AUTO APPLY: START HERE

WHAT IT IS
Auto Apply is a free helper for Google Chrome (it also works in Microsoft Edge).
It fills out job applications for you, attaches your resume, remembers your answers
to questions, compares a job to your resume, and can write a cover letter.
It never submits an application on its own. You always look it over first.

WHAT YOU NEED
1. A Mac or Windows computer with Google Chrome.
2. About ten minutes.


STEP 1. UNZIP THE FOLDER
Windows: right click the zip file, choose Extract All, then click Extract.
Mac: double click the zip file.
You will get a folder named AutoApply. Move it somewhere it can stay, like your
Documents folder. Do not delete it later. Chrome runs the app from that folder.


STEP 2. ADD IT TO CHROME
1. In Chrome, type chrome://extensions in the address bar and press Enter.
2. Turn on Developer mode. The switch is at the top right.
3. Click Load unpacked.
4. Choose the AutoApply folder (the one that has a file named manifest.json in it)
   and click Select.
5. Click the puzzle piece icon at the top right of Chrome, then click the pin next
   to Auto Apply so it stays on your toolbar.

A welcome page opens by itself with the next steps.

Windows note: each time Chrome starts, it may show a box asking about developer
mode extensions. Close the box with the X or click Cancel. Do not click Disable.


STEP 3. SET UP YOUR PROFILE
1. Click the Auto Apply icon, then click Set up my profile.
2. Easiest way: press "Read my resume with AI" on the Personal tab. It reads your
   resume and fills in most of the boxes. This needs the free AI key from Step 4,
   so you can do Step 4 first, or type your information in by hand.
3. Look through every tab: Personal, Education, Work Experience, Skills, and
   Equal Employment. Fix anything that is wrong or missing.
4. Upload your resume on the Personal tab. This is the file Auto Apply attaches to
   applications.
5. Press Save profile at the bottom.

The Equal Employment tab holds the optional questions about gender, race, veteran
status, and disability. Answer only what you are comfortable with. Leave the rest
blank, or choose "Decline to self identify".


STEP 4. GET YOUR FREE AI KEY (RECOMMENDED)
The AI writes answers to open questions, drafts cover letters, and compares a job
to your resume. Everything else works without it.
1. Go to aistudio.google.com/app/apikey and sign in with your Google account.
2. Click Create API key and copy the key.
3. In Auto Apply settings, open the AI and Settings tab, paste the key into the API
   key box, and press Save profile.
Keep your key private. Do not share it. Each person should make their own.
The free plan has daily limits. If you see a message about a limit, wait and try
again later.


STEP 5. USE IT
1. Open a job posting or an application page.
2. Click the Auto Apply icon. A panel opens on the right side.
3. Press "Autofill this page". Green boxes came from your profile, purple boxes
   are answers it remembered, and blue boxes were written by AI.
4. If a question is new, answer it yourself once. Auto Apply remembers it for
   every future application. Or type it in the panel and press "Fill and save".
5. Look everything over, then use the "Next page" button at the bottom of the panel.
6. On the last page, "Submit application" asks you to click twice. That is on
   purpose so you never submit by accident.

Other things in the panel: a match score for the job, a cover letter writer, a
"Save job" button, and a Job Tracker in settings.


MORE THAN ONE RESUME
You can save up to 10 resumes, for example one for each city or type of job.
1. In settings, on the Personal tab, find the Resumes box and press Choose Files. You can
   pick several at once. Word and PDF files both work, PDF is best.
2. Click the round button next to the one you want to use. It says "In use".
   Only that one is attached to applications and read for cover letters.
3. You can also switch right in the side panel with the Resume menu. If a resume's name
   matches the job's city, the panel offers a "Use (name)" button. It never switches
   on its own.
4. Click a name to rename it. Employers see the file name, not the name you give it.


COVER LETTERS
1. Open a job posting. The panel shows the job and a match score. It only does this
   on real job pages. News, search results, and other sites are ignored.
2. Press "Write cover letter". It writes a letter for that exact job in a set format:
   your name and contact line on top, "Dear (Company) Hiring Team," five short
   paragraphs, then Sincerely and your details.
3. Read it over. Press "Edit text" to change anything. A yellow note lists names or
   numbers that are not in your profile, so you can check them before you send.
4. Press "Download PDF" to save it. On applications with a cover letter upload box,
   press "Attach PDF to this page". "Insert text into page" fills a cover letter
   text box instead.
5. To match your own voice, open settings, go to the Cover Letter tab, and paste a
   letter you like into "Reference letter". New letters copy its structure and tone.


STAYING ON YOUR JOB
The panel remembers the job you are applying to while you go through the application,
even when Apply opens a different website or a new tab. If you wander off to another
site, press "Back to (job name)" to bring it back. "Not this job? Forget it" clears it.
If a page is a job but was not recognized, press "Use this page as the job". If the
application page has no description, paste the job description into the panel.


GOOD TO KNOW
1. Your profile, resume, and saved answers stay in your own browser. Nothing goes
   anywhere except to Google when you press an AI button. When you press Write cover
   letter, your saved resume is sent to Google too (Gemini option only). You can turn
   that off in the Cover Letter tab.
2. On Google's free plan, Google may use what you send to improve its products.
   Keep private details out of the About me box if that worries you.
3. Boxes that agree to terms and conditions are left alone unless you turn that on
   in settings (AI and Settings tab, Autofill options).
4. Auto Apply never checks marketing or text message opt in boxes.
5. It works on most job sites, but every company builds its forms differently. If
   something does not fill, type it yourself. It will remember it next time.


IF SOMETHING GOES WRONG
1. Nothing happens when I press Autofill: refresh the job page and try again.
2. The panel does not open: click the puzzle piece and make sure Auto Apply is
   turned on.
3. My resume did not attach: press "Attach resume to this page" in the panel. If a
   site still refuses it, press "Download resume", then drag the file into the
   site's upload box yourself.
4. AI says the key is not working: paste the key again in settings. Make sure you
   copied all of it.
5. I want to update: replace the AutoApply folder with the new one, then click
   the circular arrow on the Auto Apply card at chrome://extensions. Your profile
   stays.
6. I want to remove it: click Remove on the Auto Apply card at chrome://extensions.
   That also erases your saved information from Chrome.
