Also called: Executive Search Consultant
Hunts down top executives for companies, often convincing people who weren't looking for a job to switch.
A hospital needs a new CFO, so you build a list of 100 candidates, call 30 of them, and take five out for coffee. If your candidate gets hired, your firm earns about a third of their first-year pay.
Pay is mostly commission or bonus; top headhunters at firms like Spencer Stuart earn well into six or seven figures, while new recruiters may earn $60k.
Approximate: anchored on Bureau of Labor Statistics data for a broader job group.
Bachelor's degree (4-year), about 4 years after high school. Bachelor's degree; success depends on networking and persistence, not credentials.
Ways in: 4-year college, On-the-job training. Training cost: $15k – $60k.
Majors to look at: Business Administration, Psychology, Communications.
Growing about average. Moves with the economy and executive turnover.
Low risk in 5 years, medium in 10. AI finds and ranks candidates in seconds; persuading busy executives to move and judging fit stays human.
Classes: Speech and debate, AP Psychology, English Language Arts.
Official data: O*NET occupation 13-1071.
Career Universe is an early version. Pay, training and AI-risk figures are estimates to start your own research, not verified facts. The research was written with AI research assistants, checked by validation scripts and spot-checked by hand. Check anything important with schools, employers and official sources. How the numbers work.