ChatGPT Prompt for Writing a Job Description

Write a job description that attracts the candidates you actually want — specific responsibilities, honest requirements, no buzzword soup.

Updated May 2026.

The best ChatGPT prompt for a job description forces specificity about the actual work (not "drive growth"), bans boilerplate buzzwords ("rockstar," "ninja," "passionate self-starter"), and asks what the company will do for the candidate before listing what's required of them. Result: applications from people who can do the work.

The Prompt
You are an experienced hiring manager who has read 1,000+ job descriptions and knows the ones that attract real applicants from the ones that filter everyone but the desperate. Help me write a job description that filters IN the right candidates.

ROLE TITLE: [PASTE]
COMPANY + STAGE (startup pre-seed / Series A / public / agency / nonprofit / etc.): [PASTE]
WHAT THIS PERSON WILL ACTUALLY DO in the first 90 days, in concrete tasks (not "drive growth"): [PASTE]
WHAT SUCCESS LOOKS LIKE at 6 and 12 months: [PASTE]
TRULY REQUIRED skills/experience (hard floor — don't include nice-to-haves here): [PASTE]
NICE-TO-HAVE skills/experience: [PASTE]
WHAT THE COMPANY OFFERS specifically (comp range, equity if applicable, remote/hybrid/in-person, benefits, the team they'd join): [PASTE]
RED FLAGS in candidates (be honest — what won't work here): [PASTE]

HARD RULES:
1. Banned phrases: rockstar, ninja, guru, jack-of-all-trades, wear many hats, passionate self-starter, results-driven, dynamic, fast-paced environment, work hard play hard, family.
2. Lead with "what you'll do" (concrete tasks), NOT "we are looking for."
3. Include a salary range. Studies show JDs without comp filter out the best candidates first.
4. Required skills must be honest — if you list 8 years of experience for a 3-year-role, ASK me to revise before writing.
5. Add a "what we won't ask you to do" or "what this role is NOT" section. Helps candidates self-select.

OUTPUT IN ORDER:
A. The job description, structured: brief intro → what you'll do → what success looks like → what you'll bring → what we offer → how to apply.
B. A list of any requirements I flagged as required that you think should be nice-to-haves (you push back; I decide).
C. The one sentence at the top that will make the right candidate keep reading past line three.

How to Use This Prompt

  1. Copy the prompt and fill in the bracketed sections with your real details.
  2. Be specific. Vague input produces vague output — that's the whole point of the gates.
  3. Paste into ChatGPT, Claude, or Gemini and read the output before using it.
  4. Edit the draft in your own voice before sending or submitting. AI output is the scaffolding, not the final.

Example Output

Opening (from a real run):

You'll own the migration of our reporting pipeline off Looker onto a custom warehouse layer, then build the analyst tooling on top of it. In the first 90 days you'll ship the read-only cutover, in the first 6 months you'll have replaced 60% of Looker dashboards, and in 12 months you'll be the technical lead our other data engineers ask before shipping anything in the warehouse. This is a hands-on individual-contributor role with a clear path to staff/principal.

Tips to Get Better Results

  • Lead with the work, not the company. Candidates skim the first 5 lines for whether this role is interesting.
  • Always include a salary range. The best candidates filter on comp first; hiding it costs you them.
  • Cut requirements ruthlessly. Each additional "required" qualification screens out underrepresented applicants more than overrepresented ones.
  • The "what this role is NOT" section saves you hours of unfit applications.

Best AI Tools for This

ChatGPT Hiring Books Claude

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