Cosmetology School

Hair school, cosmetology school, or beauty school no matter what you call it it's a great option for men and women to have other than the standard 2-4 years of college. There are a few differences between going to hair school and going to a regular college or university...



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• Time... College can take from 2-10 years. Cosmetology programs last for 1-2 years.

• Vacation... In college you get a break for Christmas, Thanksgiving, spring, and summer. In hair school you only get a few days for breaks because of the length of the program but it all depends on the institute where your taking your program.

• Attendance... In college you get to chose when you go to your classes. With cosmetology school you come 3-5 days/week. You  usually get a choice of 3 sets of classes to chose from if you go to a private school. They could offer 2 sets of day classes and 1 set of night classes. I start at 8:30 am on Monday, Wednesday, and Fridays.

• Choices... When you think about college you have a bunch of options and the same goes for a cosmetology program. You can go to a technical school or a vocational school offering the program. Some community colleges and high schools offer the program too. There is also the option to go to a private school like I do that offers only beauty industry based programs. Some common private schools are Paul Mitchell and The Aveda Institute. 

Paul Mitchell
Aveda Institute

• Degree V.S License.... In college you get a degree but in beauty school you get a license stating you completed the requirements to legally perform the services you've learned in school. That license allows you to do that skill in the state that you received it in only. If you want to legally do that skill in another state you need to transfer your license to that place or go back to school and complete that states requirements to get the license again. I recommend transferring your license!

• Credits V.S Hours... In college you take specific classes to gain credits towards your degree. In Cosmetology school you go to school for a specific amount of hours to gain your license. Every state has different requirements for graduating hair school. I've posted a link below.

Beauty school hour requirements by state.

•  Cost... College can cost between $35,000 and $130,000 for 4 years. While a program in the beauty industry for hair can cost between $6,500 and $20,000 depending on the type of school and length of program. You can usually get great financial aid for beauty school programs when you go to an accredited school.

 Question on accredited cosmetology schools?

• Requirements... Most colleges require a certain amount of credits earned from a certain range of classes. These classes give you requirements to earn the credit. In the beauty industry your required to come to school and spend hours of your time learning the skill. The state has a number of required services you must complete in the time you are at hair school. For instance I have to complete 100 shampoos to graduate. Also you must be 17 years or older and have a high school degree to start a cosmetology license as of 2012. After graduating school you then must take a written exam and a practical exam to gain your license. In Florida we are not required to take a practical or hands on exam where we physically do the services we've learned.

• Curriculum... In college the curriculum depends on the class you take and what is required for it. In the beauty industry you learn most of what you need to know in the first 12 weeks of school. After that you spend your time perfecting those skills. The class will likely follow a timeline for when to teach you things set up by the school you go to. There job is to teach you what you need to know in order to receive your license. In a cosmetology program you receive workbooks that you fill out completely in order to graduate. You also take test on these chapters and receive a grade for them that progresses you towards getting your license.

• Diversity... In college you have both sexes and depending on the school you chose you'll see a diverse amount of people roaming around.You'll see hundreds to thousands of students per college depending on its size and location. In cosmetology school there are more women than men and you see a larger gay community within the industry. Class sizes are smaller and more intimate with smaller student bodies in the school. You may also experience more personal one on one time with your teachers in beauty school.

• Food... In college you eat between classes and usually there are restaurants or fast food places on or around campus. With cosmo school you get a lunch break at a specific time and you either pack a lunch or go out to eat. This break is usually 30 minutes to 1 hour. That depends on how many hours you go to school a day. I go to school for 8 hours and 45 minutes including my 45 minute lunch break. The night students are only at school for 4 hours so they don't receive a lunch break.

• Living Arrangement's... In college you can live on campus but when your in a hair program you live off of campus and these schools never really offer housing because the program isn't that long. 

• Job Opportunitiess... After receiving your license you can work almost immediately if you can land a job. When you graduate from college usually you start at the bottom of your field and you fight your way to the top. It could take years to be at the pay scale you want if you can even find a job to begin with in your career field.

• Activities... Usually on a college campus there are clubs, sports, sororities, and parties to go to. When you go to hair school you have the opportunity to participate in events and jobs the school is involved in. My school offers competitions all the time to win baskets full of awesome stuff and money or gift cards. We had a competition to win an internship with Michael Kors in New York City. We have a design team that worked on ZombiCon this year and a competition team that goes to the hair show for free to compete against known stylist. You also have the opportunity to receive extra awards for attendance, grades, and doing excess services! Take advantage of your time in hair school.

ZombiCon 2012

Whatever you chose to do put serious thought into it before committing. Furthering your education is an investment in yourself. Your future can't be determined by anyone but you!

"Education is what remains after one has forgotten what one has learned in school" ~ Albert Einstein 

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