Oyster Academy

5 Things You Need to Know Before You Start a Career in Recruitment.

Hannah Clarke

Director of People & Operations

Jul 27, 2022

You’ve been attracted by the advert, enticed by the job description, and bowled over by the benefits, but what should you really expect if you’re getting into Recruitment?

As our next hiring campaign starts, Head of People, Hannah Clarke imparts her top 5 things to think about before joining the wonderful world of recruitment.

Sales. Sales. Sales.

That’s right, recruitment is a sales job. Day in and day out. As a Recruiter, you’ll be tasked with selling Oyster Partnership to Clients, as well as selling Clients to Candidates and Candidates to Clients. You’ll be selling a location, a pay rate, a job title, an opportunity, an office environment, a team, a company… the list is endless.

The First Year.

It’s relentless. It’s tough. The job itself isn’t rocket science, but the trials and tribulations make this a challenging career. When you first start out, not only are you working in Central London on a basic salary but in the first year there’s a lot of rejection, long hours and not much comes to fruition. You’ve got to think about the bigger picture when it comes to having a career in recruitment, it doesn’t happen overnight.

On Target Earnings OTE.

I have seen hundreds of adverts with some impressive On Target Earnings attached to them, however, I am yet to see an advert with a realistic one. Be realistic with your expectations surrounding your earnings, especially in your first year.

Sociable Scenes.

Recruitment has a reputation for being an extremely sociable industry, and I’d be lying if I said it wasn’t. We’re a friendly bunch with lots of characters but don’t let this get in the way of the hard work that you’ll be required to do.

Trial Period.

You can’t just ‘try out’ recruitment. You need to give it your all, for a significant amount of time before you can say you’ve given it a real go. Remember as a Trainee, not only are you learning how to recruit, but you’re also learning all about a brand new industry. Give yourself the time to be successful.



Share this article

Director of People & Operations

Hannah Clarke

With 15 years of Recruitment experience under her belt, 13 of which have been spent at Oyster, Hannah is (and always will be) an office legend. After reaching a staggering 80-something temps – the stuff of Oyster folklore – Hannah made the monumental decision to step into a whole new role. And thank goodness she did, or we wouldn’t have her as our Head of People, steering our often-chaotic ship, and playing a huge part in Oyster’s staggering growth plans.

More from our blog