Club Benefits
Updating your resume for every job application can feel exhausting — especially when nothing seems to be working.
No matter which chatbot you work with, you can use any of these seven prompts to quickly generate the best resume edits and highlight a bunch of mistakes you’ll never make again.
Since AI tools like ChatGPT, Claude, and Perplexity work pretty fast, you’ll end up creating an upgraded resume in less than five minutes.
Article continues below1. The professional summary prompt
It’s easy to fall into the trap of overusing generic phrases on your resume. Making your work experience stand out on just one sheet of paper is stressful, no doubt.
But by using this prompt, you’ll generate a nice starting point for your resume that’ll give whoever’s reading it a quick summary of what you’ve accomplished thus far. From that point forward, you’ll have an easier time displaying your prior roles and qualifications as they pertain to your professional summary:
Using my resume below and this job description, write a sharp, results‑focused professional summary for the top of my resume. Keep it to 3–4 sentences, include relevant keywords from the job description, and avoid buzzwords like “hard‑working” or “team player.” [paste job description] [paste or attach resume].
2. The verb refresh prompt
Like I previously mentioned, there are a ton of worn-out expressions that end up on people’s resumes more often than not.
If you’ve already placed any of those terms on your resume, then it’s best to use this prompt to let AI sift through it and find you much better alternatives that make you and your career history stand out more. And with the right tone, AI will help you retain the professional vibe you’re going for when describing everything you’ve accomplished thus far:
Review my experience section and replace every instance of “responsible for,” “managed,” or “helped” with stronger, more diverse action verbs. Ensure the tone is confident and direct. Resume: [paste experience section or attach resume].
3. The bullet point upgrade prompt
It’s known by everyone at this point to make sure at least three bullet points sit underneath each role.
If you feel like those bullet point descriptions are a bit too long and need some touching up, then it’s definitely worth using this prompt to refine them to make them read better. Shortening up each of those bullet point explanations and making them sound more impressive (especially if you have proof of the work metrics to back up what you’re saying) will take you farther than other job applicants:
Rewrite all my work experience bullets to be: (1) achievement‑focused, (2) starting with strong action verbs, and (3) including specific metrics or outcomes wherever possible. Keep each bullet on one line and under 25 words. Here is my experience section: [paste experience section or attach resume].
4. The gap filler prompt
It’s disheartening to know that some companies won’t even consider folks who have been out of work for a lengthy period of time. It’s worth stating what you’ve been up to during that time if you’ve been freelancing, learning new work-related skills, or for any other reasons you think potential employers should consider. This prompt should assist you in that sense:
I have a gap in my resume from [date] to [date] due to [reason: e.g., caregiving, upskilling, travel]. Write a one-sentence explanation for my resume or cover letter that frames this time as a period of growth or personal responsibility without sounding defensive.
5. The role-tailored resume Pprompt
Drafting an entirely new resume for each role you apply for may be tiring, but you have to go above and beyond to make sure your resume gets an extended look from the company you’re striving to work for.
With this prompt in mind, you’ll have the framework of a resume that’s perfectly tailored to whatever position you’ve come across. And as always, make all the proper edits you think are necessary and add your own character to it to make it all your own:
Using the job description and my resume, create a tailored version of my resume for this exact role. Keep the format simple (no tables or graphics), prioritize my most relevant experience at the top, and rewrite only what’s needed so everything stays honest and accurate. Job description: [paste]. Resume: [paste or attach].
6. The keyword extractor prompt
The harsh truth about job applications nowadays is that a job recruiter will let an ATS (Applicant Tracking System) get a good look at your resume before a set of human eyes gets the chance to do so.
You might as well get ahead of the curve and add all the important information in your resume that would get you a passing grade by the ATS and move you ahead of the competition:
Analyze this job description: [paste job description]. List the top 10 most important hard skills and keywords a recruiter's ATS (Applicant Tracking System) will be looking for. Then, tell me which 3 are currently missing or weak in my resume: [paste or attach resume].
7. The polish prompt
And finally, a good review from AI is always a crucial step to take.
In just a few minutes, you should have a valid list of new edits to make that’ll make your resume even more impressive and hard to ignore. Showing this version of your resume off to human eyes is also worth doing after your AI tool performs the same action:
Here is my nearly finished resume: [paste]. In a short bullet list, suggest: (1) any phrases that sound generic or like AI wrote them, (2) 3–5 stronger verbs I should swap in, and (3) any quick cuts I can make to get this to one page without losing impact.
The takeaway
AI tools have come to my aid as an assistant that helps me tackle any tasks that require them.
Building a resume just so happened to be one of those objectives — many of the prompts I’ve listed here went a long way towards getting the attention of recruiters.
With ChatGPT and other AI tools of its kind in your corner and any of these prompts in your digital back pocket, you can better support your journey to finding the right job.
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More from Tom’s Guide
- If AI feels overwhelming, you’re not alone — here’s the simple way to start
- Hate writing AI prompts? I tested ways to make it easier — here’s what actually worked
- I tried the 'expert educator' prompt on ChatGPT that's gone viral — and it's incredible
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