Three Ways to Use ChatGPT to Succeed in and After Bootcamp

The following is written by Careers in Code’s career coach, Laura Thorne.

If you’ve been paying attention to the tech world the last few months, you’ve probably heard of the first-of-its-kind chatbot that has been sweeping the Internet: ChatGPT. This chatbot has been generating buzz in the tech industry and beyond due to its advanced conversational abilities, powered by artificial intelligence (AI).

AI has been a buzzword (buzz-acronym?) in the tech industry for quite a while now, and for good reason. In the last few years, we have seen AI being used in nearly every industry — from financial institutions utilizing AI to automate trading stocks to chatbots acting in place of customer service representatives to self-driving cars using AI to perceive their environment. And now, ChatGPT has brought the power of artificial intelligence to the masses.

Although you could use this tool to write silly poems or spawn a recipe based on what’s in your fridge, it’s undeniable that its applications go far beyond that. When it comes to your success in and after Bootcamp, here are 3 ways ChatGPT can lend a helping hand:

1. ChatGPT for Learning to Code

Did you know ChatGPT can actually produce code for you in almost every coding language? Type in any query you want — CSS and HTML code for a website header, Javascript code to make a functioning checklist, database creation with SQL — it can produce the code.

By no means would you want to copy-paste an entire set of assignment instructions and have the chatbot take the reins. ChatGPT is revolutionary, but not flawless. But, it can offer a solid starting point for assignments, especially ones where you have no idea how to get started. And let’s face it, this is the future of work.

Let’s take the example of developing a website header using CSS and HTML. This is the HTML that ChatGPT produces when it is prompted with this task:

If you’re just learning HTML, it might not be clear why this code works. What are the <li> tags and why are they embedded under <ul>? Why does it choose the <ul> tag over <ol>? The benefit of using ChatGPT over a search engine is that it can answer your questions in reference to the code it produced. Plus, you don’t have to go back and forth between the ten tabs you opened with different answers to your questions. Once you understand these concepts, you can use the code ChatGPT provides as a foundation to complete assignments and for any personal projects.

Ask your bootcamp instructors on the best ways to utilize Chat GPT to assist you in your learning and development or if there are any restrictions on its use.

2. ChatGPT for Resumes

Of course, the goal of putting yourself through all the stress and frustrations of an intense bootcamp is not just to learn how to code, but also to secure a relevant job in tech after. Enter, ChatGPT — the resume connoisseur! Gone are the days of writing a resume from scratch.

Let’s say you want to put the Careers in Code Bootcamp on your resume (probably a good idea). When given some information about the curriculum of the bootcamp, this is what ChatGPT recommended to put under education:

It’s definitely not perfect, but it is an amazing jumping-off point and a huge time-saver. From here, you can modify the bullet points so they’re more personal to you — include specifics about your capstone project and tailor the description to the kinds of jobs you’re applying to. Or ask it to turn that into a short paragraph instead to fit your resume better!

And the beauty? You can do this for every other experience on your resume. Give ChatGPT specifics about your projects, hackathons, prior roles, or other achievements, and watch the chatbot produce quality resume descriptions. The key is to give the program as much information as possible about your specific responsibilities, skills that you want to include, or any metrics you have that can quantify your impact. The more detailed information you produce, the better ChatGPT’s response will be.

Finally, it can help you with that pesky objective or summary that goes at the top. Feed it what you have and ask it to make improvements based on the job you are submitting for — giving it details about that job.

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Some of you at this point might be thinking or were already in the “isn’t this cheating?” frame of mind. The only person to be cheated here is yourself. If you copy word for word, into code or into a resume, and the end result is that you haven’t learned or that the resume doesn’t reflect the reality of your experiences, yes, you’ve cheated yourself. If you carefully review the response you’re given and use ChatGPT as a means to enhance your learning and put your real-life resume experience into a better light — you win!

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3. ChatGPT for Job Searching

ChatGPT is great at crafting resumes, but don’t stop there! Here are a few more ways that this chatbot can be an asset in your job search:

• Use it to write or improve your LinkedIn summary. Writing a LinkedIn summary can be tedious, but ChatGPT can take some of the leg work out of it. Let ChatGPT know what information you want to include in your summary and how long you want it to be, and, once again, you’ll at minimum have a starting point for yours.
• Let ChatGPT write or improve your cover letter. Letting ChatGPT know your experience and information you want in the cover letter is imperative, but we can take it one step further and actually give ChatGPT the job description of the role and ask what a hiring manager or recruiter might want to see in a cover letter. It always helps to have another perspective on what skills to highlight for any given role.
• Interview with ChatGPT. When prepping for an interview, you can also show ChatGPT the job description and ask it to generate interview questions based on those. This might lead you to prepare for interview questions that you would never have thought of before.

These are just a few of the ways ChatGPT can help you with your bootcamp goals, so if you haven’t yet, why not give ChatGPT a try? Whether you need help learning to code or in the job search, a chatbot can probably make your life a bit easier. But remember that ChatGPT is limited by how much information you give it, so if you’re not getting the responses you are looking for, consider providing more details in the prompt and don’t hesitate to clarify with follow up questions or even asking it to explain its responses until it provides you with exactly what you’re looking for.

Until next time, happy chatting!

Laura Thorne is the Career Coach with Hack Upstate’s Careers in Code program which is a bootcamp for women and minorities. Looking to learn full stack development? You may be interested in our 24-week bootcamp. You can learn more and apply for our waitlist here!