Machine Written Cover Letters

Is it possible for AI to write your CV cover letter?

Yes.

Should you use it for this?

No.

We know many will disagree with us on this, so here’s our reasoning.

It’s easy to get swept up in the hype when you see headlines like “Enter your info and watch the magic happen!” and “If you’re tired of writing endless applications, try this!”.

Yes, it’s possible for AI apps like ChatGPT to write CVs and cover letters and use a natural voice. Plus, if you input specifics, they can be pretty good at getting your CV writing off the start line. But will using a machine to do all the work be enough to get it into our ‘Yes’ pile? Probably not.

That’s not because we’re super-sleuths capable of outsmarting an AI. And we’ll even concede that some CVs will get past some of those automated CV scans. But without human input, it’s likely to contain structure errors, generic information and, well, to put it bluntly, be dull as dishwater to read! 

Another problem is your machine-created cover letter is likely to be littered with fluff words like “self-motivated”, “passionate” and “productive”. These add no substance and wastes a valuable opportunity to stand out for the right reasons.

Your cover letter is your chance to put across your unique personality and provide real-life stories as examples of your expertise. You don’t want to sound like everyone else. And machines rely on, well, everyone else’s words.

Without your own voice, you’re in real danger of being overlooked.

As legal recruiters, we’re looking to evaluate and find exceptional candidates for exciting legal careers. Don’t let a machine do too much of the work and miss out the human element that makes us connect to you. Afterall, companies employ real people, not machine-generated content.