What does a Recruitment Consultant actually do?

The short version

Recruitment consultants run a sales desk matching candidates to vacancies — business development on one side, candidate wrangling on the other, and commission on every placement in the middle. No degree needed, and the earnings ceiling for good billers is genuinely high.

The pitch: uncapped commission, rapid progression, a skill set that transfers. The catch: the base is deliberately low, first-year attrition is brutal, and it's a sales job wearing an HR-adjacent costume — if you want to help people without being measured on dials and billings, this isn't it. AI is also compressing the sourcing end of the desk, which squeezes trainee seats first.

Entry routes that actually work

• Trainee consultant / resourcer — agencies hire on attitude and train you; expect a cold-call test.
• Graduate scheme — structured trainee programmes at the big listed firms.
• Industry pivot — ex-professionals recruiting into their own sector have real credibility.