Choosing a school?
Fri, 07/17/2009 - 6:52pm
Does anyone here have any opinion on Cosmetology schools in the St. Paul, Minneapolis area. I have visited two. Aveda so far is my first choice but they are very expensive. I have been to Scott Lewis(Empire Beauty school in Bloomington) as well and was impressed at first, but was then dismayed at their attitude during the application and financial aid process. Any information that you can provide will be very helpful. Thanks!
Programs:
Cosmetology
(1 vote)
Hi! I just graduated from a school in Kokomo, IN.
Aveda is it's own school of thought. Yes, it is a great way of doing things, but just know there are people that just LOVE it and people that HATE it. That's what I picked up on at my non-Aveda school. I went to The Salon Professional Academy, a KRS (business system) school that worked with Redken, Bioelements, and OPI. It was great to work with brands that exist in the real world, being trained with a goals system (that you can take into the real world), and that train you in retail. It is an unbelievable advantage. I would definently look for those qualities in a school. In a salon/spa, retail can account for a good chunk of your income, so being familiarized and getting comfortable making sales come naturally is great.
I visited a few different schools before I chose. While the SOCIAL experience was not my favorite at the school (nor how they ran it), I am so happy with the training I received (and that's what really matters in the end). Look up a school's reputation online (Yellowpages.com and Local.Yahoo.com sometimes have feedback), ask around at local salons/spas that are similar to the ones that you would like to someday work in for their opinion on the most valuable skills and what school's they prefer to hire graduates from. Bring a clipboard, ask to speak to an owner, manager..if you can't get one of them, just ANYONE who can speak to you.
These helped me out a lot. The clipboard thing may sound a little geeky, but trust me, they have people come in to ask questions all the time, and it's best to be informed so you can be the best you can be.
Let me know how it goes!