I wouldn't limit it to recruiters ... some engineers see the word "QA" or "SDET" and think the guy isn't worthy of being a "real" software engineer, or if they do then it is at the lowest rung of the ladder. Really annoying.
In the OP's case I would change their title (if applicable) to "QA / engineer" as a) that probably paints a more accurate picture of what you were doing and b) gets around yokels that look down on QA/SDET.
In the OP's case I would change their title (if applicable) to "QA / engineer" as a) that probably paints a more accurate picture of what you were doing and b) gets around yokels that look down on QA/SDET.