How long does it take you????

[Suzy Q]

I'm coming to the end of my VTCT Nail Tech course, and I had my assessment for tips and overlays last night. I feel really gutted at the moment because I failed due to the fact it took me 2 hours and 15 minutes to complete them when VTCT state it should take and hour and a half!!!! Is it just me, or do you find it unreasonable for them to expect you to do a decent job in an hour and a half?? I feel really deflated! The whole course was a mess from the start! We began manicures in January, and spent over 4 months concentrating on that, then started nail enhancements mid May. I feel that the whole nail enhancements section has been rushed. The course has already been extended because our first lecturer was sacked for taking too many sickies, and I've been going in for an extra night every week just to get some extra practice, but theres no way I'm going to get it down to an hour and a half!!!

Sorry for my rant, but right now I feel that I won't pass and everything will have been wasted! I do want to convert to Creative later, but I don't think my knowledge is good enough, and apparently I have to have the VTCT/NVQ to work in the borough where I live, or I would have gone straight with Creative! Grrrr!!!!

Sue

 

[buttonmoon]

ive been doing nails for over a year now, and i very rarely do a set in 1.5 hrs
i leave two hours when i book in a client
x

 

[Cameo Val]

Well that would put me out. It takes my 1+ 3/4 hours to do a set. When I was doing them before and had lots of regular clients I could do them in 11/2 but if there was anything slightly out of the ordionary then that would slow me down a bit. I know that many can do them in 1 hour but I just cant, dont know what I am doing wrong, but to be honest, I think that clients would rather have a longer appointment time rather than feel that the nails were put on and rushed. I suppose if I was doing them all day, every day, I might get faster, but Im not.

I remember Geeg saying that the time taken is not important, its the quality of the finished nail thats important.

Dont despair. Can you resit the exam or what.

 

[louise]

Hi Hon,

I usually take between 1.5~2hours but its normally 2hours. Don't feel deflated i feel it's unreasonable to do nails in this set time you should be allowed to work at your own steady pace, i think time should not be an issue when you first start its the quality of the nails that you are looking at.

What do you have to do now to pass?

 

[Suzy Q]

I don't think I will be able to resit the exam because there are only two weeks of the course left! I have to do fibreglass overlays tomorrow (don't know how long they'll give us for that), and infills for the tips and overlays I did yesterday. My lecturer is normally really reasonable though, and I'll have a chat with him tomorrow to find out what my options are. When we did our manicure assessments, we had 45 minutes to complete it. I did mine in 55 minutes and he let me off and knocked 10 minutes off because he could see we were competant. I guess he couldn't really let me off an extra 45 minutes....

 

[louise]

I did my VTCT Diploma 2 years ago & as far as i can remember we werent judged on our times.

However i am aware different colleges do differ.

Surely though if you cant resit it that doesnt mean that all your hard work is for nothing. Are they saying you will fail on one of the most important parts of your course?

 

[Northern Nails]

Does it state in your assessment book that they have to be completed in 1 1/2. if not then you shouldn't really be asked to. Have a word with your tutor and tell him your concerns, maybe their are others on your course who are feeling the same as you.

 

[chandasnailz]

Do not let this get you down. I do not think that you should be judged on your time, but the quality of your set. The only thing that will help your time is experience. We were instructed that it will take you 100 sets b4 you felt you were really competent at what you were doing. Not sure who your instructor is but that sounds unreasonable for a beginner. I wish you the best in the rest of your course.

Chanda

 

[Suzy Q]

Thanks for your advice everyone. I will check my assessment book tonight to see if it does say we have to complete it in an hour and a half. I really do hope this doesn't mean that I have failed because I've put so much hard work, time and money into this. In the meantime, I'm trying to find another model for Monday's lesson so I can have a go at the tips and overlay again just in case he says I'll fail without it. My sister is doing the same course as me and is in the same position. Our lecturer is really helpful and understanding though (unlike the one we had before), and I'll tell him that I'm ripping my hair out with worry and hopefully we'll be able to sort something out! I also agree that when you're learning, timing shouldn't be the most important factor, it should be to produce a good set of nails.

 

[welshrarebit]

Hi

I completed my VTCT in June and I questioned the timing of the assessments because at first we were told that we had an hour and half to do a full set of tips and overlays and I felt that this wasnt long enough.

When it came to doing our assessments we were told we had 2 hours to complete our assignments but when it actually came down to it some people on the course actually took longer and were not failed for this.

I dont think it does say in the VTCT handbook that you do have a specific time limit (within reason) but I havent got my handbook with me as it has had to go off for checking with the EV.

It sounds to me like your course has been rushed due to outside influences i.e your first tutor being off sick etc and therefore you the pupils should not be penalised for this by being rushed through your assessments. This is putting undue pressure on you, and is totally unfair.

