Is the Carlton Institute any good? I want extra training in acylics

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Blimey a good thing said about Carlton, phewww am doing my 1 day UV/acrylic course in September and wondered if i had done the right thing by going with them for a moment then.

I have opted to do IHBC as am already IHBC qualified Beauty Therapist, instead of NVQ , not sure how they differ really, gosh didnt have NVQ's when i was training back in 1990..

I would gone with Creative but 5 day course a no no, am a single parent cant do it as it mean prob going away for liek 5 days, pointless coming to and fro when it takes over an each way !!

So lucky for me that Carlton opened their Exmouth training courses which is alot better all round :O)..Not many places for Nail training in North Devon it seems.

anyway good luck on your courses.. xx

Sara
 
I posted a reply on the other thread with a similar title. I'm definately not commenting on the Carlton Inst but have given a guideline on training requirements
 
Good luck with your Creative training , if i were in your shoes i would say youve picked the correct course,if i could turn back time i would of done Creative and not Carlton.
 
Good luck with your Creative training , if i were in your shoes i would say youve picked the correct course,if i could turn back time i would of done Creative and not Carlton.

Bit confused am decided to do the Carlton :o/
 
I trained at the carlton in may this year i paid over £1200 inc kits to do my nvq ihbc nail services, i must admit i did a lot of searching on the internet before booking my course and i was not very happy with the training tbh. i was really peeved when they passed a girl who left my nails all lumpy and bumpy that i removed it as soon as i got home that night, i couldnt believe that a course that cost so much has such a low quality control in its passing of students, i will be doing further training with either nsi or creative. It doesnt help that the carlton only train you using uv acrylic so you have no idea how to apply the air dry acrylics as the uv stuff doesnt set until under a lamp like normal.
they dont teach pink and whites or anything else and their nail art course and ear piercing leave a lot to be desired. god i could have a good rant about this.
we had and hour each morn on theory then a test then practical where we only got to do one practise nail each which isnt enough imo.
I am a perfectionist and they didnt like that i would take my time to make sure i filed just right and when one of the trainers said that she couldnt tell the difference between the nail i had done and the one the trainer had done made me feel good about my work but worried at the standard of training iykwim.
I wouldnt recomend them they are too expensive and overrated and the kits are way too expensive as you need to buy more stuff while you are there as they dont include all you need to get started!!
hth
 
Dear all, I came upon this discussion by pure chance and would value anyones advice on what to do. I live in France with my family and we have 2 holiday gites. I wanted to take some beauty and massage courses in order to offer the guests extra services as part of the holiday. I found Carlton and thought that they were appropriate for me as they offered International Qualifications that I was reassured were reconized world wide. It wasn't until I had completed the courses 2006 and asked Carlton would they be reconized in France that the problems started. They couldn't confirm that they would be reconized. I asked them how could they call them International if they didn't know which countries they were reconized in and if there were any exceptions shouldn't they be highlighting them. They then passed me onto VTCT who told me to check with the "french authorities" who ever they are! to see if these qualifications would be reconized. Any way the bottom line is I was getting nowhere and had paid a lot of money so decided to continue. Last November 2007 I took my exams and assessment. I passed all of them and on the day I asked Carltion if my certificates could be translated into French and again they put onto VTCT as they were an International Organisation and held courses in diffrerent countries etc. Again I got nowhere.... I have now received my certificates/diplomas and am so disappointed. They look as if they could have been printed off the internet on cheap paper. Some have the IIHHT/IHBC badge on them but don't say that its a Diploma and non of them actually say its an International qualification. The facial certificate has no badge no mention of Diploma or International. I am so depressed I don't know what to do or who to complain to. I've been worrying about this for the last few days. My main gripe right from the start is that when I was making the initial enquiries why didn't Carlton tell me to check first to see if these qualifications would be reconized by France. Anyway as I write this I'm getting even more depressed. Can anybody suggest something that I can do about this? I feel as if I've been a right mug!
Regards Bal
 
I would go with a good nail company if I were you I only wish I had found this site first before I spent out £700 with Herts and Essex Accademy. I only learnt the basics I nearly went to the place you are talking about but then went with herts and essex.

