"Suddenly Getting Callbacks": How Job Candidate's Cover Letter Tweak Impressed Recruiters
A job seeker recently shared his experience on Reddit, where he sent over 50 job applications with carefully crafted cover letters but received zero responses. However, after using AI to refine his cover letter, he suddenly started getting multiple callbacks within a week. One recruiter even praised his "thoughtful and personalised" cover letter, sparking curiosity about the role of AI in job hunting.
"Pretty much what the title says. I was frustrated after sending out 50+ applications with carefully crafted cover letters and getting zero responses. Then I realised recruiters probably skim these things for 10 seconds max anyway. So my new job application process is to generate a cover letter with AI, spend 2 minutes tweaking it, and attach it to applications. Results so far are 6 callbacks in two weeks compared to 0 callbacks over the previous two months. Of the 15 or so applications I've sent with AI letters, almost half got responses. And the funniest part is one recruiter specifically complimented my "thoughtful and personalised cover letter," he wrote on Reddit.
See the post here:
by u/Kurram in recruitinghell
The Reddit post sparked a divided reaction. While some users praised his approach, others found it disheartening that AI played a significant role in his success. One user wrote, "It is starting to become the only way to get an interview is to use ai to write something other ai finds attractive and nothing to do with the job or who can do the job. Farsical."
Another commented, "Soon we'll just have AIs interviewing other AIs while we humans sit back and watch the show. The funniest part is when you actually get to the interview and they ask "so tell me about yourself" as if they didn't just approve your AI-generated cover letter that claimed you're passionate about their company values. The whole system is becoming this weird game where whoever has the best prompting skills gets the job."
A third said, "Recruiters using it, seekers using it. Nothing is real. The ai wars have begun."
A fourth added, "What was the difference between the AI version and the one you wrote yourself? Key words? Phrasing? More catchy opening hook?"
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