Deciding to become a licensed professional hair stylist is not an easy decision but can be incredibly worth it. No matter where you live, several different requirements are required for those. Additionally, you might be wondering if you need to be licensed or not or how you might go about that. If you haven’t done the research, don’t worry. We’re going to go over some of the basics and how you can prepare to be a professional hair stylist.
Becoming a licensed hair stylist is a great decision. This is not just because of the valuable credentials but also because of the benefits. If you are curious about what it takes to become a licensed hair stylist, you’re in the right place. Here are some of the steps that you need to follow to earn your hair styling or cosmetology license officially.
How to Become a Licensed Hair Stylist
Training Program or Education
Becoming a professional hair stylist does not involve a simple class that takes a matter of weeks. It consists of completing a training program that each region and licensing board requires. You may end up going to cosmetology school to complete your coursework. Otherwise, you might end up having to pick a particular school to do so.
Cosmetology School
Cosmetology school involves being trained in the art of nails, makeup, skincare, hair services, and more. With this program, you can learn everything there is to know about the beauty industry. You can then decide whether or not you want to engage in a particular area of this, there just hairstyling. Once you decide that you want to do hairstyling, you can become licensed explicitly in this area.
Becoming a professional hair stylist will specifically allow you to work with hair color, unique hair treatments, and more. This is a specification apart from the cosmetology angle, but one will get you more visibility than others.
Required Hours
Generally speaking, most cosmetology licensure or hairstyling licensure requires at least 1400 or 1600 hours on average. This depends on your location in your state or province, as this can be different between the states. Those who choose to do apprenticeships can also require more hours of practice. Again, this all depends on your area. Check to see if you must complete an additional level of hours for your license to be completed.
Exams and Renewal Requirements
Additionally, there is usually a state exam that you need to complete to receive your license correctly. That’s one able individual to practice for at least one or two years before renewal is required. Renewal takes place, everyone, in two years, depending on where you live. However, you can generally pay around $25 to $200 for this process.
Some states might require continuing education courses for your renewal. This is sometimes the norm in states as per their requirements. Some might even achieve a master cosmetology title to their education in their certification over the years. This depends on where you are in your career and your goals.
We’ve gone over how we got your license for hairstyling. Here are some pros and cons to becoming a professional hair stylist. We’ll also talk about how this can help you later on. We will also discuss some of the tools to help you grow your clientele and income potential.
Pros
Ease of Education and Training for Licensing
Unlike other trades, it’s straightforward to become a professional hair stylist. As mentioned above, you need to complete a list of items, which all depends on your state. Some salons might require cosmetology school and a short exam. You might be able to finish this within a year.
If you choose to do apprenticeships, this might take you a little longer. Yet, you’ll have more experience. This might help you further into your career by getting hired by a salon. Choosing to do your license for your hair styling career is incredibly convenient. You can even do it while you are in high school or college.
Many people choose to do their hairstyling license while they’re in high school. This is because many education programs allow this to be an available course. This is super important and one of the many reasons why becoming licensed is a benefit. It is easy to do in can be done around your education.
Availability for Entrepreneurial Lifestyle
For those who want to enjoy working for themselves, then becoming a licensed hair stylist is the best choice. One of the best ways to take advantage of being a professional hair stylist is by creating your schedule. You can work in the mornings, afternoons, weekends, or even just during the week. No matter what you choose, it’s up to you.
Becoming licensed also allows you to choose to either work in a salon or own your own business. Many people recognize the power of owning their own business. This is why many people are looking to become licensed hair stylists today. In addition, it allows you to choose your schedule. This can create more income for yourself than you could have had before.
Additionally, you can also work with your client schedules. For example, say you have a client that needs work, usually on Thursdays in the evening. Luckily, you have the availability to do so because you choose your schedule. Again, this helps with planning and organizing, and taking control of your life in your career.
As an entrepreneur, you can also create your discounts, rewards, and other programs via specific applications. For example, you can create your discount or reward prizes for your customers to keep them coming back for more. This rewards them for being loyal to your services as a hair stylist.
Working with High Profile Clients
If you want a job with some high-profile clients, becoming a licensed hair stylist is an excellent option. With license share, you can work with some of the top celebrities, influencers, in models in the world today. This is because, with your credentials, many people trust you to do the job and do it well. However, you might need to be a major city for this to happen frequently.
One obvious thing to note would be that you might have to keep a confidentiality agreement. This is if the celebrity does not want to be known for being in the area or going to your salon. However, still, you can say that you worked with a particular celebrity.
Potential to Earn Unique Commissions
If you work for a salon and aren’t a licensed, you might not be eligible for commissions. Being eligible for commissions is not just about the services you provide, but about the products also.
The items that you source and those you represent as a hair stylist can bring you further income. For example, if you enjoy Paul Mitchell products, you could potentially become commissioned to buy them for retailing purposes.
While this might not seem like a huge bonus right away, this is incredibly important. This provides more income potential over the time you are a hair stylist. Over the many years, you work on here, every bottle that you cell could potentially give you dollars back. This could add up and give you more earnings than you could have if you weren’t a licensed professional!
