Recruitment consultant

Recruitment consultants sell twice on every deal: the job to the candidate, and the candidate to the employer. It is fast, sociable and target-driven, and in most agencies commission is a big slice of the pay, so results show in your payslip. There will be dropped-out candidates, changed minds and months that sting. The upside is watching someone start a job you found them, and a skill set that travels anywhere. No qualifications are needed to start, and the best recruiters come from all sorts of backgrounds, including shop floors.

A day in this job

The day moves quickly: candidate calls, employer briefings and interviews to arrange, with AI drafting the adverts and sifting the first pass of CVs. You spend real time talking people through decisions that matter to them, sometimes at odd hours. When a placement lands, both sides thank you. When one falls through on the last day, you start again.

How AI is changing it

AI now drafts the job adverts, sifts CVs, books the interviews and keeps the records tidy, which used to eat half a recruiter's week. Matching at volume is automating, so agencies need fewer people doing pure admin. What stays human is judgement about people: spotting potential a CV hides, and being trusted with someone's next big move.

What you need to start

There are no formal academic requirements, though many entrants have a degree or relevant experience, and vocational qualifications exist at several levels. The pay figure shown comes from the wider human resources group, so treat it as a guide.

The steps, in order

1. See the real day Recruiters find candidates, brief them honestly and match them to employers. Read profiles to see whether the pace appeals.
2. Practise reading people Any customer-facing work builds the core skill: hearing what someone actually wants, not just what they say first.
3. Let AI run the search admin Try AI tools that draft job adverts, sift CVs and schedule interviews. Practise checking their work for fairness and fit.
4. Add proof if you want it No qualification is required to start. Vocational qualifications in people work exist at many levels if you want proof later.
5. Apply to agencies Agencies hire for drive and people skills, not certificates. Ask how targets and commission work before you say yes.
6. Grow your own patch Senior recruiters own a specialism and a network built over years. AI keeps the pipeline moving; you keep the relationships warm.

Tick off steps, save the job and grow your own tree. Free, nothing captured.

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