent redirecting ChatGPT, I might have been better off using the original output as a blueprint and rewriting my resume without AI help.

Dilber had a similar experience. After ChatGPT gave her the first resume points, she asked him to "rewrite those points with examples of results and metrics," and got a better response. But she also cautions that even with a "better answer," you should take the time to review and rewrite ChatGPT's output.

"You always want to edit for accuracy to make sure you're not misrepresenting your work and to make sure it sounds like you. As a candidate, you want to stand out from the crowd. Many people use ChatGPT, so if you just send what it generates, your resume and cover letter will probably be the same as everyone else's,” she says.

So should you even bother using ChatGPT to write your CV?

"Job seekers should use ChatGPT as a starting point to break the void of a blank page, not as a way to craft a finished resume," advises Miles Jennings, founder of Recruiter.com. "For example, if you're trying to be a graphic designer, ask him to write a great resume for an early career graphic designer. But it goes from there. Paste the result into a Google Doc and edit it as much as possible. "

So if you're struggling with the first few steps or need help paraphrasing a messy point, ChatGPT can be a great writing prompt, outline generator, and general guide to help you write your resume. But you should not rely on the result. ChatGPT hallucinates - sometimes despite your best efforts. And if you include these hallucinations on your resume, you may find yourself being asked about skills and abilities you don't actually possess in an interview.

Learn more ways to use ChatGPT in your job search:

• We asked ChatGPT for cover letters. Here's What's Right (and Wrong)
• Should you use ChatGPT for conversation advice?
• How to use ChatGPT in your job search
• Can you use ChatGPT to prepare for technical interviews?

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