Am I too old to train in hairdressing?

[Debbie1982]

Hello

I'm after people advice/input. At the Grand old age of 39 I am thinking of training in Hairdressing. Looking at Derby college I think I'd be able to do a Diploma level 2, then 3 in the evenings & Weekend. My end goal would be to have a home salon that way I can work around my 2 toddlers schooling etc.

My main concern is that I am too old to train? I will be 40 when I am able to enrol (Sept 2022) assuming I'd even get accepted in to college.

I've tried to look for private training providers that offer the Diplomas at a quicker speed (so no half term breaks etc) but there doesn't appear to be any in Nottingham.

Has anyone on here trained in Hairdressing at my age? Any tips, advise, words of wisdom?

 

[AcidPerm]

No, you’re definitely not too old, but don’t assume a couple of years of college training is all that’s needed.

I re-trained in my mid-forties doing a fast track course at my local college aimed at mature students. I completed Level 2, then Level 3 and then attended an advanced intensive course at the Sassoon Academy in London.

Bear in mind that it’s very unlikely that you will be salon ready at the end of Level 2 or probably Level 3 either. College hairdressing training teaches you the basic technical aspects of cutting/colouring/styling etc. and then you need to add roughly the same amount of time on again for practising, to hone your skills. If you want to set up your own (home) salon, you’ll ideally need to have some real life salon experience behind you before setting up on your own.

Here’s a list of search results so you can read through the various threads where this topic has been discussed before. That way you’ll get a decent range of answers.

https://www.salongeek.com/search/695220/?q=Too+old+to+train+in+hairdressing&o=relevance

 

[adamlea87]

Totally agree with everything @AcidPerm has said. If you are running your own business in your home then you will need to be confident in all aspects of hairdressing. If you have money to throw at private training this will help a lot but experience takes time to build you as a stylist.