Career and Professional Success AI Position Statement
Students using artificial intelligence (AI) tools to support their career development can enhance job and internship searches, improve application materials, and offer career insights. However, it is important to use tools responsibly, ethically, and in ways that promote authentic growth. Informed, honest, and meaningful use of technology that supports—not replaces—student learning, self-reflection, and professional integrity is the goal.
Guiding Ethical Principles
Authenticity: Career documents (resumes, cover letters, LinkedIn summaries) must reflect the student’s actual experiences, skills, and voice. AI can offer guidance or structure, but students must ensure the content remains truthful and personally representative.
Learning First: AI should enhance learning, not bypass it. AI should support learning, not replace it. Students are encouraged to use AI tools to reflect on and improve their communication, self-presentation, and writing.
Transparency: When appropriate (e.g., in educational or advising settings), students should be open about the role AI played in preparing materials. This helps advisors provide more accurate and supportive feedback and encourages thoughtful discussions about technology use.
Data Privacy and Security: When using AI tools, students should not enter sensitive personal information, confidential work-related information, and always review the privacy policies of the platforms they use. Protecting one’s data is a key part of responsible technology usage.
For additional support, schedule an appointment with a CaPS Advisor to discuss using AI in your career development.
Commonly Used AI Tools
One of the most notable generative AI tools is ChatGPT. ChatGPT can be used for resume building, cover letter drafting, interview preparation, and more.
To learn more and get started, check out OpenAI’s Help Center:
All UNH students, staff, and faculty have access to Co-Pilot. When logged in with your institutional M365 account, you are in a USNH-protected environment, so any data shared or uploaded is not shared externally or used to train the tool.
For a tutorial on how to use Co-Pilot, click here:
Gemini, formerly Bard, is the generative AI tool created by Google. AI Overviews have been implemented for many Google searches on the engine.
Using AI For Resumes
Never create a resume from scratch using AI! Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS) flag resumes fully created by AI. AI is a tool to assist in the process by offering editing or improving bullets. Make sure to fully develop your own resume before you use AI.
Ground Rules
AI is your assistant, not your author. Use it to organize your ideas—not write the document.
Make it sound like you. How you write should reflect how you speak.  
Check the facts. AI may get things wrong. Always double-check and make edits. 
Be specific in your prompts.  The better the prompt, the stronger the output will be.  
Never use personal information when using AI (e.g. name, address, phone)
Create a First Draft
Choose a college-specific sample resume related to your major and populate your information in the relevant sections. You can use the following AI prompts to assist:
Skills Section: Include skills that are relevant to the position/industry.
AI prompt: What skills are most important for [job title or industry]?
Experience: Emphasize your skills and strengths in this section; ATS scores this section highly.
AI Prompt: Highlight my accomplishments and contributions in [xx] role in the form of a resume bullet using the attached job description and resume [insert].
Refine with Keywords and Section Titles
The ATS is filtering for specific words and phrases throughout the resume. How you choose to name your sections will affect how the ATS scores your resume. For this reason, it is recommended that you include keywords that are the most important for the position/industry.
Section Titles: Align titles to what is important for the position/industry.
AI Prompt: Based on my experience in [specific projects/achievements], suggest relevant sections for a resume targeting a [job title] role.
 Relevant Coursework/Projects, Leadership, and Activities: Use these experiences to demonstrate knowledge and skills relevant to the position.
AI Prompt: Describe the projects I have completed [insert] in a way that demonstrates my skills and knowledge.
AI Prompt: Create resume bullets for my involvement in [insert clubs, organizations, or volunteer work]. 
Make Edits and Customize Resume Using AI Prompts
Using this job description [paste it], identify the key words, skills, and qualifications. Then provide a list of the keywords I should include in my resume to align with this job, using the exact words and phrases as they appear in the job description.
Review this resume and make suggestions for any sections to be omitted or rephrased to make it more relevant for a [insert position]. Identify overly wordy or repetitive phrases and suggest ways to make them concise and direct.
Take this resume and provide suggestions on how to make me a strong candidate for [insert position] at [insert company].
Rephrase this part of my resume: [paste it] to better fit this position [insert job description].
Make sure to customize the content for each application, proofread carefully, and adhere to any specific guidelines from your college. 
Using AI for Cover Letters
Ground Rules
AI is your assistant, not your author. Use it to organize your ideas—not write the document.
Make it sound like you. How you write should reflect how you speak.
Check the facts. AI may get things wrong. Always double-check and make edits.
Give good information. The more specific your prompt, the better your letter will be.
