Career Agent: build yourself an AI agent for the job search

This isn't a chatbot or a "resume helper." It's a private system that lives in a folder on your laptop and runs your job search: matches you against openings, tailors your resume to the role, decodes recruiter messages, and drills you hard for interviews. Nothing leaves your computer.

Prepared by Andrew Tomin · Career Agent (Claude Code)

No coding required. If you can install an app and copy-paste, you can do this. First setup takes about 15 minutes. The prompt below is in English on purpose - it works more reliably that way; you can still ask for answers in your own language.

This is built for Claude Code. It can be adapted for Codex or another AI IDE that works with files and a project. It will not work in the web versions of ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, or Grok: those have different limits and don't hold context - the agent has nowhere to store your files and memory between sessions.

What you'll need

A computer (Mac, Windows, or Linux).
A Claude account - either a Claude Pro/Max subscription or an Anthropic API key. Claude Code works with either.
About 15 minutes.

Installation - step by step

Install Node.js (one time)

Claude Code runs on Node.js. Go to nodejs.org, download the LTS version, and install it with the default settings. To check: open a terminal (Mac - the Terminal app; Windows - PowerShell) and type node --version. If you see something like v20.x.x, you're good.

Install Claude Code (one time)

In the same terminal, paste:

npm install -g @anthropic-ai/claude-code

Wait for it to finish. This is the engine that will build and run your agent.

Create a folder for the agent

An empty folder anywhere. In the terminal:

mkdir ~/Documents/career-agent
cd ~/Documents/career-agent

The first line creates the folder, the second moves into it. Everything the agent knows will live here.

Start Claude Code

In this folder, type claude. The first time, it will ask you to log in (subscription or API key). After that, a chat prompt appears - that's your agent.

Paste the prompt

Click "Copy the prompt" at the top of this page, paste it into the chat, hit enter. The agent will NOT start writing files right away - it will interview you first.

Answer the onboarding questions

It will ask for your real data in small batches: your role, target role, top achievements with numbers, languages, your 3 strongest stories, weak spots, and your writing style. Answer honestly - the agent is rule-bound not to invent experience. No answer for something? Type skip and it will leave a note for later. Then it will show you the folder structure it wants to create. Type go and it will build everything.

Use it every day

Type the commands below into that same claude chat. To come back later: open a terminal, cd into your folder, type claude - it remembers everything from last time.

Everyday commands

What you want	Command
Evaluate a job posting you found	Save the job description as a file in the `vacancies/` folder, type `/apply`
Quickly check the match	Paste the job posting text, type `/match`
Tailor your resume to a role	`/tailor-cv`
See your gaps for a role	`/gap`
Reply to a recruiter	Paste their message, type `/recruiter-reply`
Break down a past interview	Paste the transcript, type `/interview-analysis`
Where all your applications stand	`/pipeline`
Check the quality of the agent's output	`/self-eval`

Advanced (optional, a separate build)

Everything above is the base setup. It's deliberately strong - use it wisely. What follows is only if you want to push further on your own.

You can bolt on auto-search: have it search for and send you fresh job postings on its own - from sites you choose (if they offer an API or open feed) or from Telegram channels that post openings. Then the search comes to you, and the agent runs each posting through /match automatically.

This is a separate option and a separate build - it's not in the default prompt. Sites have different rules and access, Telegram has its own API, so you'll need to piece it together yourself. Not needed to get started: squeeze the base version first, and add auto-search once you know what's actually missing.

FAQ

Is my data safe? Yes. It's all plain text files on your own machine. The agent is instructed never to send your personal data anywhere.

Do I need to know how to code? No. You write requests in plain language and use the slash commands above.

Will it lie about my achievements? No - there's a hard rule against inventing experience. Whatever's missing, it will ask you for.

Closed the terminal - lost my work? No. The files live in the folder. Just reopen it and type claude.

It overwrote something / did something weird. Just say it in plain language: "undo that" or "that's wrong, I meant this instead." Before touching the master resume, it always asks first.

Can I edit the files myself? Yes. It's just markdown - open it in any text editor.

The 30-second version: install Node.js and Claude Code -> create an empty folder, cd into it, type claude -> paste the prompt, answer the questions, type go -> drop a job posting into vacancies/, type /apply. Done.

Need one-on-one help?

If you want a personal consultation - on your career or on agents: how to set this up for yourself and get the most out of it - message me on Telegram. We'll work through your case.

Message on Telegram