Recruiter Career Path

Most people in the recruiting world wouldn’t say they’ve always dreamed about being a recruiter. It’s a job that doesn’t get a lot of air time, especially with younger people. But recruiting at its core is really a special kind of sales. The biggest question becomes, “is recruiting a good career path?” If you’re wondering the same thing, we’re about to break it down for you. So, buckle up & enjoy the ride.

0 %

of the recruiting workforce is female

of recruiters are happier with their job than the average worker

0 +

of recruiters have less than 5 years of on-the-job experience

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See if you have the potential to be a great recruiter:

People Skills

To be an excellent recruiter, you need to have excellent communication skills. If you don’t enjoy talking to people or don’t consider yourself a good listener, recruiting is probably not for you.

Curiosity

Being curious in this profession can strengthen your industry expertise and help you to become better-equipped to speak with authority. Sometimes the best way to learn is doing the primary research yourself.

Transparency

Honesty will make you stand out among other recruiters. It’s crucial to be transparent if you want your candidates to trust you to find them a good career fit.

Recruiter Job Overview

We think you have what it takes to be a recruiter… do you?

Recruiters play an essential role in almost every industry. While not every industry uses external recruiting agencies, every organization must have someone that recruits new talent if they are a growing company. As artificial intelligence becomes a bigger part of the equation, there still doesn’t seem to be any sign that jobs for recruiters are dwindling. Human interaction is always going to be a part of the picture.

Key requirements to be a recruiter:

Recruiter roles and responsibilities are typically consistent between organizations, even across industries. The biggest differences would be in staffing and direct hire recruiting since the recruiting stages and talent pools look quite different. While the bullets below paint an accurate picture of the average recruiting responsibilities, keep in mind that not all job descriptions will include these.

Unsure of next steps to become a recruiter?

Here’s what the recruiter career ladder looks like:

Getting Started

Starting Your Career

Career Progression in Recruitment

The Future

Education Requirements

The requirements for degrees vary depending on industry and company. In most cases, recruiting doesn’t necessitate any sort of degree or certification—training on the job will usually suffice—but most companies still require a bachelor’s degree. According to Zippia, about 68% of recruiters have a bachelor’s degree. While there is no traditional “recruiting” major at most universities, the top three college majors (almost 40%) for recruiters are business, psychology, and human resources management.

Gaining Experience

Roles such as recruiting coordinator, talent sourcing specialist, and human resource specialist are good segways into full-time recruiting. These roles help you to learn more about the industry you’re recruiting for so you can be confident in your knowledge when you become a recruiter.

Your Recruiting Career

Once you’ve gotten a handle on the basics in recruiting, there are lots of growth opportunities ahead. The larger your network of candidates becomes, the more people you can place in new jobs. More placements mean higher compensation and potential for career advancement. The natural progression for a recruiter after 1-3 years of successful recruiting is to become a senior recruiter.

More Responsibility

Senior recruiters typically mentor or lead a group of junior recruiters. Successful senior recruiters often get the opportunity to become recruiting managers, team leaders, account executives, and possibly even a director. Career advancement can also look like an industry change. For example, a manufacturing recruiter that makes $60,000 placements might want to become an executive search recruiter that is making higher revenue placements, thus receiving higher compensation. There are plenty of jobs for recruiters across industries.

Here are some trends we’ve noticed in the industry:

Recruiting organizations come and go frequently, but the industry leaders have established their business and brand and are prepared to be in the game for the long haul. Let’s look at the industry trends.

01

Recruiter Trends

In the last five years, recruiter salary has increased by 7%. According to Salary.com, the average entry-level recruiter in the US makes $61,000 annually. A career in recruiting can be very lucrative if you focus on the key skills for success.

02

Hiring trends in Industry

The Bureau of Labor Statistics projected 5% job growth for recruiters between 2018 and 2028. Currently, there are close to 270,000 recruiters that are employed in the United States and almost 40,000 open jobs for recruiters.

03

Related Jobs

Look out for these similar job titles:

Corporate Recruiter
Employment Coordinator
Executive Recruiter

Talent Acquisition Specialist
Staffing Consultant
Human Resources Specialist
Human Resources Coordinator

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So, how much can you earn?

Let's Talk Recruiter Salary

Recruiter salary can range between $59,000 and $115,000 based on years of experience, expertise, and leadership responsibilities. Obviously, that is quite a large range, and we know how daunting it can feel starting out.

The breakdown below might help you digest the wide compensation range:

Entry level avg. base salary: $59,066

Mid-level avg. base salary: $74,188

Senior level avg. base salary: $120,958

These five cities have the highest average recruiter base salaries:

Boston, MA – $66,273
District of Columbia – $65,815
Seattle, WA – $64,601
Los Angeles, CA – $63,054
New York, NY – $62,663

Unsure of next steps to become a Recruiter?

We're Here to Help!

Let us show you why NCW should be a part of your journey to becoming a Recruiter:

As our company continues to pursue big growth goals, we are constantly in search of both experienced and inexperienced recruiters to join our team. If you are driven, confident, personable, and honest, you could be a great recruiter here. Regardless of experience, if an opportunity to recruit at NCW gets you excited, we want to connect with you!

Our recruiters have years of experience working with top talent, just like you. Our goal is to get to know you, understand your aspirations, chat through your experience, and connect you with a position that aligns with your wants and needs.

Connect to Opportunitiy

Our team puts your resume directly in front of hiring managers' eyes.

Expanded Network

NCW expands your network to uncover opportunities that may not have been available otherwise.

By Your Side

Our recruiters prep you for the interview process and guide you through every step of the way.

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