Talent Acquisition

This course is part of HRCI Human Resource Associate Professional Certificate

Instructors: Brad Boyson

153,543 already enrolled

Included with

Learn more

4 modules

Gain insight into a topic and learn the fundamentals.

2,034 reviews

Beginner level

Recommended experience

Flexible schedule

2 weeks at 10 hours a week

Learn at your own pace

97%

Most learners liked this course

4 modules

Gain insight into a topic and learn the fundamentals.

2,034 reviews

Beginner level

Recommended experience

Flexible schedule

2 weeks at 10 hours a week

Learn at your own pace

97%

Most learners liked this course

What you'll learn

Create a job analysis and write a job description
Create a talent recruitment strategy
Identify and explain all stages of the talent acquisition life cycle

Skills you'll gain

Details to know

Shareable certificate

Add to your LinkedIn profile

Assessments

17 assignments¹

AI Graded see disclaimer

Taught in English

See how employees at top companies are mastering in-demand skills

Learn more about Coursera for Business

logos of Petrobras, TATA, Danone, Capgemini, P&G and L'Oreal

Build your Leadership and Management expertise

This course is part of the HRCI Human Resource Associate Professional Certificate

When you enroll in this course, you'll also be enrolled in this Professional Certificate.

Learn new concepts from industry experts
Gain a foundational understanding of a subject or tool
Develop job-relevant skills with hands-on projects
Earn a shareable career certificate from HRCI

There are 4 modules in this course

**The Talent Acquisition Course won Coursera's 2024 Learners First Award, which honors the instructor and course team who have received the highest ratings from Coursera learners based on direct feedback.**

This course focuses on all aspects of the talent acquisition process. You will learn how to forecast workforce needs, source and recruit talented candidates, and hire and onboard new employees. By the end of this course, you will be able to: ● Create a recruitment strategy ● Perform a job analysis and write a job description ● Explain the talent acquisition life cycle ● Identify core elements of negotiation, job offers, and employment contracts ● Implement best practices for employee onboarding No prior experience in Human Resources is needed to be successful in this course.

This week you will be introduced to the HRCI Program and learn what you need to be successful in this course. You will learn about different staffing options and understand different tools for forecasting workplace needs. Finally, you will differentiate common design approaches and understand legal considerations in job design in the US.

What's included

17 videos9 readings3 assignments2 discussion prompts

17 videos Total 64 minutes

HRCI Human Resources Associate Professional Certificate Introduction 2 minutes
Course Overview: Talent Acquisition 2 minutes
Instructor Introduction Video 2 minutes
Weekly Introduction: Introduction to Talent Acquisition 1 minute
Forecasting Workforce Needs 5 minutes
Tools for Forecasting Workforce Needs 6 minutes
Independent Contractors 3 minutes
Gig Work 2 minutes
Temporary Workers 5 minutes
Exempt and Non-exempt Employees 3 minutes
Flexible Work Arrangements 8 minutes
Example: Forecasting and Planning Talent Acquisition 4 minutes
Job Design and Job Redesign 5 minutes
Approaches to Job Design 5 minutes
Legal Issues in Job Design 6 minutes
Example: Job Design 3 minutes
Weekly Review: Introduction to Talent Acquisition 2 minutes

9 readings Total 74 minutes

Talent Acquisition Course Syllabus 5 minutes
How to Be Successful in This Course 10 minutes
Methods to Forecast Workforce Needs 10 minutes
Outsourcing and Offshoring 7 minutes
Identifying Independent Contractors 10 minutes
Temporary Work and Employee Rights 10 minutes
Exempt and Non-exempt Employees 10 minutes
Overview: Job Design Approaches 5 minutes
Legal Issues in Job Design in the US 7 minutes

3 assignments Total 95 minutes

Graded Quiz: Introduction to Talent Acquisition 50 minutes
Practice Quiz: Forecasting and Evaluating Workforce Needs 25 minutes
Practice Quiz: Job Design and Legislation 20 minutes

2 discussion prompts Total 20 minutes

Meet and Greet 10 minutes
Job Design and Legal Considerations 10 minutes

This week you will learn how to write a job description and how to perform a job analysis. You will understand the different methods you can use to recruit and track applicants in a diverse workforce.

