How to Select the Right Aesthetician College Near Parkersburg West Virginia

Since you have made a decision to enter the field of cosmetology and attend an esthetician school near Parkersburg WV, the task starts to find and enroll in the best program. It's imperative that the school you choose not only provides the proper training for the specialty you have chosen, but also prepares you for passing the licensing exam. When you start 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 pretty much interchangeable and both refer to the same type of school. If you anticipate commuting to classes you will want to locate a school that is within driving distance of your Parkersburg home. Tuition will additionally be a critical factor when evaluating possible schools. Just bear in mind that because a school is the nearest or the lowest cost it's not necessarily the best option. There are several other qualifications that you should weigh when analyzing schools, for example their reputation and accreditation. We will examine what questions you should ask concerning the aesthetician schools you are thinking about later within this article. Before we do, let's discuss a bit about what types of programs are offered.

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Esthetics 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 Parkersburg West Virginia 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 Courses

Online esthetician classes are accommodating for Parkersburg WV students who are working full time and have family responsibilities that make it challenging to enroll in a more traditional school. There are many online cosmetology school programs available that can be attended through a personal computer or laptop at the student's convenience. More conventional cosmetology schools are typically fast paced given that many courses are as brief as 6 or 8 months. This means that a considerable portion of time is spent in the classroom. With internet courses, you are dealing with the same volume of material, but you're not devoting numerous hours outside of your home or commuting to and from classes. However, it's essential that the school you choose can provide internship training in local salons and parlors so that you also receive the hands-on training needed for a complete education. Without the internship part of the training, it's difficult to obtain the skills necessary to work in any facet of the cosmetology industry. So don't forget if you decide to enroll in an online program to confirm that internship training is available in your area.

Questions to Ask Esthetician Programs

Following is a list of questions that you should look into for any esthetician training program you are contemplating. As we have previously discussed, the location of the school relative to your Parkersburg residence, in addition to the cost of tuition, will most likely be your first qualifiers. Whether you wish 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 even more factors that you need to research and take into consideration before enrolling in a cosmetology school. Below we have collected some of those supplemental questions that you should ask every school before making a final determination.

Is the Esthetician School Accredited? It's essential to make sure that the esthetician college you enroll in 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 comply with their high standards guaranteeing a superior curriculum and education. Accreditation may also be necessary for getting student loans or financial aid, which often are not available for non- accredited schools. It's also a prerequisite for licensing in several states that the training be accredited. And as a final benefit, a number of Parkersburg WV businesses will not hire recent graduates of non-accredited schools, or may look more favorably upon those with accredited training.

Does the School have an Excellent Reputation?  Any esthetician college that you are seriously considering should have a good to outstanding reputation within the profession. Being accredited is an excellent beginning. Next, ask the schools for references from their network of employers where they have referred their students. Verify that the schools have high job placement rates, attesting that their students are highly demanded. Check rating companies for reviews together with the school's accrediting organizations. If you have any connections with Parkersburg WV salon owners or managers, or anyone working in the business, ask them if they are familiar with the schools you are reviewing. They may even be able to recommend others that you had not looked into. Finally, contact the West Virginia school licensing authority to find out if there have been any grievances filed or if the schools are in complete compliance.

What’s the School’s Focus?  Some esthetician schools offer programs that are expansive in nature, concentrating on all facets of cosmetology. Others are more focused, providing training in a particular specialty, for instance hairstyling, manicuring or electrolysis. Schools that offer degree programs often broaden into a management and marketing curriculum. So it's important that you enroll in a school that specializes in your area of interest. Since your intention is to be trained as an esthetician, make sure that the school you enroll in is accredited and well regarded for that program. If your desire is to launch a Parkersburg WV beauty salon, then you want to enroll in a degree program that will teach you how to be an owner/operator as well. Picking a highly rated school with a weak program in the specialty you are seeking will not provide the training you require.

Is Plenty of Hands-On Training Provided?  Learning and mastering esthetician techniques and abilities involves plenty of practice on volunteers. Find out how much live, hands-on training is furnished in the beauty courses you will be attending. Some schools have salons on campus that enable students to practice their developing skills on volunteers. If a beauty program offers limited or no scheduled live training, but rather depends mainly on utilizing mannequins, it might not be the most effective alternative for developing your skills. So look for alternate schools that offer this type of training.

Does the School have a Job Placement Program?  When a student graduates from an esthetician academy, it's essential that he or she receives help in securing that initial job. Job placement programs are an important part of that process. Schools that provide aid develop relationships with Parkersburg WV employers that are seeking skilled graduates available for hiring. Check that the programs you are looking at have job placement programs and find out which salons and establishments they refer students to. Additionally, find out what their job placement rates are. Higher rates not only confirm that they have wide networks of employers, but that their programs are highly respected as well.

Is Financial Aid Available?  Many esthetician schools offer financial aid or student loan assistance for their students. Find out if the schools you are looking at have a financial aid office. Talk to a counselor and identify what student loans or grants you may qualify for. If the school is a member of the American Association of Cosmetology Schools (AACS), it will have scholarships offered to students too. If a school fulfills all of your other qualifications except for cost, do not eliminate it as an alternative before you determine what financial help may be available.

Learn How to Become an Esthetician in Parkersburg

Enroll in the Best Parkersburg Esthetician Program

Selecting and enrolling in the ideal esthetician school is essential to receive the proper training to become a licensed cosmetology specialist. Be sure to ask all the questions that you require in order to feel confident about your decision. Be sure to collect all of the information you get from the beauty school admissions departments, focus on what matters the most to you, and then employ that information to contrast schools. A sensible beginning in your due diligence procedure is to make certain that the college and program you choose are accredited and have excellent reputations within the field. If you start with that foundation, and address the additional questions supplied in this post, you will be able to filter your list of schools so that you can make the right selection. And when you graduate and pass your licensing exam, you will be confident that you are prepared to begin your career as a professional esthetician in Parkersburg West Virginia.

 

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