For Rickey McCreless, Assistant Director of External Connections and Student Success at the University of North Alabama (UNA), getting students to engage with resume support has always required removing as many barriers as possible. Before adopting Symplicity's AI Resume Review, UNA was using a third-party AI resume tool alongside Symplicity CSM, meaning students had to create or upload their resume in one platform, download it, then re-upload it into Symplicity for human review. Every extra step was another opportunity for a student to drop off.

Beyond the workflow friction, managing two separate platforms created reporting headaches.

"The fewer places I have to gather data from, the simpler it makes my life," McCreless said. "Especially when it comes to reporting on student use and engagement at the end of every year."

Cost was a factor, too. UNA knew what they were paying for the previous tool, and the return wasn't matching the investment.

The Switch

When Symplicity announced AI Resume Review, McCreless saw an opportunity. UNA had a strong relationship with the Symplicity team built on trust and responsiveness. "Everything we've done with you guys has been quality," he said. "And if it wasn't quite right at the start, it got there — because you listen and make changes along the way."

The decision to consolidate was made easier by how the tool was positioned: comparable functionality, already inside the platform students were using, and at a more favorable price point. Data security was another consideration. With student information on the line, McCreless wanted confidence that the tool handling their resumes met a high bar. Keeping everything within Symplicity gave him that peace of mind.

The Results

UNA rolled out AI Resume Review in a soft launch, introducing it first to classes with resume assignments in health administration, sport management, and the College of Business. Student feedback from the pilot was clear: the quality of recommendations was on par with what they'd been used to, and the experience was noticeably simpler.

"Students can use Resume Builder in Symplicity or upload an existing resume, select AI review, and then at any point select human review," McCreless said. "It's just nice that it all lives in one system instead of jumping between platforms and logging in different places."

McCreless also tested it himself. "I uploaded a resume, hit AI review, and it gave me a lot of feedback. It was seamless, very easy, very user-friendly. I wouldn't imagine students 20 or 30 years younger than me having much trouble with it."

The consolidation pays off beyond the resume review experience itself. Because AI Resume Review lives inside Symplicity, McCreless can see the full picture of student engagement — who's using the AI tool, who's applying for jobs, who's showing up for career events — all in one place. "You get the bigger picture," he said. "It's just a lot easier to not have to go chase that data down."

From a cost standpoint, the value is equally clear: "The Symplicity product is much more cost-effective and just as good a quality."

For McCreless, the overall impact has been straightforward. Making the switch, he said, was "quite a relief" — a tool that makes his work simpler and less complicated, without sacrificing quality.

What's Next

UNA plans to deepen AI Resume Review's role in the student journey. McCreless envisions sending students a reminder to polish their resume with the AI tool before booking a human review appointment, keeping the entire process inside Symplicity from start to finish.

Longer term, he's working to embed it into UNA's first-year experience program, so incoming students encounter the tool from day one. "Hopefully it just becomes part of logging into Symplicity," he said. "It becomes normal."

UNA is also looking ahead to additional Symplicity tools, with the mentoring feature on the horizon.