Never use personal information when using AI (e.g. name, address, phone).
Discover Your Strengths
Here’s my resume: [content only] and the job description: [paste it]. What are my top strengths?
What skills are most important for this [job title] role?
How can I rephrase this part of my cover letter: [paste it], to better fit this job?
Create a First Draft
Write a cover letter for [job title] at [company], based on this job description: [paste job description] using content from my resume [insert content without contact information], [paste sample of my writing] to mimic my tone and language. Be sure to include:
Introduction: Clearly state my interest in the employer/industry, the specific position, and succinctly mention the key qualities I bring.
Body: In 1-2 paragraphs, detail how my skills and experiences are beneficial to the position, explicitly linking them to the job description. Aim for similar length and level of detail.
Closing: Reaffirm my interest in the role, explain why, express gratitude, and include a call to action that facilitates a reply.
Make Edits and Customize
Take this cover letter and resume [upload] and provide suggestions on how to make me a strong candidate for [insert position] at [insert company].
Review this cover letter and suggest if any sections should be omitted or rephrased to make it more relevant for a [insert position].
Edit this cover letter [upload] to highlight my key strengths from my resume [upload] and clearly connect them to the job requirements.
Identify overly wordy or repetitive phrases and suggest ways to make it concise and direct for this cover letter [upload].
Resources:
AI Tools Available for Interview Prep
is an innovative mock video interviewing platform designed to enhance your interviewing abilities with AI feedback! The service is free for UNH students and available to you 24/7.
How it works
- with your UNH credentials.
- Select an interview, you will be asked a question, your response will be recorded.
- At the end of the interview, review your recorded responses and view the analysis StandOut has recorded.
Benefits of using StandOut
- Practice: Learn how to answer succinctly and efficiently. Watch yourself back to see how you present yourself to future employers.
- Reflect: Track your progress to gain insights on what is working and what you need to improve to be as successful as possible.
- Interview: Use the skills you have mastered with StandOut to show confidence and land the job.
Ground Rules
- AI should only be used to prepare for interviews. Consider relevant experiences to use as examples, preparing for industry-specific questions, and receiving feedback.
- AI crafted responses should not be used during an interview. Coming prepared to an interview with notes is important but using AI crafted responses can lead to inaccurate information, generic responses, or mismatched language and tone.
If an employer suspects you are using AI to craft responses during your interview, they may take immediate action to end your candidacy. The way you present yourself in a virtual interview should match the care and consideration you would put into an in-person interview.
Networking/LinkedIn and AI
Networking is crucial for successful job searches, and it involves seeking career information and advice from people you may already know including UNH community members (alumni, staff, faculty), friends, family and industry professionals.
Leverage Your Network When Applying for Jobs and Internships
Most applications go through Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS). If you do not include specific key words and appropriate formatting, your resume may get rejected before human eyes ever see your documents.
General Tips for Networking with AI
Keep prompts simple and direct
Break big requests into sequenced sub-prompts
Analyze sentiment to ensure professional tone
Tell the platform to critique and improve its own response
Building Strategic Connections
Strengthen your LinkedIn Profile: use key words that align with industry standards, skills, and competencies.
AI Prompt: Using LinkedIn profile, provide edits to align with industry language and experience. Once you have the edited version, rewrite again to reflect your own writing style; this is a must. Employers can spot AI generated text immediately.
Expand your LinkedIn Network: use the UNH alumni network and its search options to hone your industry, role, and/or geography. If you already have companies of interest, go to the company page and select the ‘people’ tab, then search by UNH alumni, what they do, or what they are skilled at. Once you locate an individual, send them a LinkedIn message to connect.
AI Prompt: Draft a personalized message using my writing style and no more than 200 characters. Please include the common denominator [UNH alumni, mutual acquaintance], interest in [industry], and a request for a short informational interview.
Career Exploration and Networking
Not sure about job titles and who to reach out to as a result?
AI Prompt: List 10 entry level [type of role] in [geography] focused on [topic of interest]. This will give you a list of career titles to consider.
Searching for networking opportunities
AI Prompt: Identify and leverage network opportunities in [industry] located in [state/region]? Repeat with more specifics: professional interests, experience level.
UNH recognizes that the use of Generative AI tools may be beneficial for a variety of career and professional development uses. However, passing off information created using Generative AI technology as original work, even when modified, may pose ethical and legal risks. If you are in doubt as to whether usage of Generative AI may be appropriate, consult a career advisor, and always use critical thinking skills when employing and using AI resources, responses, and content.
