How to Pick a Cosmetology School near Charleston Illinois
Since you have decided to train as a cosmetologist and enroll in a beauty school near Charleston IL, the process begins to search for and enroll in the ideal school. It’s imperative that the program you select not only furnishes the proper instruction for the specialty you have selected, but also readies you for passing the licensing examination. When you begin your preliminary search, you may be rather confused about the distinction between beauty schools and cosmetology schools. Well don’t be, because the titles are pretty much interchangeable and both pertain to the same kind of school. We’ll discuss a little bit further about that in the following section. If you plan on commuting to classes you will need to choose a school that is within driving distance of your Charleston residence. Tuition will additionally be an important factor when evaluating potential schools. Just bear in mind that because a school is the nearest or the cheapest it’s not always the ideal option. There are a number of other factors that you should evaluate when analyzing schools, for instance their reputation and accreditation. We will review what questions you should ask regarding the cosmetology schools you are considering later within this article. Before we do, let’s discuss a little bit about what cosmetology is, and what types of courses are offered.
Defining Cosmetology
Cosmetology is an occupation that is everything about making the human body look more beautiful with the application of cosmetics. So naturally it makes sense that numerous cosmetology schools are described as beauty schools. Many of us think of makeup when we hear the term cosmetics, but really a cosmetic can be anything that improves the appearance of a person’s skin, hair or nails. In order to work as a cosmetologist, most states mandate that you go through some type of specialized training and then become licensed. Once licensed, the work settings include not only Charleston IL beauty salons and barber shops, but also such places as spas, hotels and resorts. Many cosmetologists, once they have gotten experience and a client base, open their own shops or salons. Others will start seeing customers either in their own residences or will travel to the client’s residence, or both. Cosmetology college graduates go by many professional names and are employed in a wide range of specializations including:
- Hairdressers
- Hairstylists
- Beauticians
- Barbers
- Manicurists
- Nail Technicians
- Makeup Artists
- Hair Coloring Specialists
- Estheticians
- Electrolysis Technicians
As previously mentioned, in the majority of states practicing cosmetologists must be licensed. In some states there is an exemption. Only those conducting more skilled services, such as hairstylists, are required to be licensed. Other people working in cosmetology and less skilled, such as shampooers, are not required to become licensed in those states.
Cosmetologist Certificates and Degrees
There are essentially two avenues available to receive cosmetology training and a credential upon completion. You can enroll in a certificate (or diploma) program, or you can pursue an Associate’s degree. Certificate programs normally take 12 to 18 months to finish, while an Associate’s degree usually takes about 2 years. If you enroll in a certificate program you will be trained in all of the major areas of cosmetology. Shorter programs are available if you want to focus on just one area, for instance hair coloring. A degree program will also likely incorporate management and marketing training to ensure that graduates are better prepared to operate a salon or other Charleston IL business. More advanced degrees are not common, but Bachelor and Master’s degree programs are available in such specialties as salon or spa management. Whichever type of training program you choose, it’s important to make certain that it’s approved by the Illinois Board of Cosmetology. Numerous states only recognize schools that are accredited by certain highly regarded agencies, including the American Association of Cosmetology Schools (AACS). We will cover the advantages of accreditation for the school you decide on in the following segment.
Online Cosmetologist Programs
Online beauty programs are convenient for Charleston IL students who are working full time and have family responsibilities that make it difficult to enroll in a more traditional school. There are a large number of web-based cosmetology school programs available that can be attended by means of a home computer or laptop at the student’s convenience. More traditional cosmetology programs are frequently fast paced given that many courses are as brief as six or eight months. This means that a significant portion of time is spent in the classroom. With online courses, you are dealing with the same volume of material, but you’re not devoting numerous hours outside of your home or travelling back and forth from classes. However, it’s imperative that the training program you pick can provide internship training in local salons and parlors to ensure that you also receive the hands-on training required for a complete education. Without the internship part of the training, it’s difficult to gain 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 verify that internship training is provided in your area.
What to Ask Beauty Degree Programs
Following is a list of questions that you will want to research for any cosmetology training program you are considering. As we have previously covered, the location of the school relative to your Charleston IL home, together with the cost of tuition, will undoubtedly be your first qualifiers. Whether you would like to earn a certificate, diploma or a degree will undoubtedly be next on your list. But once you have reduced your school options based on those initial qualifications, there are even more factors that you must research and take into consideration before enrolling in a cosmetology school. Following we have collected several of those supplemental questions that you should ask each school before making a final determination.
Is the School Accredited? It’s necessary to make sure that the cosmetology training program you select is accredited. The accreditation should be by a U.S. Department of Education acknowledged 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 guaranteeing a quality curriculum and education. Accreditation may also be essential for obtaining student loans or financial aid, which often are not obtainable in 61920 for non- accredited schools. It’s also a criteria for licensing in several states that the training be accredited. And as a concluding benefit, numerous Charleston IL businesses will not recruit recent graduates of non-accredited schools, or might look more positively upon individuals with accredited training.