Think yourself lucky that you have found this site first before spending all this money out!!!!

Do some searches on this site and I am sure you will find where you want to go.

Caz xxx:)

i too attended the hearts and essex acadamy, load of rubbish, spent over a £1000 for a few days and new nothing, that was about 5 years ago, im now doing things the right way and attending collage, just wish i had done it this way in the first place.
jellytot1978:)
 
A big NO NO where the Carlton Institute is involved, sorry but I threw away about £800 studying there and learned nothing. The tutor I had was so busy chatting to her friend than watching us and I was getting seriously wound up, still smacking myself for not saying anything to her.

I could have done a Creative L&P and Brisa Course with that money!!!!

Hun, you're much better off studying with companies that specialise in what ever treatments you're looking at doing :hug:

xxxx
Hi,im another def. thumbs down with Carlton, i wasted £800 too, wish id gone to Creative with my doe, the group was too big and when you looked for help...where was the tutor???When i came to doing the nvq2 from home some of the questions covered work in a salon...i dont and cant get work in a salon...so ive just left it at the mo,seems such a waste,and i had to pay extra for it.:mad:

The only thing that i thought was good with them was if you didnt understand any of the course you could go back and do it again,f.o.c,but i could of done with goin back half a dozen times.Such alot to take in in 4 days,they didnt cover nail disorders very well ,and how to paint a manicure properly,and to name a few other things that ive had to find out for myself.:confused:
 
i've yet to hear a good thing about the carlton institute

my advice would be to research alot before picking training options
 
Crumbs! What a thread! I am completely new to the nail industry and am looking to set up on my own. Due to the fact that I simply cannot afford to work part time in order to attend a full time day course, I therefore attended the Carlton Institute this weekend (Thurs 17 – Sun 20 January 08) and opted for the NVQ2 Nail Services and International qualification and a short lesson in ear piercing.

I tried to do as much research as possible before booking the course with the Carlton (although I did miss this thread :irked: ) and felt this was the only way I could learn with the time I had available and with none of my local colleges offering evening courses (Tunbridge Wells, Kent). I also read The Complete Nail Technician book before I attended in the hope that I would be better prepared.

As for the tutor I found her very knowledgeable having worked in the industry for 30 years. She was attentive to our work and did not get side tracked. A lot of emphasis was placed on health and safety and high standards of application. It was stressed throughout that she did not expect perfection as this was the first day that everyone used the tools and products but was very keen to ensure that we noticed what we did wrong and knew what we would need to do to rectify that next time and to be very conscious to safely apply to products to the nail. I did feel that having read the textbook before hand made a great difference and perhaps it helped me gain more from the course than if I had approached it cold!?!

The course covered manicure, pedicure, applications of nail tips with a gentle gel and (normal) gel overlay, liquid and powder, figerglass, silk, nail art and ear piercing. All the gels and powers were clear. A separate course is offered for pinks and whites but I ‘understand’ that is an advanced technique to cover once we have grasped the above. I think they are hoping to incorporate it into NVQ 3 Nail Services in the next few months. However after reading the above thread I am not so sure if I will now attend…

I think the key with Carlton is to be realistic as to what you are expecting from it. It is not going to give you what a full time course will and does not claim to. It is more of a doorway to enable you to dedicate lots of your own time to perfecting techniques and making you aware of safety and potential dangers.

Having said all that I do think everyone has made some very valid comments, and I am conscious that I don’t have anything else to compare the course to, so I could be very wrong – it might have been really rubbish – I simply can’t tell. All I can say is I felt the tutor gave all she could with the time available. I am working on the basis that if my own standards are the highest they can possibly be HOPEFULLY that will carry me through to providing a really high quality service, but as some of you well experienced nail geeks may now know that may simply not be enough.

From what I have read I think I will aim to study as many of the text books as I can for now and have a play with the products on some practice nails (it’s probably best I don’t practice on friends and family yet :eek: ) and try and get a good understanding of how each system works and how to manipulate the products as I found gel had a mind of its own :rolleyes: I think I will definitely be looking at Creative for some further training before I start compiling my portfolio so I don’t get into any bad habits!!!

