Wouldn’t it be great if we all had a personal job search assistant? Someone we could turn to, anytime, for assistance in our careers?
Well, we may not have that at our disposal, but we do have something almost as good: technology. And while it can’t solve all our problems, it can certainly make our lives—and job searches—easier.
ChatGPT is one of those handy tech tools in our metaphorical career tool belts. If you’re heard the buzz around ChatGPT, or tried it already, here’s how you can use it to prep for your next job interview—plus, 35 ChatGPT prompts to get the discussion started.
What is ChatGPT, and how does it work?
ChatGPT is an artificial intelligence chatbot launched in November 2022 by AI research lab OpenAI. It has a variety of use cases—it can help you write a speech or song, debug code, answer test questions, or simply act like a search tool (like Google or Bing) for information.
To put it simply, “it's a really smart friend that you can talk to,” Pete Huang, the cofounder of The Neuron, an AI newsletter focused on helping people find and use tools like ChatGPT to accelerate their workflows, told The Muse.
ChatGPT works through “prompts,” or messages you type in and send to the chatbot to start a “conversation.”
“ChatGPT won't talk to you first,” Huang said. “It's a passive thing, and you have to poke and prod it with new messages here and there for it to respond.”
Because of this, he added, “there is a sort of art and science to crafting a prompt to get it to do what you want it to do.” In other words, the chatbot can’t read your mind—if it’s not giving you the answer you’re looking for, chances are you didn’t give it enough or the right information to go off of.
The pros and cons of using ChatGPT to prepare for a job interview
Beyond having a wide breadth of knowledge—Huang noted the chatbot was trained with internet data and human conversations leading up to 2021—ChatGPT’s biggest perk is that it’s free for anyone to use, anytime (users do have the option to subscribe to ChatGPT Plus for $20 a month for faster response times and priority access to new features).
The chatbot does come with several caveats for job seekers. First, Huang noted that the tool comes with a learning curve. “To know how to write your prompts in exactly the right way takes a little bit of practice. So if you're uncomfortable trying new tools, then it's one of those situations where you do have to overcome that mental hurdle,” Huang said.
He also warned users to keep an eye out for what tech experts call “hallucinations”: answers that come across as reputable but are actually false or inaccurate. “It will confidently tell you something wrong,” Huang said. The reason being, he added, is because “all it wants to do is satisfy you and give you an answer that you're happy with.”
Finally, Huang emphasized that the free tool is slightly outdated, in that it’s only familiar with information up until two years ago. If you plan to use ChatGPT to discuss a topic that’s more recent, he said, “You have to add that information into your prompt instead of assuming that the model already has that baked in.”
Best practices for using ChatGPT to prep for a job interview
Before you get started with ChatGPT in your job search, keep these general rules in mind:
- Avoid sharing confidential company information: If you signed an NDA during your interview process, it’s best to avoid pasting anything confidential or sensitive the company shares with you into ChatGPT, as OpenAI does sometimes collect and save data to improve its model.
- Add context: “Conversation history matters,” Huang said. “Certainly ChatGPT out the box comes up with a lot of information…but you can't always assume that it knows exactly what it is that you're talking about. And so your objective, if you want to have really detailed and custom-to-your-experience conversations with ChatGPT, is to give it a bunch of information in the first message or first couple of messages.” This can be anything from your background or working style to background on the company or role—the more details you provide, the better it can work in your favor. And remember that you can continue the conversation to get a more specific answer, and ChatGPT will learn as you go and build its answers off of everything you’ve said previously.
- Trust your gut: Like any tech tool, ChatGPT has its flaws and may not always produce the right answer. If something seems off or you’re uncomfortable following the chatbot’s advice, it’s best to lean on another source for a gut-check, be it a friend, family member, mentor, or career coach.
35 ChatGPT prompts to prep for your next job interview
Ready to turn ChatGPT into your personal virtual career coach? Try out these prompts for job interview prep.
Prompts for any job seeker
- I’m interviewing for [job title] with [company/type of company]. What skills, attributes, or previous experiences are useful to talk about in my interview?
- Here’s my resume: [resume text]. What should I bring up in a job interview for a position as [job title] at [company/type of company]?
- Here’s my cover letter: [cover letter text]. What should I bring up in a job interview for a position as [job title] at [company/type of company]?
- You’re the interviewer for this role: [job description]. Can you come up with 3-5 interview questions based on this job description?