What's included

10 videos3 readings4 assignments2 discussion prompts

10 videos Total 41 minutes

Weekly Introduction: How to Get Started in Talent Acquisition 1 minute
The Talent Acquisition Process 4 minutes
Job Analysis 4 minutes
Job Analysis Techniques 4 minutes
Job Descriptions 6 minutes
Example: Job Analysis and Job Description 5 minutes
Recruiting and Tracking Applicants 6 minutes
Recruiting a Diverse Workforce 5 minutes
Example: Recruiting a Diverse Workforce 3 minutes
Weekly Review: How to Get Started in Talent Acquisition 2 minutes

3 readings Total 24 minutes

Position Analysis Questionnaire (PAQ) 7 minutes
Job Description Template 7 minutes
Uniform Guidelines on Employee Selection Procedures (UGESP) 10 minutes

4 assignments Total 115 minutes

Graded Quiz: How to Get Started in Talent Acquisition 50 minutes
Self-Review Activity: Formulate a Job Description 30 minutes
Practice Quiz: Job Analysis and Job Descriptions 20 minutes
Practice Quiz: Recruiting and Tracking Applicants 15 minutes

2 discussion prompts Total 20 minutes

O-Net Job Description Templates 10 minutes
Recruiting a Diverse Workforce 10 minutes

In this week, you will discuss the talent acquisition life cycle and learn how to apply different candidate sourcing methods. You will learn how to screen candidates for positions and how to effectively interview candidates. Finally, you will evaluate prospective employees and understand different test options used in the employee evaluation stage.

What's included

24 videos3 readings5 assignments1 discussion prompt

24 videos Total 84 minutes

Weekly Introduction: Talent Acquisition Life Cycle 1 minute
Talent Sourcing Strategies 4 minutes
Employer Branding 3 minutes
Employee Referrals 2 minutes
Job Boards 4 minutes
Candidate Pipelines 5 minutes
Resume Mining 3 minutes
Job Fairs 3 minutes
eRecruitment and eSelection Systems 3 minutes
Example: Talent Sourcing 4 minutes
Screening Candidates 3 minutes
Interviewing Candidates 2 minutes
Types of Interviews 4 minutes
Interviewing Do's and Don'ts 3 minutes
Types of Interview Bias 4 minutes
Avoiding Bias in Interviews 4 minutes
Example: Interviewing Candidates 6 minutes
Evaluating Employees before Hiring 2 minutes
Background and Record Checks 4 minutes
Different Test Options 4 minutes
Test Reliability and Test Validity 6 minutes
Biases in the Hiring Process 6 minutes
Example: Evaluating Prospective Employees 4 minutes
Weekly Review: Talent Acquisition Life Cycle 2 minutes

3 readings Total 30 minutes

Interview Techniques 10 minutes
Employment Eligibility Test 10 minutes
Overview: Reliability and Validity Tests 10 minutes

5 assignments Total 140 minutes

Graded Quiz: Talent Acquisition Life Cycle 50 minutes
Practice Quiz: Talent Sourcing 20 minutes
Self-Review Activity: Formulating Interview Questions 30 minutes
Practice Quiz: Interviewing Candidates 25 minutes
Practice Quiz: Evaluating Prospective Employees 15 minutes

1 discussion prompt Total 10 minutes

Talent Sourcing Strategies 10 minutes

In your final week of Course 1, you will learn core elements of negotiation, job offers and employment contracts and how to implement best practices for employee onboarding. You will understand the core components of the employee handbook and explore retention activities and strategies that help to retain talent.

