# QR codes for recruiters

> Recruiters use role-specific QR codes on job flyers, campus boards and career-fair banners, each URL carrying UTM parameters so applications are attributable per location. Add an applicant-portal code on offer packs and a recruiter vCard on badges. Never one generic careers-page code everywhere — measurement is the entire point.

Source: https://useqr.app/qr-codes-for/recruiters · Last reviewed 2026-08-21 · UseQR is free forever, MIT licensed, no signup.

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## The codes that earn their place

| Code | Where | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Job-post code | Flyers, campus boards, shop-window ads | From "saw the ad" to "started the application" in one scan |
| Applicant-portal code | Offer packs, interview letters | Onboarding paperwork begun before day one |
| [Recruiter vCard](/vcard-qr-code) | [Name badges](/qr-codes-on/name-badges), cards | Candidates leave the stand with a person, not a brochure |
| Talent-pool sign-up | Fair banners, event handouts | Captures the interested-but-not-now candidate |

## Measurement is the entire point

The recruiting-specific win is attribution. Print the **same role** with a **different
tagged URL per location** —

```
https://jobs.example/graduate-engineer?utm_source=qr&utm_medium=print&utm_campaign=leeds-fair
https://jobs.example/graduate-engineer?utm_source=qr&utm_medium=print&utm_campaign=campus-board-b
```

— and your analytics answers the question every recruiting budget argues about: which
campus, board or fair actually produced applications.
[UTM parameters](/docs/how-to/how-to-add-utm-parameters-to-a-qr-code) cost nothing, and
a season's worth of per-venue codes is one spreadsheet and one
[bulk generation](/bulk) run. A single untagged careers-page code everywhere measures
nothing and lands candidates on a search box instead of the role.

## Career-fair sizing

- **Banner or backdrop**: read from 2–3 m across a crowded aisle, so the 10:1 rule wants
  **20–30 cm** of code on the [banner](/qr-codes-on/banners-and-backdrops), placed at
  standing eye height — not in the bottom corner behind the table.
- **A4/A3 flyers and boards**: **2–3 cm** for in-hand reading; the
  [poster sizing page](/docs/print/qr-code-size-for-a-poster) covers wall-mounted cases.
- **Badges**: **2 cm** minimum; candidates scan at arm's length mid-conversation.

## Keep a second route open

A QR code must never be the only way to apply. Candidates using screen readers, older
phones or a printout of the ad need a typed route, so print the short URL under every
code. It doubles as the trust check — a labelled destination gets scanned more readily
than a bare code stapled to a lamppost.

## What goes wrong

- One generic careers code reused all season, so no venue can be compared with any other.
- A code that opens a 40-field application form; on a phone at a fair, that is an
  abandonment machine. Land on the role summary with an "email me this link" option.
- Banner codes placed below waist height, unscannable across a table.

## FAQ

### What should a job advert QR code link to?

The specific role's page with UTM parameters identifying the location — never the
careers homepage. The candidate decided to act on this role; every navigation step
between scan and application sheds applicants.

### How do recruiters track which QR code placements work?

Tag each printed location with its own UTM campaign value on the same role URL, then
compare applications per source in analytics. Generating a code per venue is a bulk job
from one spreadsheet, and it turns print spend into comparable numbers.

### What size QR code for a career-fair banner?

20–30 cm, for scanning from 2–3 m across an aisle, mounted at eye height. Badge codes
need 2 cm for arm's-length scans, and flyers 2–3 cm. Undersized banner codes are the
most common fair mistake — people will not step around a table to scan.

## Try it

- https://useqr.app/url
- https://useqr.app/vcard
- https://useqr.app/email
- https://useqr.app/bulk