- You’re the interviewer for this role: [job description]. What are you looking for in a hire when interviewing them?
- You’re the interviewer for this role: [job description]. Conduct a mock job interview for me.
- I’m interviewing for [job title] at [company/type of company], and this is part of the job description: [section of the job description in question]. What does this responsibility entail?/How do I showcase this skill in an interview?
- Ask me [interview question you want to prep for], and I’m going to provide an answer. Give me feedback on my answer as if you’re the hiring manager: What elements of my story stood out? What pieces were missing? Given interview best practices, what did I do well, and what could I do differently?
- I’m interviewing for [job title] and expect to be asked [question you think the hiring manager will ask you]. What’s the best way to answer this question?
- How do I best answer [common interview question] if I’m interviewing for a role as [job title] at [company/type of company]?
- I’m interviewing at a company that’s a lot like [big, well-known company name]. What sorts of questions could they ask me?
- What are some common interview questions a hiring manager could ask at a company that [explain what the company is/does]?
- I’m interviewing with [role of your interviewer] at [company/type of company]. What kinds of questions will they ask, and how should I answer them?
- What are the best questions for me to ask a hiring manager in a job interview for [job title] at [company/type of company]?
- I’m interviewing for [job title] at [company] and know nothing about the company. What do I need to know about them for my interview?
- I’m interviewing for [job title] at [company/type of company]. What sort of [edit test/case study/behavioral questions] should I expect the interviewer to ask me?
Prompts for career changers
- I have a background in [your background] but I’m interviewing for a role as [job title] at [company/type of company]. What sorts of transferable skills do I have, and how can I showcase them in the interview?
- I’m interviewing for a job as [job title] at [company/type of company] and expect to be asked [question about a specific experience/skill]. I have no experience in this. How can I best answer the question?
- I’ve never interviewed at [type of company or industry]. How can I best prepare/What sorts of interview questions should I expect?
- I’m interviewing at a startup but previously worked at a big company/I’m interviewing at a big company but previously worked at a startup. What sorts of interview questions will they ask/How can I show I can fit into the company culture in my interview?
- I’m interviewing for [job title] at [company/type of company] but it’s a big step up from my previous role. I have experience in [related experience]. How can I tie that experience to this role that involves [job description]?
- I’m [age] but the role I’m interviewing for, [job title] at [company/type of company], requires [years of experience]. I have experience in [your background]. How can I sell myself to the hiring manager?
Prompts about specific job interview situations
- I’m in [interview round] of [job title] at [company/type of company]. What kinds of questions should I expect?
- I’m in [interview round] of [job title] at [company/type of company] with [role of interviewer]. How should I be presenting myself/What should I talk about in my experience?
- I’m doing a group interview with [roles of your interviewers] for [job title] at [company/type of company]. What kinds of questions will they ask, and how should I answer them?
- I’m doing a [case study/technical interview/edit test/presentation] in front of [role of interviewer] for a job interview for [job title] at [company/type of company]. It entails [describe the case study/technical interview/edit test/presentation]. How should I prepare? What should I focus on?
- I’m doing a [case study/technical interview/edit test/presentation] in front of [role of interviewer] for a job interview for [job title] at [company/type of company]. I plan to [describe what your answer will be]. Do you have any feedback to improve my answer?
- I have a stutter/get nervous in job interviews/struggle with [issue]. What advice do you have for coming across confident in a job interview?
- I’m running late to a job interview at [company/type of company]. How should I let the hiring manager know/What should the email look like?
- I’m doing a job interview with [company/type of company] for [job title] over video. How can I best present myself?
- I was fired/laid-off from my last job as [job title] at [company/type of company], and I’m now interviewing for [job title] at [company/type of company]. How can I best present my career gap in the job interview with [role of interviewer]?
Prompts for after the job interview
- I interviewed for [job title] at [company/type of company]. We talked about [describe what you talked about in the interview]. What should I write in my thank-you note to my interviewer who is [role of interviewer]?
- I interviewed for [job title] at [company/type of company], and I’m planning to send a thank-you note to [role of interviewer]. Here’s what I’ve written: [thank-you note draft]. Do you have feedback on how I could write this better?
- I don’t want to move forward in the interview process for [job title] at [company/type of company]. What’s the best way to send a rejection/What should the email look like?
- I interviewed for [job title] at [company/type of company], and I have a follow-up question for my interviewer. How can I ask it in a follow-up email?