What's included

15 videos8 readings5 assignments1 peer review2 discussion prompts

15 videos Total 52 minutes

Weekly Introduction: Negotiations and Onboarding 2 minutes
Negotiation: Offer and Counteroffer 3 minutes
Employment Contracts and Common Clauses 4 minutes
Example: Negotiations 4 minutes
Orientation and Onboarding 2 minutes
Employee Orientation 4 minutes
Employee Onboarding 3 minutes
Employee Handbook 4 minutes
Example: Orientation and Onboarding 4 minutes
Importance of Employee Retention 4 minutes
Tactics for Retaining Employees 5 minutes
Example: Employee Retention 4 minutes
Important HR Metrics to Track 5 minutes
Weekly Review: Negotiations and Onboarding 2 minutes
Congratulations! 1 minute

8 readings Total 89 minutes

Elements of an Offer Letter 30 minutes
Overview: Employment Contract Clauses 7 minutes
Components of an Employee Handbook 7 minutes
Overview: HR Metrics 10 minutes
Technology and HR 10 minutes
Key Terms 10 minutes
What to Expect 5 minutes
How to Add Your Info to LinkedIn 10 minutes

5 assignments Total 135 minutes

Graded Quiz: Negotiation and Onboarding 50 minutes
Practice Quiz: Negotiations 25 minutes
Self-Review Activity: Create an Onboarding Program 30 minutes
Practice Quiz: Onboarding 15 minutes
Practice Quiz: Employee Retention 15 minutes

1 peer review Total 60 minutes

Talent Acquisition 60 minutes

2 discussion prompts Total 20 minutes

Ways to Make Employees Feel Welcome 10 minutes
Employee Retention 10 minutes

Earn a career certificate

Add this credential to your LinkedIn profile, resume, or CV. Share it on social media and in your performance review.

Instructors

Instructor ratings

(691 ratings)

Brad Boyson

HRCI

5 Courses 200,537 learners

Offered by

HRCI

Explore more from Leadership and Management

Coursera
How to Develop and Maintain a Healthy Talent Pipeline
Course
Coursera
GenAI for Talent Acquisition and Onboarding
Course
Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (ADP)
Interviewing Best Practices
Course
Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (ADP)
Sourcing and Screening Applicants
Course

Why people choose Coursera for their career

Felipe M.

Learner since 2018

"To be able to take courses at my own pace and rhythm has been an amazing experience. I can learn whenever it fits my schedule and mood."

Jennifer J.

Learner since 2020

"I directly applied the concepts and skills I learned from my courses to an exciting new project at work."

Larry W.

Learner since 2021

"When I need courses on topics that my university doesn't offer, Coursera is one of the best places to go."

Chaitanya A.

"Learning isn't just about being better at your job: it's so much more than that. Coursera allows me to learn without limits."

Learner reviews

5 stars
87.37%
4 stars
10.27%
3 stars
1.22%
2 stars
0.34%
1 star
0.78%

Showing 3 of 2034

Reviewed on Aug 30, 2024

I have completed my course through coursera i was good This course help my future career, and achieving more position in my life but the problems is i cant able to get the certificate

Reviewed on Jul 28, 2025

I loved taking this course! It touched on everything I have already been doing throughout my career and it gave much more insight to the "why" behind what we do in the HR field.

Reviewed on Jul 30, 2024

There were some concepts that could have used some hands on tasks. Some things gone into were, in my opinion a little beyond an aPHR level.

View more reviews

Open new doors with Coursera Plus

Unlimited access to 10,000+ world-class courses, hands-on projects, and job-ready certificate programs - all included in your subscription

Learn more

Advance your career with an online degree

Earn a degree from world-class universities - 100% online

Explore degrees

Join over 3,400 global companies that choose Coursera for Business

Upskill your employees to excel in the digital economy

Learn more

Frequently asked questions

To access the course materials, assignments and to earn a Certificate, you will need to purchase the Certificate experience when you enroll in a course. You can try a Free Trial instead, or apply for Financial Aid. The course may offer 'Full Course, No Certificate' instead. This option lets you see all course materials, submit required assessments, and get a final grade. This also means that you will not be able to purchase a Certificate experience.

When you enroll in the course, you get access to all of the courses in the Certificate, and you earn a certificate when you complete the work. Your electronic Certificate will be added to your Accomplishments page - from there, you can print your Certificate or add it to your LinkedIn profile.