Good Luck

Love

Debbie xxx

 

[Kimmie]

Hi Suzy,
I finished my VTCT course the same as yours earlier in the year. We never had a time limit. Our tutor told us that we had to do what we could with the time given. Yes some people finished in 1 3/4 hours and others still hadn't finished all 10 nails by the time the class had finished. However, our tutor told us she was looking for the correct application and technique. Also because of the case studies we had done at home, which had to be filled in with timings she had a good idea if we were competent. I do not agree that you should have been timed and surely the competence in understanding what you are doing, health & safety, correct proceedure and application is a lot more important than being able to get a set of 10 nails done in an hour and a half.
I feel that our tutor gave us encouragement to succeed. She told us that some people would take to it like a duck to water, where others would need time. We also never believed that we would be professionals at the end of the course, but would be better in 3 - 6 months given a lot of practice. I feel the course has taught me a lot of good ground work and you can only go on to better yourself.
I certainly would take up the subject of timings with your tutor because although different colleges do things in different ways, surely the standards, learning and exams are all based the same way as set out by VTCT, and not the individual tutors.
Good luck though, From Kimmie

 

[ZOE!]

i think your time is not bad cosidering you havent spent that long of a time doing nails. I remember doing my mums for the first time and it took me about 4 hours- probably longer. But they came out fine in the end, just lifting a few days later. Now i am still taking slightly longer 2.5 hours. But i remember when i did lots of people in one day and by the last person i got down to two hours. So it is just down to practice it think. I cant believe they expected you to do a set in that time for your exam.

 

[Suzy Q]

Thanks, you've all been really helpful!

I was soooo disappointed with the nails I did because I had to rush them, and now my poor neice has to walk around with nails that I'm not happy with because I have to do her infils next week!

 

[derry moody]

In the past year or 2 all of the C & G and VTCT qualification standards were re addressed and re set many units had time constraints put against practical Assessments, and ALL assessors where I was working at the time were warned that the time allocations set down were MAXIMUM and that assessments were to be stopped even if a student went 1 min over the time, this came form the External Verifier!!! so out of the hands of the assessors and colleges! From my point of view as a assessor I always would look for quality in a students work but the qualifications specifications had to be adhered to otherwise it would make the qualification completely lack any standardisation

I can defiantly see both sides to this one!!!!!!



Derry

I did my VTCT Diploma 2 years ago & as far as i can remember we werent judged on our times.

However i am aware different colleges do differ.

Surely though if you cant resit it that doesnt mean that all your hard work is for nothing. Are they saying you will fail on one of the most important parts of your course?

 

[louise]

In the past year or 2 all of the C & G and VTCT qualification standards were re addressed and re set many units had time constraints put against practical Assessments, and ALL assessors where I was working at the time were warned that the time allocations set down were MAXIMUM and that assessments were to be stopped even if a student went 1 min over the time, this came form the External Verifier!!! so out of the hands of the assessors and colleges! From my point of view as a assessor I always would look for quality in a students work but the qualifications specifications had to be adhered to otherwise it would make the qualification completely lack any standardisation


WOW!!!

So glad i did mine when i did, cause to be truthfulwith you i don't think anyone on my course did them in 1.5 hours~ we would have all failed! All that hard work for nothing. I strongly feel that its the effort & quality that you put in surely the timings come later as with more practice & clients. :green:

 

[Suzy Q]

In the past year or 2 all of the C & G and VTCT qualification standards were re addressed and re set many units had time constraints put against practical Assessments, and ALL assessors where I was working at the time were warned that the time allocations set down were MAXIMUM and that assessments were to be stopped even if a student went 1 min over the time, this came form the External Verifier!!! so out of the hands of the assessors and colleges! From my point of view as a assessor I always would look for quality in a students work but the qualifications specifications had to be adhered to otherwise it would make the qualification completely lack any standardisation

I can defiantly see both sides to this one!!!!!!



Derry

I think I've had it then! With the practice time and number of lessons we've had, I don't think I'll ever produce a good set in an hour and a half:cry: . My prep and tip application still takes me just over an hour!!

 

[Sal]

Suzy - I know how you feel! I am still taking 3 hours (sometimes more :sad: ) to do a full set of tip and overlay l&p, I have noone to practice on and I am due to rent a room in a sunbed shop within the next 2 months!!!

I've been assured by others that I just need to get in there and get "bums on seats" and I will speed up.

Scary though xxx

 

[Fingertips ND]

I used to take 2 1/2 hours at college, 3 hours on a client (longer if I knew them) and now I can do a set in under 2 hours!

You will get there eventually!

 

[cobweb]

when i first started i used to take three hours to do a full set, but now it takes about an hour and a half but that is just experience. i book 90 minutes for each client and just give myself a break in the middle of the day.

Deb x x x

 

[Necie]

Hello Susie,

First of all, I don't believe that you get your TRUE training in the school. I believe you really get your training in the REAL world. I have been doing Nails for 13 years. I stopped for 3 years, got married, moved to another city, went back to Nail school (because here in FL, if your license goes more than 2 years and are not renewed, you have to go back to school), and I can still do nails in a hour and a half.

I believe once you learn the trick of the trade, then you will find your way around many things that you are taught in school.

Don't worry about it for right now, but in the future you must remember "time is money". And you don't want to limit yourself to only a few clients a day. Be patient, and learn as much as you can now.

Don't worry, you will be just fine.

Necie
Florida