Using AI & Career Readiness

Artificial Intelligence

The Office of Career Development & Professional Engagement encourages thoughtful and responsible use of AI and does not endorse or recommend any specific AI platform. While AI can be helpful, your interests, values and experiences are key to making informed career decisions. Our career advisors are happy to meet with you to discuss your use of AI in your career readiness. Learn more about W&M AI guidelines and approved tools.

Artificial Intelligence (AI) can be a valuable tool. Generative AI (GenAI) tools such as Gemini, Copilot and ChatGPT can help you explore career options, research industries and prepare for the job search process. AI can also generate ideas, identify skill gaps and help you prepare for networking and interviews.

However, when using AI, make sure to fact check and verify sources, remain mindful of bias, use your personal voice in writing and don’t input personal information. It is also important to know which industries and employers allow candidates to use AI during the hiring process.

Prompt Engineering

The quality of AI’s results often depends on the caliber of the prompts used. Prompt engineering is the process of crafting clear, specific instructions to help AI generate more useful and relevant responses. Providing context, goals and details within the prompt can help AI deliver more accurate, personalized and sustainable support.

Start here to learn how to create effective prompts:

How to C.R.E.A.T.E. Effective AI Prompts by National Career Development Association

Interested in learning more about prompt engineering?:

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Explore careers related to your major, interests, skills and values.
Learn about industries, job functions and workplace trends.
Connect experiences from classes, research, leadership and work to transferable skills.
Generate questions for networking and informational interviews.
Compare graduate programs, certifications and career options.
Brainstorm internships, projects and experiences that can help you build career readiness.
Research skills and qualifications needed for specific careers.

Providing specific details about your major, interests, values, strengths and experiences helps AI generate more personalized and useful responses.
Verify information. Use trusted resources such as O*NET, the Occupational Outlook Handbook, LinkedIn and employer websites.
Use AI as a starting point. Combine AI insights with self-reflection, networking and career advising.
Seek guidance from career advisors, faculty, alumni and professionals in your field.

“What careers combine my interests in [interest 1] and [interest 2]?”
“What transferable skills have I developed through [research, student leadership, part-time work, athletics, volunteering]?”
“Compare careers in [industry A] and [industry B] in terms of responsibilities, work environment and growth opportunities.”

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Tailor your resume to a job description.
Identify industry keywords and transferrable skills.
Strengthen action verbs and quantify results.
Translate academic, research or technical experiences into employer-friendly language.
Improve grammar, clarity and readability.

Verify accuracy and never include experiences or skills you do not have!
Don’t copy and paste AI-generated resumes. Instead, use AI's suggestions to strengthen your content.
Provide context, including the job description, for more targeted results.
Proofread carefully; AI can make mistakes.
Seek feedback from a career advisor, mentor or trusted professional.
Make sure your resume is ATS-friendly. See the resource section below.

“I am applying for [job title & job description], what skills should I emphasize on my resume?”
“Can you help me condense my [resume] to fit onto one page without losing any key information?”

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Brainstorm ideas and key themes.
Tailor your letter to a specific job.
Highlight relevant skills and experiences.
Improve organization, tone and clarity.
Proofread for grammar and readability.

Avoid copying text word-for-word.
Provide the job description for better results.
Personalize the letter and use your own voice.
Protect your privacy and proofread carefully to ensure accuracy.
Seek feedback from a career advisor or mentor.

“Help me articulate my excitement about the opportunity to work at [company name] in the [job title] role. I am particularly drawn to [mention specific aspects of the company or role]."
“Describe my relevant skills and experiences that make me a strong fit for this role as [job title & description]? Specifically, I would like to highlight [mention key skills or experiences]."

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Receive tailored advice on personalized jobs and internships.
Realize required qualifications and common career paths.
Get insights about company cultures and work environments.
Understand compensation expectations.
Define industries and job titles that match your skills and interests.
Research industry trends, competitors and recent news and initiatives.
Build a tracking system for applications submitted, interview dates, contacts, follow up deadlines, notes, next steps, etc.
Identify skills gaps and suggest certifications or courses.

Verify accuracy by looking at the company’s website and other cited sources.
Avoid including confidential personal information to protect your privacy.
Verify company and salary information using reliable sources.

"What are effective strategies for finding internships in [specific field]?"
"What are the best job boards for finding internships (or full-time jobs) in [industry]?"
"How can I effectively use networking to learn more about this [industry]?"
"Can you help me identify internship programs, as an undergraduate student related to [specific skill or interest]?"

Land the Perfect Job with LinkedIn Course: A step-by-step online course on mastering LinkedIn for your job search, free to William & Mary students and alumni.

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Help you answer interview questions about why you want to work at this company and what you know about the company.
Conduct mock interviews.
Generate questions you may be asked, evaluate answers and suggest stronger responses.
Come up with questions to ask the interviewer during your interview.
Create thank you email content after the interview.

Personalize AI’s feedback so that you don’t sound robotic.
Include the job description and your resume in your prompt for tailored questions and suggestions.

"Compare this resume and job description and provide questions that might be asked. Include general and behavioral questions. As a follow up, what skills, attributes and experiences would be useful to bring up in my interview?"
"Generate 10 behavioral interview questions from the following position description [position description]. As a follow up, generate questions to ask an interviewer about company culture."
"Act as a [name of position] interviewer using this job description [job description]. I will be the candidate, and you will ask me the interview questions for the position. I want you to only reply as the interviewer. Do not write all the conversation at once. Ask me the questions and wait for my answers. Do not write explanations. Ask me the questions 1 by 1 like an interviewer does and wait for my answers."

Big Interview: Conduct mock interviews with AI and receive feedback on performance, eye contact, and responses.

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Draft LinkedIn and One Network connection requests.
Edit networking emails and follow up messages.
Improve LinkedIn headlines, skills lists and professional summaries.

Personalize messages with details about the person that prompted you to reach out.
Use your own voice and be authentic.
Verify accuracy and avoid copying text word-for-word.
Avoid including confidential personal information such as your full name, phone number, or address to protect your privacy.

"Create a summary for [my LinkedIn Profile] highlighting these [skills and attributes].”
"Write an elevator pitch based on these 3 [skills] and career interests [interests]."
"Create 10 informational interview questions based on this person's LinkedIn profile [LinkedIn link]."
"Provide a list of professional associations for this [industry, job function or geographical location].”
"Compose an email to this person [LinkedIn profile] requesting an informational interview."
"Write a professional LinkedIn message to an alum working at [company] asking for career advice."

Use LinkedIn’s AI Role Play to practice a networking conversation
The Right Way to Use AI to Accelerate Your Career video

Using AI & Career Readiness

Artificial Intelligence

Prompt Engineering

Using AI for Career Exploration

Using AI for Resume

Using AI for Cover Letters

Using AI for Job Search

Using AI for Interviewing

Using AI for Networking

Artificial Intelligence

Prompt Engineering

Career Exploration

Using AI for Career Exploration

Use AI to:

Tips for Using AI:

Prompts:

Resumes

Using AI for Resume

Use AI to:

Tips for Using AI:

Prompts:

Resources:

Cover Letters

Using AI for Cover Letters

Use AI to:

Tips for Using AI:

Prompts:

Job Search

Using AI for Job Search

Use AI to:

Tips for Using AI:

Prompts:

Resources:

Interviewing

Using AI for Interviewing

Use AI to:

Tips for Using AI:

Prompts:

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Networking

Using AI for Networking

Use AI to:

Tips for Using AI:

Prompts:

Resources: