What is a recruiter and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025
4 min read
Quoted Expert
Dr. James Lampley
introduction image

Recruiters work to match job seekers with open positions at companies. They typically work for staffing agencies, search firms, or directly for a company's human resources department. Recruiters are responsible for sourcing candidates, screening resumes, conducting interviews, and presenting qualified candidates to hiring managers. They may also be involved in negotiating job offers and managing the hiring process from start to finish.

What general advice would you give to a Recruiter?

Dr. James LampleyDr. James Lampley LinkedIn Profile

Professor, East Tennessee State University

Be willing to go where the jobs are. Many of our graduates are "place-bound". Their family obligations or spouses make it difficult to relocate.
ScoreRecruiterUS Average
Salary
4.0

Avg. Salary $51,374

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability Level
8.0

Growth Rate 8%

Growth Rate 0.3%

Diversity
6.7
Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.61%

Asian 7.80%

Black or African American 10.35%

Hispanic or Latino 19.40%

Unknown 5.14%

White 56.70%

Gender

female 59.92%

male 40.08%

Age - 40
Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 40
Stress Level
8.0

Stress level is high

7.1 - high

Complexity Level
8.3

Complexity Level is challenging

7 - challenging

Work Life Balance
7.0

Work Life balance is good

6.4 - fair

What are the pros and cons of being a Recruiter?

Pros

  • Ability to help candidates find their dream job and companies find their ideal employees

  • Opportunity for career advancement and growth

  • Chance to work with a diverse range of people and personalities

  • Ability to work remotely or from home

  • Chance to make a positive impact on people's lives

Cons

  • High pressure to meet quotas and targets

  • Long hours and unpredictable work schedule

  • Challenging to balance the needs of both candidates and clients

  • Constant rejection from candidates who are not a good fit for roles

  • Stressful work environment due to high competition among recruiters.

Recruiter career paths

Key steps to become a recruiter

  1. Explore recruiter education requirements

    Most common recruiter degrees

    Bachelor's

    68.7 %

    Associate

    12.2 %

    Master's

    9.2 %
  2. Start to develop specific recruiter skills

    Skills
    ascdesc
    Percentages
    ascdesc
    Applicant Tracking Systems10.04%
    Customer Service9.96%
    Human Resources7.52%
    Linkedin4.11%
    Healthcare4.06%
  3. Complete relevant recruiter training and internships

    Accountants spend an average of 6-12 months on post-employment, on-the-job training. New recruiters learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as a recruiter based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real recruiter resumes.
  4. Research recruiter duties and responsibilities

    • Manage an average 20 c-level and executive job requisitions per month and achieve a time to slate average of 3 days.
    • Manage these teams and eventually hire someone to take over the Jr. high ministry completely.
    • Manage the internal data base system (ICIMS) maintaining high priority candidates as well as priority job openings.
    • Manage and negotiate contracts for all job boards including: Monster-SignOnSanDiego, YahooHotJobs, Careerbuilder, Jobing, and Craigslist.
  5. Prepare your recruiter resume

    When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your recruiter resume.

    You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on a recruiter resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

    Choose From 10+ Customizable Recruiter Resume templates

    Build a professional Recruiter resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 10+ resume templates to create your Recruiter resume.
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  6. Apply for recruiter jobs

    Now it's time to start searching for a recruiter job. Consider the tips below for a successful job search:

    1. Browse job boards for relevant postings
    2. Consult your professional network
    3. Reach out to companies you're interested in working for directly
    4. Watch out for job scams

How Did You Land Your First Recruiter Job

R

Ryan GonyoRyan Gonyo LinkedIn Profile

Recruiter, Network Mountain

I had been in sales leadership with a company for 8 years. One of my former employees had reached out talking about this amazing opportunity where you get to meet new people every day, learn about their careers and goals, and help them accomplish or even exceed their expectations. And, you get to stay in touch with them and see their continued success all while making a great living and having a level of freedom most others don't. The colleague said I would be perfect for the role and get to do what they knew I was passionate about.
When I started I didn't know anything about recruiting or that it was an industry other than for sports and the military! I joined a company that recruited in electrical contracting, engineering, and technology. Another piece I originally knew nothing about. I realized the only way to learn was to talk to the professionals in that industry and ask good questions and truly listen and be curious. Over time I was able to understand the complexity and real value these men and women play and support them in having the best experience possible through their careers.
I have been fortunate enough to be a part of growing startups, national expansions, acquisitions, and growing the best network of amazing people in the process.
This has been a rewarding career so far and now with starting my own firm I look forward to supporting talented professionals and their organizations well into the future.

Average recruiter salary

The average Recruiter salary in the United States is $51,374 per year or $25 per hour. Recruiter salaries range between $35,000 and $74,000 per year.

Average Recruiter Salary
$51,374 Yearly
$24.70 hourly

What Am I Worth?

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How do recruiters rate their job?

4/5

Based On 2 Ratings

5 Stars

4 Stars

3 Stars

2 Stars

1 Star

Recruiter reviews

profile
4.0
A zippia user wrote a review on Oct 2019
Pros

I like Bonus and helping people. Sometimes our company cover expanse for networking and meeting. More we do networking more we can earn.

Cons

too much pressure. to hire 1 executive vacancy we have to make connections with 100s of people. We work with people and people are sometimes really hard even we are doing our best. After weeks of hard work right before the placement, some firms reject them without any answers


profile
A zippia user wrote a review on Oct 2019
Pros

Communicating with people, interview applicants.

Cons

I don't have anything I don't like.


profile
A zippia user wrote a review on Sep 2019
Pros

I enjoy and I’m great in recruiting in any organization I trust and believe in.

Cons

Nothing.


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Updated January 8, 2025

Zippia Research Team
Zippia Team

Editorial Staff

The Zippia Research Team has spent countless hours reviewing resumes, job postings, and government data to determine what goes into getting a job in each phase of life. Professional writers and data scientists comprise the Zippia Research Team.

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