Main image of article Using Generative AI to Create an Awesome Tech Cover Letter

While a cover letter might seem antiquated, it’s actually a vital tool in your job hunt. A cover letter gives you an additional opportunity to explain to a potential employer why you’re perfect for a role. But they’re also time-consuming to write, and you might wonder if a generative AI tool could streamline the process of creating a personalized, attention-grabbing cover letter.

The answer to that question is obviously “yes,” with a few caveats. First and foremost, generative AI isn’t a perfect tool; it can make errors in fact and grammar, especially if it’s “fed” relatively little information. Whatever workflow you use to compose your cover letter, you’ll need to fact-check and proofread it yourself.

Second, no matter what generative AI’s output, you’ll likely need to rewrite the text to incorporate the keywords in the employer’s job description and match their “tone.” Creating a great cover letter isn’t just a matter of following a formula; there’s a bit of intuition involved, as well.

Following the Cover Letter Format

Before diving into generative AI, let's revisit the standard structure of a cover letter:

  • Header: Your name, contact information, date, and the recipient's name and title.
  • Salutation: A formal greeting; always do your best to personalize this part to a specific recruiter or hiring manager or interviewer.
  • Introduction paragraph: Briefly state the position you're applying for and how you learned about the opportunity.
  • ‘Main’ paragraph: Highlight your relevant skills, experiences, and achievements that align with the job requirements. Use specific examples to illustrate your contributions.
  • Closing paragraph: Reiterate your interest in the position and thank the recipient for their time and consideration.
  • Signature: Your typed name.

While you can play around with this format a bit, recruiters and hiring managers expect your cover letter to be a page in length, with no more than 3-4 paragraphs of body text. Brevity is key.

Using Generative AI for the Cover Letter

As we mentioned above, it’s critical to view generative AI tools as a “helper” as opposed to a one-stop solution when it comes to crafting a cover letter. Some of these tools are specialized and will use your resume to quickly generate a cover letter based on a template (for example, Dice’s iOS app has a cover letter generator, AutoPen, for exactly this purpose).

However, if you’re willing to put in a bit more work (and a more involved prompt), you can also generate a cover letter via a “standard” generative AI chatbot such as ChatGPT or Google Gemini.

Before you begin, make sure you have:

  • The target job description (such as the job posting)
  • Your resume

From there, your “prompt chain” might look something like this:

  • Prompt 1: “Using the job description below, create a professional cover letter for [TITLE] at [COMPANY].” [Copy/paste the job description into the prompt.]
     
  • Prompt 2: “Using the resume/CV pasted below, personalize the professional cover letter to incorporate my experience and skills.  [Copy/paste your resume into the prompt.]

In ChatGPT and Gemini, the output of these prompts will be pretty decent and a bit too long. As an optional prompt 3, you can ask the AI to streamline the text to three paragraphs, but at this point it’s probably better if you take a “human pass” and edit yourself.

As you manually edit the generated text (ensuring it accurately reflects your unique experiences and the specific requirements of the job), pay attention to keywords and phrases from the original job description. Utilizing these keywords will help you get past the automated software that many companies use to scan your cover letter and resume.

And remember: always review the final draft for errors in grammar, spelling, and coherence. Generative AI can sometimes produce inaccuracies, so careful proofreading is crucial.

Additional Tips

Keep the following in mind as you compose:

  • Be Specific: It’s vital to utilize concrete examples to demonstrate your skills and achievements; if generative AI doesn’t add the right ones to its output, make sure to do it yourself.
  • Tailor Your Letter: Each cover letter should be customized to address the specific requirements of an individual job. Never rely on a generic cover letter for multiple job applications.
  • Show Enthusiasm: Convey your genuine interest in the position and the company. Generative AI can have a hard time with this, so it’s important to add during your “human pass.”
  • Keep it Concise: Again, aim for a cover letter that is no longer than one page. Generative AI will often want to produce a document with multiple paragraphs and bullet points, and you’ll need to edit it back.

By combining the power of generative AI with your own expertise and experience, you can create cover letters that stand out from the competition and increase your chances of landing a great tech job.