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What is a personnel recruiter and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025
2 min read
Quoted expert
Dr. James Lampley
There is more than meets the eye when it comes to being a personnel recruiter. For example, did you know that they make an average of $24.69 an hour? That's $51,356 a year! Between 2018 and 2028, the career is expected to grow 8% and produce 58,800 job opportunities across the U.S.

What general advice would you give to a personnel 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.
ScorePersonnel RecruiterUS Average
Salary
4.0

Avg. Salary $51,356

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level
8.0

Growth rate 8%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity
6.8
Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.62%

Asian 7.39%

Black or African American 10.40%

Hispanic or Latino 19.97%

Unknown 5.15%

White 56.48%

Gender

female 48.84%

male 51.16%

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

Personnel recruiter career paths

Key steps to become a personnel recruiter

  1. Explore personnel recruiter education requirements

    Most common personnel recruiter degrees

    Bachelor's

    70.4 %

    Associate

    15.0 %

    Master's

    6.8 %
  2. Start to develop specific personnel recruiter skills

    SkillsPercentages
    Background Checks19.58%
    Human Resources12.22%
    Career Fairs9.77%
    Community Colleges8.73%
    Reference Checks8.63%
  3. Complete relevant personnel recruiter training and internships

    Accountants spend an average of 6-12 months on post-employment, on-the-job training. New personnel 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 personnel recruiter based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real personnel recruiter resumes.
  4. Research personnel recruiter duties and responsibilities

    • Utilize ATS (applicant tracking software) for organizational recruiting efforts, reviewing applicant information and managing open requisitions.
    • Present and prepare PowerPoint presentations on various topics to educate colleagues in the office and operate WebEx technology for conference calls.
    • Manage employee's personnel files and maintain accurate up to date confidential client files to ensure compliance with HIPPA.
  5. Prepare your personnel recruiter resume

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

    Build a professional personnel 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 personnel recruiter resume.
    Personnel Recruiter Resume
    Personnel Recruiter Resume
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    Personnel Recruiter Resume
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    Personnel Recruiter Resume
  6. Apply for personnel recruiter jobs

    Now it's time to start searching for a personnel 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 personnel recruiter job

Zippi

Are you a personnel recruiter?

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Average personnel recruiter salary

The average personnel recruiter salary in the United States is $51,356 per year or $25 per hour. Personnel recruiter salaries range between $37,000 and $70,000 per year.

Average personnel recruiter salary
$51,356 Yearly
$24.69 hourly

What am I worth?

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How do personnel recruiters rate their job?

-/5

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Personnel recruiter reviews

profile
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 Aug 2019
Pros

Learning about the business and candidate journey

Cons

declining under or overqualified candidates


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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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