I think only after I have done a course with Creative will I really be able to judge the merits of Carlton. I just hope that Creative hold classes on evenings and weekends – otherwise I’m on my own. :cry:

Fingers crossed :)
 
I think the Carlton is definatley a worth while option for many people looking to start out in beauty who cannot commit to a full or part-time course. I did the nail technician course back in 1999 and some beauty courses and have continued on to do nvq's etc.

I am now an assessor for nvq's and our trainee's all study on the job which i think is a much better option but after the Carlton i found it enough to start offering basic nail treatments to paying clients. My extensions were a bit rubbish at this time but at least it got me started and i understood about all the different systems available and could decide which course to pursue. Also on my course some people did fail so i don't think they pass everyone but the standard for these courses like with nvq's is not 'perfect'.

I'm sure its not the best option for everyone but i wanted a quick course which enabled me to get insurance and get stuck in and thats what i got. You don't get a lot of time to practice but you do get a detailed insight into the theory and health & safety.

I also went back years later to do a quick lash perming course and found that perfectly detailed enough for my needs.

Hope this helps a bit.
Lilac
 
Hiya Hun

Having just finished a course there in October thinking I knew everything, I have now come to find I know very little, and wish I had spent the money elsewhere, the kit was full of cheap products which I have had to replace, and you are taught using uv acrylic which I was not told before, so I feel I need retraining but having spent £1200 have to now learn the hard way...

Hope this helps to make your decision :green:
 
Iv'e just enrolled in a hot stone course with Carlton in Feb, I do hope it is worth the money. I didn't spot this thread until this afternoon.:rolleyes:
 
Hi,

Im new to this. I've been doing nails on and off for the last 6 years. Learnt from another nail Tech. I was about to register for the 5 day Carlton Institute course, and was lookin up the one in Windsor when I found all of you saying how bad it is.

I have done the home learn courses, but wanted formal qualifications, so I can get insurance. Can you reccomend any reputable people who do this type of thing. The idea was so that I can have someone who can help me to check my techniques are correct, and learn all the systems as I only do gel at the moment.

Please help:lol:
 
I am currently doing my home studies with the Carlton Institute, and yes everyone is right! Alot of money spent to do a 3day course for such an intense subject. I also took all the other beauty therapy courses available there and I am really starting to regret it along with the money spent.

Can anyone advise me on a good company to train with?

Lau xxxx
 
Hi,

Im new to this. I've been doing nails on and off for the last 6 years. Learnt from another nail Tech. I was about to register for the 5 day Carlton Institute course, and was lookin up the one in Windsor when I found all of you saying how bad it is.

I have done the home learn courses, but wanted formal qualifications, so I can get insurance. Can you reccomend any reputable people who do this type of thing. The idea was so that I can have someone who can help me to check my techniques are correct, and learn all the systems as I only do gel at the moment.

Please help:lol:

CND(creative nail design ) are suposed to be fab chick , all the other geeks on here rave about it ! U will also be able to get insurance after the course .
 
I have just done a 5 day nail tech course there, but I went into it with no illusions that I would learn perfect nails in 5 days. It was a good option for me as I felt it is important to get recognised qualifications and I just cannot commit to a college course, as I work every week day.
It was not fantastic, but it did what it said on the tin and taught me the basics. I realised before i went that i would need product training after, and that's fine, but at least i will have the NVQ.

So i think as long as you don't go there expecting to come out with the ability to do salon perfect nails straight away, and that further practice is required then it's fine.

Agree on the kit though, RRRubbish, If anyone is thinking of doing a course with the Carlton, be sure to ask for a price minus the kits!!
 
If you are already trained hun I would highly recommend a conversion course with CND dont waste your money with the carlton!
Jen xx
 
Wow, this is some thread! I am looking to do electrolysis and its really hard to get a training provider in scotland. I thought about the carlton but heard a few bad things about them, this thread has just confirmed things for me. Soes anyone know anyone in scotland that does electrolysis training?
 
I am soooo glad you asked this question, I was just about to enlist on numerous courses!

Now I shall look elsewhere :)
 

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