University Recruiter III

Jet Propulsion Laboratory; United States; On-site; USD 111,000 - 135,000; Full time

Job summary

Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California is seeking a Recruitment Specialist to lead full lifecycle hiring for internships, new-to-career, and experienced roles across the lab. You will partner with hiring teams, HR business partners and the Academic Engagement Office to attract world-class talent.

This role shapes recruitment strategy, drives candidate experience, and negotiates offers in a fast-paced, competitive environment.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree with 6+ years of full lifecycle recruiting in engineering/tech.
• Master’s degree with 4+ years of relevant work experience.
• Experience recruiting in engineering and computer science disciplines preferred.
• Strong sourcing and assessment skills; detail-oriented and compliant in processes.

Responsibilities

• Provide consultation with clients and university partners to attract top talent.
• Lead full lifecycle recruiting for internships, entry-to-career, and experienced roles.
• Attend university/career fairs, source, screen, interview, and develop offers.
• Lead debriefs to maintain a consistent, high-caliber hiring process.
• Partner with HRBPs and Academic Engagement to support internship programs.

Skills

Full life cycle recruiting

Engineering/tech recruiting

Sourcing and assessment

Workday

MS Word/Excel/PowerPoint

Event planning/coordination

Relationship management

Data entry / ATS data hygiene

Education

Bachelor's degree

Master's degree

Tools

Phenom

Microsoft Teams

LinkedIn

Job description

Job Details New ideas are all around us, but only a few will change the world. That’s our focus at JPL. We ask the biggest questions, then search the universe for answers—literally. We build upon ideas that have guided generations, then share our discoveries to inspire generations to come. Your mission—your opportunity—is to seek out the answers that bring us one step closer. If you’re driven to discover, create, and inspire something that lasts a lifetime and beyond, you’re ready for JPL. Located in Pasadena, California, JPL has a campus-like environment situated on 177 acres in the foothills of the San Gabriel Mountains and offers a work environment unlike any other: we inspire passion, foster innovation, build collaboration, and reward excellence. As a Recruitment Specialist, reporting to the Manager of Talent Acquisition, you play a key role on the Recruiting Team—driving full-cycle hiring for new to career professionals to experienced and management-level roles. Together, the team identifies and hires the pioneers behind robotic space exploration. Through their innovation and discoveries, JPL continues to expand the boundaries of science, fundamentally transforming our understanding of the solar system and the universe.

In this role, you’re not just filling positions, you’re helping build the teams that explore worlds beyond our own. The Talent Acquisition team at JPL is a strategic partner in shaping the Lab’s workforce—driving recruitment strategy, influencing talent decisions, and delivering an exceptional client and candidate experience. We attract and hire outstanding talent to meet today’s needs while building the talent capabilities, and workforce needed to position JPL for the future.

In this role, you will partner and provide subject matter expert consultation with our hiring teams, HR business partners, the talent acquisition team, and our candidates, to attract and acquire the world’s most exceptional talent.

Responsibilities:

Provide consultation with our clients, university relationship managers and technical representatives through planning meetings, employer brand strategies, technical representative trainings, strong assessment strategies and ensuring a delightful candidate experience. Manage full lifecycle recruiting for the internship program, new to career, and experienced level positions across lab, including attending university/career fairs, sourcing, screening, interviewing, offer development, and onboarding partnership. Lead debrief meetings to ensure a consistent process is followed, our candidate experience is strong and our hiring bar remains very high. Develop relationships with key stakeholders at select universities, and with key vendors. Travel as necessary to conduct events, host students and organizations and conduct interview days, all while leading and directing the JPL representation. Contribute to our JPL employer brand through social media and experiences. Be a steward and protector of our culture, advocating for culture adds and non-traditional candidates that increase our diversity of thought. Live and breathe passion and excitement around our vision of exploring the universe for the betterment of humanity. Discuss and make recommendations for top candidates assessed, being able to identify and articulate what makes a candidate a top candidate. Build and maintain a network of potential candidates through ongoing relationship management. Lead the offer negotiation and closing process in a very competitive, entry-level landscape in technology and aerospace, including partnering with Human Resource Business Partners (HRBP) as necessary. Conduct internal data audits on current interns as necessary. Guide our candidates through a delightful experience and ensure all candidate communication is timely and compliant. Co-manage the JPL Internship Program in partnership with the Academic Engagement Office to creating memorable experiences through events and key networking opportunities. Challenge assumptions and develop new and innovative ideas to continuously improve the hiring landscape at JPL. Maintain a high attention to detail when entering data into our applicant tracking system increasing our ability make data-driven decisions. Stays on top of key market industry trends or university recruiting best practices in order to maintain a competitive presence (ex: NACE).

