Cosmetology Today: Not Your Mother’s Beauty School

In recent years, cosmetology degree programs are becoming more popular than ever before. The relative recession-proof status of cosmetology careers in today’s economy is absolutely a major draw to these programs, but another draw is the changing reputation of beauty schools themselves. The days of seeing these schools as “lesser alternatives” to four-year universities are fading fast, and the rising breadth and quality of cosmetology schools has only helped the cause.

This is beauty school, 2009.

The number of people seeking beauty careers has risen significantly, especially in the last three years, said Jim Cox, executive director of the American Association of Cosmetology Schools, based in Scottsdale, Ariz. “A lot of new schools are opening up; there are close to 2,000 in the U.S.,” he said. “It used to be most schools were small and privately owned, but now brand names like Paul Mitchell and Aveda are also getting into the business.”

Cosmetology has changed much over the last 20 years. The curriculum still includes the basics — hair, skin and nails — but also training in massage, wellness and skin care (known as esthetics). “Ten years ago, if you said the word ‘esthetician’ people would say, ‘What is that?’ ” observed Lynelle Lynch, owner of Bellus Academy. “The industry is much more sophisticated than it once was.”

As beauty school changes, so to do its perceptions:

Public perception of the industry has also changed. “The old stereotype that only kids that can’t get into college go to beauty school — that’s gone,” Mr. Cox said.

And some hair stylists, like John Frieda, and makeup artists, like Bobbi Brown, are now celebrities. That has helped to give the profession a cachet it didn’t have a generation ago, many people in the industry say.

With a fresh new look and state-of-the-art education, coursework in cosmetology has become a track one follows not because of limited options, but because it is the option they choose for themselves — and as fair a ticket to success as any other out there.

Tags: careers