How to Select the Right Esthetician School Near College Park Maryland

Once you have made a decision to enter the field of cosmetology and enroll in an esthetician school near College Park MD, the process begins to search for and enroll in the ideal program. It's imperative that the program you choose not only furnishes the appropriate training for the specialty you have selected, but also prepares you for passing the licensing examination. When you begin your preliminary search, you may be a little bit unclear about the contrast between beauty schools and cosmetology schools. Well don't be, because the titles are essentially interchangeable and both pertain to the same kind of school. If you intend on commuting to classes you will want to locate a school that is within driving distance of your College Park residence. Tuition will likewise be an important factor when evaluating potential schools. Just keep in mind that because a school is the closest or the lowest cost it's not necessarily the right choice. There are several other factors that you should evaluate when analyzing schools, such as their reputation and accreditation. We will review what questions you should ask about the aesthetician schools you are thinking about later in this article. Before we do, let's talk a little bit about what types of training programs are offered.

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Esthetician Training Requirements

Esthetics school is an investment of time, energy, and money. Requirements vary from state to state, but the majority of states require that you complete at least 600 hours of training. Full-time school can take an average of six months to complete, and part-time school can take anywhere from 9-12 months. The primary purpose of esthetics school is to get you ready to pass the state licensing exam. They also teach basic skills that you will need to perfect through experience and sometimes additional classes, such as giving facials, body treatments, and performing waxing.  More advanced training includes learning to work with machines, such as IPL (Intense Pulsed Light) and Lasers used to rejuvenate the skin and permanently remove hair.

Esthetician Job Description

Estheticians provide a wide range of beauty services to help their College Park Maryland clients look and feel better. This includes improving the quality of the skin (including the treatment of skin disorders), hair removal, permanent makeup application, and facial massage. Some types of estheticians, like medical estheticians, provide highly specialized procedures that require detailed training in order for it to be done safely and effectively. Medical estheticians can help individuals suffering from serious skin disorders, burns, and other trauma, and to help with pre and post-operative surgery affecting the health of their skin. Estheticians work closely with their clients in a friendly and positive manner, so an enthusiastic attitude and desire to help people is an excellent attribute for an aspiring esthetician to possess. Some of the basic duties an esthetician may perform will include such tasks as:

• Assessing a patient’s needs
• Chemical peels
• Laser treatments
• Waxing
• Facials
• Massage of the head and neck
• Microdermabrasion

Online Esthetician Training

Online esthetician classes are accommodating for College Park MD students who are employed full-time and have family responsibilities that make it difficult to attend a more traditional school. There are a large number of web-based beauty school programs available that can be attended via a desktop computer or laptop at the student's convenience. More traditional cosmetology schools are often fast paced given that many courses are as short as six or eight months. This means that a large portion of time is spent in the classroom. With internet programs, you are dealing with the same amount of material, but you're not devoting many hours away from your home or commuting back and forth from classes. However, it's vital that the program you pick can provide internship training in nearby salons and parlors to ensure that you also get the hands-on training necessary for a complete education. Without the internship part of the training, it's impossible to obtain the skills necessary to work in any area of the cosmetology profession. So don't forget if you choose to enroll in an online school to confirm that internship training is provided in your area.

What to Ask Esthetician Degree Programs

Following is a series of questions that you will want to investigate for any esthetician training program you are considering. As we have previously discussed, the location of the school relative to your College Park residence, together with the price of tuition, will most likely be your initial qualifiers. Whether you would like to earn a certificate, diploma or a degree will no doubt be next on your list. But once you have narrowed your school choices based on those initial qualifications, there are additional factors that you need to research and take into consideration before enrolling in a cosmetology school. Following we have put together some of those supplemental questions that you should ask every school before making a final selection.

Is the Esthetician School Accredited? It's necessary to make sure that the esthetician college you pick is accredited. The accreditation should be by a U.S. Department of Education certified local or national agency, such as the National Accrediting Commission for Cosmetology Arts & Sciences (NACCAS). Schools accredited by the NACCAS must meet their high standards guaranteeing a quality curriculum and education. Accreditation may also be necessary for acquiring student loans or financial aid, which typically are not available for non- accredited schools. It's also a criteria for licensing in many states that the training be accredited. And as a final benefit, a number of College Park MD businesses will not recruit recent graduates of non-accredited schools, or might look more positively upon individuals with accredited training.

Does the School have a Great Reputation?  Each esthetician institute that you are seriously considering should have a good to exceptional reputation within the field. Being accredited is an excellent beginning. Next, ask the schools for testimonials from their network of businesses where they have placed their students. Verify that the schools have high job placement rates, showing that their students are highly sought after. Visit rating services for reviews along with the school's accrediting organizations. If you have any relationships with College Park MD salon owners or managers, or any person working in the field, ask them if they are acquainted with the schools you are reviewing. They might even be able to suggest others that you had not thought of. And last, check with the Maryland school licensing authority to find out if there have been any complaints submitted or if the schools are in total compliance.

What’s the School’s Focus?  A number of esthetician schools offer programs that are broad in nature, concentrating on all facets of cosmetology. Others are more focused, offering training in a particular specialty, for example hairstyling, manicuring or electrolysis. Schools that offer degree programs typically broaden into a management and marketing curriculum. So it's essential that you pick a school that specializes in your area of interest. Since your ambition is to be trained as an esthetician, make sure that the school you enroll in is accredited and respected for that program. If your vision is to start a College Park MD beauty salon, then you want to enroll in a degree program that will instruct you how to be an owner/operator as well. Picking a highly rated school with a weak program in the specialty you are pursuing will not provide the training you require.

Is Enough Hands-On Training Provided?  Practicing and perfecting esthetician skills and techniques demands plenty of practice on volunteers. Check how much live, hands-on training is furnished in the cosmetology courses you will be attending. A number of schools have salons on campus that enable students to practice their developing talents on real people. If a beauty program provides little or no scheduled live training, but rather depends heavily on utilizing mannequins, it might not be the most effective alternative for acquiring your skills. So look for other schools that furnish this kind of training.

Does the School Provide Job Assistance?  As soon as a student graduates from an esthetician academy, it's important that she or he receives aid in securing that very first job. Job placement programs are an important part of that process. Schools that furnish help develop relationships with College Park MD employers that are searching for trained graduates available for hiring. Confirm that the schools you are considering have job placement programs and ask which salons and organizations they refer students to. In addition, find out what their job placement rates are. High rates not only confirm that they have wide networks of employers, but that their programs are highly respected as well.

Is Financial Assistance Available?  Almost all esthetician schools offer financial aid or student loan assistance for their students. Ask if the schools you are considering have a financial aid department. Speak with a counselor and find out what student loans or grants you might get approved for. If the school is a member of the American Association of Cosmetology Schools (AACS), it will have scholarships available to students as well. If a school fulfills all of your other qualifications except for cost, do not eliminate it as an option before you learn what financial aid may be available.

Find Out How to Become an Aesthetician in College Park

Enroll in the Best College Park Esthetician Course

Finding and enrolling in the right esthetician school is essential to receive the necessary training to become a licensed cosmetology professional. Be sure to ask all the questions that you require in order to feel certain about your decision. Make sure to compile all of the information you get from the beauty school admissions departments, focus on what matters the most to you, and then utilize that data to compare schools. A sensible beginning in your due diligence procedure is to make sure that the school and program you select are accredited and have outstanding reputations within the field. If you start with that base, and address the additional questions presented in this article, you will be able to narrow down your list of schools so that you can make the right selection. And when you graduate and pass your licensing exam, you will be self-assured that you are ready to start your new career as a professional esthetician in College Park Maryland.

 

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