Hi everybody,

I am 34 and have decided to retrain as a beauty therapist but I would like to get opinions about the job and the training before taking it further.
I work 6 days a week 13h/day so can t really do any part time courses.
I ve found a course with Open Beauty Learning and it is basically a 10 days course awarded with NVQ level 2 in beauty therapy. The course is only for 10 days which seems great.
I know after this qualification I will need to get more practical experience.
What do you think?
And isn t my age an obstacle?

Thanks

Your age is defintely not an obstacle!! i was 40 when I began my level 2 in beauty therapy and have never looked back. I love it, the best decision I ever made and now have added nails, level 3 beauty and holistics to my skills.

I do wonder about a 10 day course though. I did a 40 week course, 7 hours per week and I wouldnt have wanted any less time. Could you ask anyone who has done the 10 day course how it was? Also is it VTCT, City and Guilds etc and is the course Industry reconised?

I don't think your age is an obstacle at all.With a course like this though i do think you need to be very careful as its all very well getting a qualification but will a short course like this leave you with the confidence to be able to work on people and also will you actually be employable.

Its such a competitive industry and most salons will be looking to employ someone with nvq level 3.

I have noticed more and more top places actually now want cibtac as i think they know that vtct and city and guilds have dumbed down their training.

You may have fantastic trainers on these courses but what you won't have is the ongoing experience of working on different people every week.

There is so much to learn to be qualified in all areas of beauty therapy i do not see its possible in 10 days to come out witha worthwhile qualification you may find you cannot work afterwards and may have wasted your money.

Hi, Thanks..
I just know the course qualification is NVQ level 2 beauty therapy and the awarding body is VOCATIONAL TRAINING CHARITABLE TRUST.

They are widely recognised qualifications so ok there but its still doubtful as to how good they could possibly be.
You say you work many hours but you might be better off biting the bullet and cutting down to do a part time college course,after all if you took this short course you are still going to have to practice at some point.
When retraining there arn't always any easy options.
As a job i love it and wouldn't do anything else but if you work in a salon its generally poorly paid and if you work for yourself there is a lot of initial expense for equipment and it takes a long time to build up a decent client base.

hi,
i definatley don't think your age is an issue, i'm only 19 but when i trained there were people there of all ages and to be honest i think its sometimes what clients prefer having someone a bit more mature so i wouldnt worry about that.
i'm also not sure about your 10day training course, it will ll depend how quick you pick things up and how good your trainer is. i think you learn the foundations when you train but the real stuff doesn't click untill you are actually thrown in their and get on with it. i've worked with girls who have done a 2 year full time course at college and are hopeless!
good luck x

Thanks everybody, I know I will have to get more practical experience with this 10 day course. I was thinking of finding a salon willing to train me after this course or it s not a good idea?

I truly think you will find that very difficult.Salons have a hard time of it as it is finding good staff.It would be nice to think someone would give you a chance after a 10 day course but there are loads of girls with nvq 3 after the same jobs have a look at recruitment in the papers and on the net for the beauty therapy jobs they always want level 3.Its so you can do body treatments.

Have to totally agree with alibarr, ten days really is not enough to learn everything. Have u tried your local college hun, they offer the nvq course of an evening and u will get so much from it and will love it hunxxxx

Hi I am 36 and am doing the VTCT beauty specialist course. My course is quite involved with regards health safety and beauty procedures are concerned. I guess it depends on your trainers, mine are excellent and i can always ring them if i have question. Have you any beauty experience? I did hair and beauty when i left school but i left before i took any qualifications so it fitted in quite well with me. If i can be of any help please let me know. Good luck! Paula

Hi again
It is the same qual that I did though as I said I did one full day a week for 40 weeks and would not have wanted any less.....

and thanks for your replies, I do appreciate it.
All your answers made me think about this 10 day course and it doesnt seem to be such a good idea any more. I think now I have to cut off my hours and try to get a course in a local college.
Thanks again xx

Hi hun, i am sure you can do an evening course at your local college chic, so u might not need to cur down your hours after allxxxx

Is it just 10days and that's it or have you got coursework and assessments to do as well?

I'd be a bit sceptical if it was just 10 days and nothing else. I'm actually doing NVQ at a private college where i do a lot of the theory work at home in my own time and go into the college for practical and assessments. Means i can work at my own pace when i have time to do the work at home and can arrange the college dates with days off work etc.

I'm also 34 and can't wait to be qualified so i can start my new life!! Good luck and best wishes Nikxx