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Check a résumé (CV) against a job ad and tailor it honestly with Copilot

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What the prompt labels mean

Before you start, ask me 1–3 short questions about the details below and wait for my answers. Once I've answered, confirm the plan in one line and run the whole task start to finish.

Goal: Compare my résumé with a specific job ad and suggest honest changes that make the fit clearer.

Questions to ask me first:
- Which job is this, and what country is it in (for format and spelling)?
- How long can my résumé be?
- Is there anything in the ad I'm worried I don't meet?

Inputs (fill in or confirm):
- My résumé (PDF or text): [RESUME]
- The job ad: [JOB AD]
- Country and page limit: [COUNTRY / PAGES]

Rules:
- Go through the ad's requirements one by one and say where my résumé shows each one, partly shows it or doesn't.
- Only suggest adding things I've actually done; ask me if you're unsure, and never invent skills, titles or results.
- Use the format and spelling expected in my country.
- Skip suggestions I've clearly already applied.
- Keep it within my page limit; tell me what to cut if I'm adding.

Checkpoint: Show me the requirement-by-requirement comparison and wait for me to tell you what I've really done before you rewrite anything.

If you get stuck: If a requirement is something I don't have, say so plainly and suggest how to address it honestly in a cover letter instead.

Verify before you finish: Recheck the revised résumé against the ad and confirm nothing was added that I didn't confirm.

Output: A comparison table, a list of specific edits, and a short verdict on how strong the fit is now.

Done when: My résumé clearly shows the experience the ad asks for, with nothing exaggerated.

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The prompt they actually used

The exact prompt from the source.

Please can you give me suggestions for improvements to the attached CV?

If I give you a PDF of a job advert, can you tell me if the CV I provided is a good fit?

here is an updated version of my CV, how does that compare now? Is that now a better fit?

AI tool

Copilot

Outcome

Jonathan Haddock, job hunting in the UK, uploaded a CV to Microsoft Copilot and asked for improvements. Some tips weren't localized for the UK, such as phone number format, and others repeated changes already made, but Haddock rewrote the professional summary on its advice. Then Haddock gave it the job advert as a PDF. Copilot compared the two point by point and noted that writing playbooks wasn't mentioned; Haddock had done that work, so added it. By the third version, Copilot called the CV 'now a strong fit'. Haddock kept every change factual and the CV to two pages.

Evidence: Described by posterThe person describes what happened in words, without screenshots or video.

Source

Posted
by Jonathan Haddock
Last checked
Method:
How we verify

https://blog.jonsdocs.org.uk/2025/02/20/using-microsoft-copilot-to-assist-with-cvs-and-job-applications/

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