Requirements:

Bachelor’s degree in an applicable field of study with a minimum of 6 years of full life cycle recruiting in engineering or technology field is required; Master’s degree in an applicable field of study with a minimum of 4 years of work experience of full life cycle recruiting. The ability to remain flexible and adaptable in a fast‑paced environment, pivoting priorities, balancing competing demands, and responding effectively to evolving hiring needs. Experience recruiting within engineering and computer science disciplines strongly preferred. Ability to think creatively and develop innovative and new solutions to attract difficult-to-find, passive talent. Strong sourcing and assessment skills preferred. Proficiency with utilizing an applicant tracking system to manage an end‑to‑end hiring process with attention to detail and compliance. Workday preferred. Prior experience required for running a hiring process in compliance with EEO and AAP; and OFCCP guidelines are strongly preferred. Excellent interpersonal skills, both oral and written required. Communication is confident, professional, polished and also warm. Proficiency with MS Word, Excel, and PowerPoint. Experience conducting in‑person and virtual events utilizing technology such as Phenom, Microsoft Teams, LinkedIn and other social media tools, preferred. Excellent time management skills, the ability to lead multiple projects at once and work in a fast‑paced, ever‑changing environment. Ability to exercise independent judgement, discretion and confidentiality as a member of the HR team. Ability to develop solid relationships and collaboration skills at all levels of the organization with your hiring teams, talent acquisition team and the greater HR team. Ability to be courageous and manage up as needed.

Benefits:

JPL has a catalog of benefits and perks that span from the traditional to the unique. This includes a variety of health, dental, vision, wellbeing, and retirement plans, paid time off, learning, rideshare, childcare, flexible schedule, parental leave and many more.

Our focus is on work‑life balance, and living healthy, fulfilling lives as we Dare Mighty Things Together.

For benefits eligible positions, benefits are effective the first day of the month coincident with or immediately following the employee’s start date. For further benefits information click Benefits and Perks The hiring range displayed below is specifically for those who will work in or reside in the location listed. In extending an offer, Jet Propulsion Laboratory considers factors including, but not limited to, the candidate’s job related skills, experience, knowledge, and relevant education/training. The typical full time equivalent annual hiring range for this job in Pasadena, California. $111,176 - $134,784 JPL is an Equal Opportunity Employer.

All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to sex, race, color, religion, national origin, citizenship, ancestry, age, marital status, physical or mental disability, medical condition, genetic information, pregnancy or perceived pregnancy, gender, gender identity, gender expression, sexual orientation, protected military or veteran status or any other characteristic or condition protected by Federal, state or local law. In addition, JPL is a VEVRAA Federal Contractor. EEO is the Law. EEO is the Law Supplement Pay Transparency Nondiscrimination Provision The Jet Propulsion Laboratory is a federal facility. Due to rules imposed by NASA, JPL will not accept applications from citizens of designated countries or those born in a designated country unless they are U.S. Citizens, Legal Permanent Residents of the U.S or have other protected status under 8 U.S.C. 1324b(a)(3). The Designated Countries List is available here.

Formed in 1936, the NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory is a federally funded research and development center managed for NASA by the California Institute of Technology (Caltech.) JPL joined NASA as an FFRDC when the agency was founded in 1958. JPL helped open the Space Age by developing America’s first Earth‑orbiting science satellite, creating the first successful interplanetary spacecraft, and sending robotic missions to the solar system. Today JPL continues its world‑leading innovation, implementing programs in planetary exploration, Earth science, space‑based astronomy and technology development while applying its capabilities to technical and scientific problems of national significance. Above all, we are explorers. At JPL we promote collaboration, innovation, integrity, and excellence in distinct academic areas. We turn ideas for science investigation into the reality of groundbreaking space missions, partnering with our strategic business teams to guide JPL into the future.