AI and ChatGPT has taken the world by storm in the last few months and it’s popularity is skyrocketing. While it’s a fun and time saving tool, it’s now entered the hiring realm and making application screening feel a bit like the wild west .

It’s no surprise that candidates are utilizing ChatGPT or other AI language models on their resume. As a founder or hiring manager, how do you know if a candidate’s resume is legitimate or ChatGPT generated?

Here are a few ways an employer may be able to identify AI generated resumes and applications:

1. Look for consistency in language and tone: Applications written with AI may have a consistent language and tone throughout, as the AI is programmed to use certain words and phrasing based on the input it receives. Does it feel like a generated response or like there was thought put into the answer? Trust your gut.

2. Use of specific phrases or jargon: Some AI language models may be trained on specific types of text, such as job descriptions or industry-specific language. Applications that use certain phrases or jargon that are common in a particular field may suggest the use of an AI language model.

3. Lack of personalization: Applications written with AI may lack personalization, as the AI may not be able to create truly individualized responses. Instead, the responses may be generic and may not address specific details or qualifications mentioned in the job description.

4. Unusual sentence structure: AI language models may generate responses with unusual or unexpected sentence structure, as they are not constrained by the same grammatical rules as human writers.

5. Errors or inconsistencies: While AI language models can produce high-quality writing, they are not perfect and may make errors or inconsistencies that are not typical of human writing. These may include spelling or grammatical errors, or sentences that are unclear or difficult to understand. It’s worth mentioning that hiring offshore means applicants may have different levels of written English, and that also needs to be considered here.

   It's worth noting that not all applications that exhibit these characteristics are necessarily written with AI, and that there may be other factors at play. However, if you suspect that an application was written with AI, you may be able to investigate further by reviewing the candidate's online profiles (like their LinkedIn) or by asking targeted questions during the interview process. Heck- ask them to create a loom video telling you why they’d be a great fit and thrive in this role as the 1st round interview. That’ll give you a good sense of their personality, and should help you decipher if they wrote their application or if AI did.

Have any other tools or ways you spot AI or ChatGPT resumes and applications? Leave a comment and let us know!

-Krista✌️

(from our sweet recruiting team)