Becoming a Recruiter Without Experience

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With recruitment becoming a $150 billion industry and job recruiters making an average of $57,186 per year, according to Indeed, no wonder so many workers are looking to get a piece of the cake. Yet, there are some career switchers and young professionals who’d like to give it a go but are worried that not having any related background or preparation can prevent them from becoming a recruiter.

Having doubts about starting without experience or references to fall back on is completely understandable. Especially if you are new to this industry or the concept of staffing agencies. If this is your case and you wonder if you have what it takes, gpac’s got you covered. With the help of expert recruiter, Vanessa Wergin, we are answering three of the most common questions potential recruiters wonder about before taking the leap. 

Vanessa came to gpac looking for a job to rejoin the workforce after her kids went off to college and ended up joining the industry. Like many other successful recruiters, third-party recruiting was new territory for her.

I was aware of corporate recruiting (in house recruiters at companies), but not third-party recruitment (staffing agencies).

Do I need to study for a degree?

Not at all. While higher education is needed for many other career paths, when it comes to recruiters, you can start from scratch and still make good money. That means that you don’t need to have a bachelor’s degree or go through any other higher education program before joining the industry. At least not if you are starting with a staffing agency or as a freelancer. But don’t get it twisted, once you come into the industry you will need to be ready to learn the craft.

When you start there is A LOT of information.

Matching people with the right job and company is not just about writing job descriptions and posting them online. Recruiters need to identify, screen, shortlist, and look for the hiring potential in their candidates, as well as understand the company’s needs. And that’s just the beginning.

The good news is that with a learning attitude and a good training program to help you kickstart your career, you can get the hang of it and see results way faster than in other professions. For instance, gpac has invested in transferring 30+ years of experience in the industry into a fast-paced and hands-on recruiting training program. It’s that same program that helped Vanessa launch her career in only three months.

Do I need a related background to get into recruitment?

People often compare recruiters with salespeople, mainly because of the commissions. Well, if you come from the world of sales, like Vanessa, there will be some transferable skills and discipline that will probably help you. However, you don’t need to have experience in a commission-based job to make it in recruitment. Remember, it’s not about selling a product but helping people find their dream job.

Since this is a people business there is a set of skills you can bring to the table regardless of your background. This set of skills are referred to as soft skills. Having a knack for interpersonal skills like empathy or communication skills such as active listening could give you a greater advantage than knowing how to throw a sales pitch.

Still, similar to not having previous knowledge of the industry, you can become a recruiter and work on your skills as you go. So even that doesn’t have to be an obstacle for chasing after this career. What counts the most is having the right attitude and mindset to succeed.

This job takes drive, discipline, and motivation.

If you have developed those three through your career, then you are most likely the right fit for recruitment.

When is the right time to start as a recruiter?

Now that you know that experience and background don’t need to be picture perfect for you to get into this business you may wonder when is a good time to start. Recruitment is a high-performing career where the outcome relates directly to your efforts. What you put in is what you get out. So, as you probably have gathered by now, you need to put in a lot of effort in the early stages so that your success can take off like a rocketship. 

With that in mind, some potential recruiters keep postponing their starting date until they find the ideal time or until they don’t have a lot going on in their lives. “Now is not a good time for me,” or “I should have done this right after college when I had more time,” are only excuses keeping you from a purposeful career with high-income potential.

There’s always something going on in our lives, right? It doesn’t matter where you are, there’s something to roll with. But if you wait for all the lights to turn green, you’ll never go anywhere.

The same goes for anything else in life. If you don’t start today, you won’t see any results tomorrow.

So, is becoming a recruiter right for you?

Experience and knowledge aside, it’s really up to you to decide if becoming a recruiter is the right move for your career. Recruitment is an evergreen and recession-proof industry, but as Vanessa said, it takes drive, discipline, and motivation to really squeeze out its full potential. 

If you are ready to take on the challenge or would like to learn more about becoming a recruiter with gpac, contact our talent acquisition team to learn more.

Contributed by Monica Martín del Campo