How to Pick the Best Esthetician Training Near Mercer Island Washington

Now that you have made a decision to enter the field of cosmetology and enroll in an esthetician school near Mercer Island WA, the process begins to find and enroll in the right program. It's essential that the program you choose not only furnishes the necessary instruction for the specialty you have selected, but also preps you for passing the licensing exam. When you begin your initial search, you might be somewhat confused about the distinction between beauty schools and cosmetology schools. Well don't be, because the names are essentially interchangeable and both pertain to the same type of school. If you intend on commuting to classes you will need to find a school that is within driving distance of your Mercer Island residence. Tuition will likewise be a critical factor when evaluating possible schools. Just remember that because a school is the nearest or the cheapest it's not always the ideal choice. There are several other considerations that you should weigh when analyzing schools, such as their reputation and accreditation. We will go over what questions you should ask regarding the aesthetician schools you are thinking about later within this article. Before we do, let's discuss a bit about what kinds of training programs are offered.

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Esthetician Training Programs

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 Mercer Island Washington 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 convenient for Mercer Island WA students who are working full-time and have family commitments that make it challenging to attend a more traditional school. There are many web-based cosmetology school programs offered that can be accessed through a personal computer or laptop at the student's convenience. More traditional beauty programs are typically fast paced given that many courses are as short as 6 or 8 months. This means that a large amount of time is spent in the classroom. With internet courses, you are covering the same volume of material, but you're not devoting many hours away from your home or travelling back and forth from classes. On the other hand, it's vital that the program you choose can provide internship training in local salons and parlors to ensure that you also obtain the hands-on training necessary for a comprehensive education. Without the internship portion of the training, it's impossible to acquire the skills required to work in any facet of the cosmetology profession. So make sure if you choose to enroll in an online school to confirm that internship training is provided in your area.

What to Ask Esthetics Degree Programs

Below is a list of questions that you should research for any esthetician training school you are contemplating. As we have already covered, the location of the school relative to your Mercer Island home, as well as the expense of tuition, will most likely be your initial qualifiers. Whether you want to earn a certificate, diploma or a degree will probably be next on your list. But once you have narrowed your school options based on those preliminary qualifications, there are additional factors that you need to research and consider before enrolling in a cosmetology school. Following we have compiled several of those supplemental questions that you should ask each school before making a final determination.

Is the Esthetician School Accredited? It's important to make sure that the esthetician training program you choose is accredited. The accreditation should be by a U.S. Department of Education certified local or national organization, such as the National Accrediting Commission for Cosmetology Arts & Sciences (NACCAS). Programs accredited by the NACCAS must comply with their high standards ensuring a superior curriculum and education. Accreditation may also be important for acquiring student loans or financial aid, which typically are not offered for non- accredited schools. It's also a prerequisite for licensing in some states that the training be accredited. And as a concluding benefit, a number of Mercer Island WA businesses will not hire recent graduates of non-accredited schools, or may look more positively upon those with accredited training.

Does the School have an Excellent Reputation?  Each esthetician school that you are seriously considering should have a good to outstanding reputation within the profession. Being accredited is a good beginning. Next, ask the schools for endorsements from their network of businesses where they have placed their students. Check that the schools have high job placement rates, signifying that their students are highly regarded. Check rating companies for reviews along with the school's accrediting agencies. If you have any connections with Mercer Island WA salon owners or managers, or anyone working in the business, ask them if they are familiar with the schools you are looking at. They may even be able to propose others that you had not thought of. And last, contact the Washington school licensing authority to see if there have been any complaints submitted or if the schools are in complete compliance.

What’s the School’s Focus?  A number of esthetician schools offer programs that are broad in nature, focusing on all areas of cosmetology. Others are more focused, providing training in a specific specialty, for instance 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 focuses on your area of interest. Since your ambition is to be trained as an esthetician, make certain that the school you enroll in is accredited and respected for that program. If your desire is to start a Mercer Island WA beauty salon, then you need to enroll in a degree program that will teach you how to be an owner/operator as well. Choosing a highly ranked school with a weak program in the specialty you are seeking will not provide the training you require.

Is Enough Live Training Provided?  Studying and refining esthetician techniques and abilities demands lots of practice on volunteers. Ask how much live, hands-on training is provided in the cosmetology lessons you will be attending. Some schools have salons on campus that make it possible for students to practice their developing talents on volunteers. If a beauty program provides minimal or no scheduled live training, but instead depends mainly on utilizing mannequins, it may not be the most effective alternative for acquiring your skills. Therefore search for alternate schools that provide this kind of training.

Does the School have a Job Placement Program?  When a student graduates from an esthetician program, it's important that he or she receives support in landing that very first job. Job placement programs are an integral part of that process. Schools that furnish aid maintain relationships with Mercer Island WA employers that are seeking qualified graduates available for hiring. Confirm that the schools you are contemplating have job placement programs and ask which salons and businesses they refer students to. Also, ask what their job placement rates are. Higher rates not only affirm that they have extensive networks of employers, but that their programs are highly respected as well.

Is Financial Assistance Offered?  Almost all esthetician schools provide financial aid or student loan assistance for their students. Ask if the schools you are reviewing have a financial aid department. Speak with a counselor and learn what student loans or grants you might qualify 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 discard it as an option until you find out what financial aid may be provided.

More Info on How to Become an Esthetician in Mercer Island

Enroll in the Right Mercer Island Esthetician Training

Picking and enrolling in the right esthetician college is imperative to obtain the proper training to become a licensed cosmetology specialist. Make sure to ask all the questions that you require so as to feel confident about your decision. Make sure to collect all of the information you receive from the beauty school admissions departments, prioritize what matters the most to you, and then employ that data to compare schools. A reasonable beginning in your due diligence procedure is to make sure that the institution and program you select are accredited and have outstanding reputations within the field. If you begin with that foundation, and answer the additional questions presented in this article, you will be able to narrow down your list of schools so that you can make the proper selection. And when you graduate and pass your licensing exam, you will be self-assured that you are qualified to launch your new career as a professional esthetician in Mercer Island Washington.

 

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