An information technology (IT) recruiter specializes in hiring individuals to fill information technology positions in a variety of industries. The recruiter may fill either permanent positions or temporary, project-based jobs. These recruiters will seek job candidates who have the specific skills the employer wants, such as programming skills or technical expertise. Usually, the recruiter is an independent contractor who finds prospective employees for client companies, rather than being an in-house employee.
Qualifications
A college education is a minimum requirement. Most IT recruiters have bachelor's degrees, and a smaller percentage have master's degrees, although such advanced degrees are rarely required. What you major in isn't necessarily important, although a technical major, or at least related coursework, might give you an edge down the road.
A LinkedIn survey found that the most common majors of recruiters, in general, fell somewhere in a spectrum from psychology to political science, to business. That same survey also found that most recruiters started out in some other field and then switched to IT recruiting. Many started out in sales, but other initial jobs included research, operations, and administrative positions.
The path from that first job to IT recruiting often involves picking up the necessary skills on the job in other fields or through a personal interest. Many such skills are not technical. For example, soft skills are very important in recruiting, because you need to both read potential candidates for a good cultural fit and entice candidates to work for the company you represent.
The most important soft skills include a strong social aptitude, the ability to communicate effectively, relationship building, and top-notch organization. But, as mentioned before you will need some level of technical knowledge in the area you are recruiting for so that you can talk the talk with job prospects, answer their questions, and determine whether their particular qualifications match what the employer is looking for.
Jobs Marketed by IT Recruiters
Information technology recruiters find qualified candidates for a wide variety of jobs. Some examples include technology deployment, IT asset management, cloud computing, security systems, network design and integration, network maintenance, end-user services, communications technology and applications for business analysis, reporting, and data science.