Does the School have an Excellent Reputation? Every beauty college that you are seriously considering should have a good to excellent reputation within the field. Being accredited is an excellent starting point. Next, ask the schools for testimonials from their network of employers where they have referred their students. Check that the schools have high job placement rates, signifying that their students are highly sought after. Visit rating companies for reviews in addition to the school’s accrediting organizations. If you have any contacts with Charleston IL salon owners or managers, or someone working in the business, ask them if they are familiar with the schools you are reviewing. They might even be able to recommend others that you had not considered. And last, contact the Illinois school licensing authority to find out if there have been any complaints filed or if the schools are in total compliance.
What’s the School’s Focus? Some cosmetology schools offer programs that are comprehensive in nature, concentrating on all facets of cosmetology. Others are more focused, providing training in a specific specialty, for example hairstyling, manicuring or electrolysis. Schools that offer degree programs commonly broaden into a management and marketing curriculum. So it’s important that you enroll in a school that specializes in your area of interest. If your intention is to be trained as an esthetician, make certain that the school you enroll in is accredited and well regarded for that program. If your vision is to open a hair salon in Charleston IL, then you want to enroll in a degree program that will instruct you how to be an owner/operator. Selecting a highly rated school with a weak program in the specialty you are seeking will not deliver the training you need.
Is Plenty of Live Training Provided? Practicing and perfecting cosmetology techniques and abilities requires plenty of practice on volunteers. Check how much live, hands-on training is included in the beauty lessons you will be attending. Some schools have salons on site that make it possible for students to practice their growing talents on real people. If a beauty school furnishes limited or no scheduled live training, but instead depends heavily on using mannequins, it might not be the most effective alternative for developing your skills. So look for alternate schools that provide this type of training.
Does the School have a Job Placement Program? When a student graduates from a cosmetology school, it’s crucial that he or she gets aid in landing that very first job. Job placement programs are an important part of that process. Schools that provide assistance develope relationships with Charleston IL employers that are seeking skilled graduates available for hiring. Verify that the programs you are looking at have job placement programs and ask which salons and establishments they refer students to. Also, ask what their job placement rates are. High rates not only affirm that they have wide networks of employers, but that their programs are highly regarded as well.
Is Financial Assistance Offered? Many beauty schools offer financial aid or student loan assistance for their students. Check if the schools you are looking at have a financial aid department. Speak with a counselor and find out what student loans or grants you may qualify for. If the school belongs to the American Association of Cosmetology Schools (AACS), it will have scholarships available to students too. If a school meets all of your other qualifications except for cost, do not omit it as an option until you learn what financial help may be available.
Enrolled in Cosmetology School near Charleston IL?
If you have decided to attend Beauty School in the greater Charleston IL area, following is some interesting and perhaps useful information about the location of your new school campus.
Charleston, Illinois
Charleston is a city in and the county seat of Coles County, Illinois, United States.[4] The population was 21,838, as of the 2010 census. The city is home to Eastern Illinois University and has close ties with its neighbor, Mattoon. Both are principal cities of the Charleston–Mattoon Micropolitan Statistical Area.
Native Americans lived in the Charleston area for thousands of years before the first European settlers arrived. With the great tallgrass prairie to the west, beech-maple forests to the east, and the Embarras River and Wabash Rivers between, the Charleston area provided semi-nomadic Indians access to a variety of resources. Indians may have deliberately set the "wildfires" which maintained the local mosaic of prairie and oak–hickory forest. Streams with names like Indian Creek and Kickapoo Creek mark the sites of former Indian settlements. One village is said to have been located south of Fox Ridge State Park near a deposit of flint.[citation needed]
The early history of settlement in the area was marked by uneasy co-existence between Indians and Americans. Some settlers lived peacefully with the natives, but conflict arose in the 1810s and 1820s: after Indians allegedly harassed surveying crews, an escalating series of poorly documented skirmishes occurred between Indians, settlers, and the Illinois Rangers. Two pitched battles (complete with cannon on one side) occurred just south of Charleston along "the hills of the Embarrass," near the entrance to Lake Charleston park. These conflicts did not slow American settlement, and Indian history in Coles County effectively ended when all natives were expelled by law from Illinois after the 1832 Black Hawk War. With the grudging exception of Indian wives, the last natives were driven out by the 1840s.[5]
Enroll in the Right Cosmetologist Training Program near Charleston IL
Selecting and enrolling in the ideal cosmetologist college is essential to get the necessary training to become a licensed cosmetology professional. Be sure to ask all the questions that you require in order to feel positive about your decision. Be sure to collect all of the information you receive from the cosmetology school admissions departments, focus on what matters the most to you, and then employ that information to contrast schools. A sensible start in your due diligence procedure is to make certain that the school and program you decide on are accredited and have exceptional reputations within the field. If you begin with that foundation, and answer the additional questions provided in this post, you will be able to narrow down your list of schools so that you can make the proper selection. Once you graduate and pass your licensing examination, you will be confident that you are ready to begin your career as a professional cosmetologist in Charleston IL.
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