I didn’t think job search could ever suck as much as it did in 2008, but the addition of AI has definitely made it worse. There are even more generic, buzzword filled job posts that result in either ghosting, spam, or scams. Plus, there are a million tools trying to take advantage of everyone with the shiny AI label. Oh, and just to really mess with your head - now there's a conversation in recruiting teams about if you’ll get rejected for using those AI tools in the first place.  

If you click through, you’ll see in the survey results that answers are all over the place when recruiters and hiring managers are asked if they’ll reject an applicant for using AI. 30% say yes, 30% say no, and if you ask me - 100% of them are hypocrites: everyone wants to be AI-first, just not when you apply to a job? OK (written with sarcasm). 

So are people actually being rejected for using AI? Don’t worry, I won’t tell you a story like those recipes that make you read a thousand words to find out. The answer is a simple “no,” IF you don’t use AI to do things it’s not good at, like writing resumes or applying to jobs. 

Don’t Use AI For This Part Of Your Job Search 

One of the most common cases of using AI for job search is to have tools to write - or tailor - your resume to the job. You upload that pieced together resume you’ve been marginally editing since your college career counselor gave it to you, plus the job post. You expect some sort of magic “ATS (aka applicant tracking system) optimized” resume to come out of the other side. That’s not quite how things work.

The first problem here is that job post. If you’ve read a job post recently, you know those are awful and rarely include helpful intel. They’re mostly lists of jargon with very little context about the scope and scale of the organization, the role, or specific goals. That’s not going to help you create a more tailored resume that makes a recruiter want to read it. If anything, using that to influence the output of your resume is only going to make your resume worse. 

Second, I am not aware of an ATS “reading” anything right now. A tool *might* be able to stack rank your resume against others based on years of experience, experience with competitors, or some kind of quiz you answer - but it is not “reading” your resume. People are. That’s why the human touch matters so much. You’re the one who knows all the details, and your ability to incorporate them into the resume is what will optimize your resume. Not some keyword tool. 

Free AI For Job Search That Will Get You Hired: My Recommendations

If you want to use AI to get hired instead of disqualified, use it to analyze trends and themes across many pieces of content to make recommendations about what actions you should take. That’s what it’s good at. Plus, the larger the data set, the less dependent you are on each data point for quality. Considering that, here are a few AI for job search strategies I’d recommend. 

1. Optimize your resume with job post trends. Last week, working with a client in a 1-1 coaching session, I took every job she ever applied to and plugged the responsibilities and requirements into a Word document. Then, I prompted ChatGPT to tell me the themes in these roles and what to emphasize on a resume. While the job posts weren’t the best, it helped us review the trends so she knew what to emphasize in her resume. 
2. Mock interviews. Use ChatGPT to conduct mock interviews in voice mode and get pre-interview pep talks to calm your nerves. Although, transparently, it’s probably as good at a pep talk as writing a job post. 
3. Create an interview training guide. I found this on Reddit. Create a document that includes your resume, the job post, a link to the careers site, Glassdoor links, and anything else that comes up when you search the company’s name and careers, including the LinkedIn of the person who has the job now (or the boss). Then give AI this prompt to create an interview guide and AI interview prep: 

I am applying for the JOB TITLE role at COMPANY NAME, and I have an interview. I want you to create an interview guide for me based on all the information in the document I uploaded. The interview guide should include a list of interview questions I can expect, recommended answers using the STAR method and my resume, their values and meanings, what skills to emphasize based on the job post and the previous person in the role (LinkedIn profile here: LINK), and a top 5 list of tips that would help me get this job. Feel free to add any other coaching or interview advice that has been helpful to other applicants in getting a job at COMPANY NAME based on web testimonials and reviews. Make it concise, easy to read, and scannable. 

Remember, it’s not about if you use AI to find a job - it’s how. Use AI for your job search to collect themes and trends that help you show up more prepared and with more information. That’s what’s going to help you get your next job - not some simple prompt like, “optimize my resume to this job.”