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Under certain circumstances, hiring a recruiter can provide benefits to job-hunting candidates. Whether you’re looking to change careers or find a job with a specific company, headhunters can provide valuable assistance, information and encouragement.

Here are some of the benefits recruiters offer:

• Contact with an expanded network of employers in your field
• Help building a resumé and cover letter
• Help tailoring that resumé and cover letter for individual employers
• Hours of saved time��searching job boards, submitting applications and corresponding with hiring managers
• Access to positions that aren’t posted on public, online job boards
• Interview preparation services
• Valuable insights about the state of the current job market

A helpful recruiter serves as an advocate during your job hunt, simplifying the hiring process and improving your application’s visibility to potential employers.

Recruiters can be just as helpful to job seekers as they are to companies looking to fill job openings. If you’re considering hiring a recruiter, several factors can make you a more attractive candidate, including your skills, market and current employer.

After helping you find a job, many headhunters are paid a percentage of your starting salary for an agreed-upon length of time. This means that while they can help almost anyone find a career, they often prefer to work with candidates seeking higher-level roles that command higher salaries.

Some also prefer to work with experienced candidates because of their familiarity with a specific market. For example, a healthcare recruiter might look for healthcare employees seeking executive-level positions since they are already familiar with the companies, industry challenges and experience required for certain roles.

Candidates with specialized skills are also attractive to job recruiters seeking clients. Your skills in a particular field will make you appear more valuable to your future company, which often makes it easier for recruiters to find you an employer. Differentiating skills can make a headhunter’s work much easier.

Recruiters also prefer candidates with specific credentials. For example, people with a master’s degree typically have a strong work ethic, developed skills and several years of experience in their field. Candidates with a doctoral degree are often even more qualified.

Recruiters typically look for candidates with a good combination of skill and experience. For example, candidates with a bachelor’s degree who also have��career-relevant job skills��like SEO and��digital marketing��are often attractive clients for a job recruiter.

Other candidates are particularly appealing to job recruiters because of the industry they work in. If your��,��in which the demand for workers is greater than the supply, a recruiter will typically want to work with you.

Labor shortages currently affect several major markets,��, hospitality and manufacturing. Industries like retail, finance and professional services are also struggling to fill openings. While labor shortages create real problems for companies, they create opportunities for job candidates. Job recruiters can help candidates in fields with talent shortages to find open positions right for them.

Some job recruiters are trained to partner with candidates seeking consulting or contract roles, including part-time work and opportunities with companies in specialized fields.

Recruiters who specialize in this job market may share many of the same traits with recruiters who collaborate with full-time candidates, but they may also have a different working knowledge of the job market. Their network, skills and entire process focus on helping candidates who operate within the niche consultant or contractor market.

A candidate currently employed at a top company might also benefit from hiring a recruiter. These employees often find work more easily given their strong resumés. Candidates at top companies also tend to have an in-depth understanding of their market. They can clearly explain to a recruiter why they’re choosing to transition to a new role and what that role could look like.

Top-performing companies vary across different markets. While top organizations in the technology world are easily identifiable, the best companies in other fields might not be so recognizable. Experienced job recruiters know the top-performing companies in your market, even if you work in a niche field with less attention.

Some candidates, such as those looking for entry-level positions or entering a new career field, might not benefit from hiring a recruiter.

A candidate seeking an entry-level position might not see the best results from hiring a recruiter. Typically, recruiters want to work with candidates who are at least looking for a second-level job in a field. For example, they might partner with a candidate looking to transition out of a basic role and into a management position.

While entry-level positions often create exciting opportunities for a candidate, they don’t always create the right partnership opportunities for a recruiter. Since many headhunters earn a percentage of your salary after hire, they tend to look for candidates targeting higher incomes.

However, some recruiters specifically work to fill entry-level positions. If they do not reach out to you over networking job sites, job seekers may have to seek out the staffing agencies on their own and apply on the agency website.